There are many free services available to watch Folk Music programming; these include:
- Public Broadcasting Service (PBS)
- Kanopy Streaming Service
- Youtube
Public Broadcasting Service (PBS)
Either on your local PBS station, or online with a PBS membership, a number of programs exist that cover music, dance, and other arts.
David Holt’s State of Music features music from emerging young artists as well as veteran masters. The series showcases the musical heritage of Southern Appalachia and introduces bluegrass, roots music, blues, new acoustic, and gospel music.
Loreena McKennitt A Moveable Musical Feast backstage look at one of World music’s most interesting live acts. Candid behind-the-scenes interviews with Loreena, her band, crew and colleagues reveal the rigors of touring. Also available on Youtube.
My Music with Rhiannon Giddens Grammy winner and MacArthur “Genius Grant” recipient Rhiannon Giddens hosts a half-hour series of musical performances and conversation with innovative and accomplished musicians and storytellers.
Prairie Musicians features musical groups and solo musicians from the prairie region who perform original music.
The Caverns Sessions is taped deep within a subterranean amphitheater in Tennessee’s Cumberland Mountains. This series features long-established and emerging artists within a broad spectrum of genres.
The Express Way with Dulé Hill captures diverse artists’ stories from across America, celebrating community, humanity, and the transformative potential of creative expression.
Kanopy Streaming Service
Kanopy is FREE thanks to generous support of public and university libraries. To signup click here; a library card number and PIN/password is needed. Enjoy thousands of movies, documentaries, and Great Courses. Not everything listed may be available based on your library’s agreement with Kanopy.
Acoustic Fingerstyle: Folk & Americana series of instructional programs will teach the skills needed to master the acoustic style of fingerpicking patterns for Folk and Americana.
America’s Musical Heritage Learn how to listen to the music of America. Produced in collaboration with Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, 12 episodes explore more than 200 years of music from Scott Joplin, the Memphis Jug Band, Woody Guthrie, and others.
Asiklar: Those Who Are In Love Documentary about minstrels who have been part of Turkish culture for hundreds of years. Ashiks sing stories and poems, accompanying themselves on the saz. Their music are essential elements of countryside life.
Echo In The Canyon Celebrate the explosion of popular music that came out of LA’s Laurel Canyon in the mid-60s as folk went electric and The Byrds, The Beach Boys, Buffalo Springfield and The Mamas and the Papas gave birth to the California Sound.
Extraordinary Ordinary People: Folk and Traditional Arts in America focuses on the National Heritage Fellowship and awardees. The film demonstrates the importance of folk and traditional arts in shaping the fabric of America.
Folktale From Two Lands From opposite ends of the globe come two animated tales illustrating that the wishes and fantasies of people are similar folk themes the world over.
Genghis Blues Academy Award nominee, official Selection at the Sundance Film Festival and the San Francisco International Film Festival, the film follows San Francisco bluesman, Paul Peña, as he makes a musical pilgrimage to the land of Tuva.
Jamesie, King of Scratch: A Spirited Musical Journey to the U. S. Virgin Islands The grass-roots folk music from the U.S. Virgin Islands, Quelbe lyrics, are a form of oral history relaying the day-to-day trials and tribulations of living on a small Caribbean island.
Phil Ochs: There But For Fortune Over a meteoric music career that spanned two turbulent decades, Phil Ochs sought the bright lights of fame and social justice in equal measure – a contradiction that eventually tore him apart.
Sound of Heimat: The Roots of German Folk Music In a musical road movie New Zealand-born musician Hayden Chisholm sets off on a discovery trail of German folk music.
The Art and Music of Iceland Explores the prevalence of animals and landscapes in paintings, the country’s vibrant street art and mural scene, the ways Icelandic folk music blends poetry and melody, and more.
The Music of Strangers: Yo-Yo Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble An international collective created by acclaimed cellist Yo-Yo Ma, exemplifies music’s ability to blur geographical boundaries, blend disparate cultures and inspire hope for both artists and audiences.
The Spirituals: American Spirituals, Music and Slavery A musical art form, the American Spiritual, has survived generations and continue to inspire all over the world. “We Shall Overcome” is still heard wherever there is a struggle against social injustice.
This Ain’t No Mouse Music Roots music icon Chris Strachwitz discovered, and shared, a musical landscape most Americans missed. He has carried his tape recorder from sharecrop shacks to roadside honkytonks, from cantina dives to wild Blues clubs.
Transatlantic Sessions: Best of Folk 28 stellar artists from North America, Scotland and Ireland perform twelve folk favorites, old and new.
You See Me Laughin: The Last Mississippi Bluesmen A personal journey into the lives and music of the last of the Mississippi hill country bluesmen – farmers and laborers first, musicians second.
Youtube
Exploring English Folk Music created in partnership with the English Folk Dance and Song Society and Wiltshire Music Centre.
Essential Folk playlist featuring a variety of influential and legendary folk sings including Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchel, Leonard Cohen, Joan Baez and more.
Folk Music Playlist curated list with a wide variety of folk music from several decades.
TEDxAFS-Dave Fry The Philosophy of Folk Music Folksinger Dave Fry demonstrates how singing, sharing stories and dancing together promotes trust and a richer sense of our place in society.
When folk music speaks: Ben Hunter at TEDxRainier Folk music is about storytelling. Stories that speak to who we are. Stories about nature, friendships, relationships, love, legends. Stories that define us a community.