Workers' Song Research and Folk Revival in the Eastern Bloc

This Element explores workers' song research, a dominant strand of music scholarship in the Eastern Bloc and one of the earliest to engage with musical practices beyond the domains of art music and peasant folklore. It traces the institutionalization of this field, the changing interests of its representatives, and the ways in which, from the 1960s onward, they built regional networks and established dialogue with actors of the Western folk revival. Through these networks and exchanges, the repertoires and key performers of the international folk scene gained visibility behind the Iron Curtain. Yet the 'folk revival' assumed an ambivalent character there, as communist governments and cultural institutions sought to appropriate and elevate it to a central position within the popular music sphere. The study focuses primarily on Hungary, East Germany, and Czechoslovakia, highlighting the role of local scholars in linking different musical traditions and in shaping state-sponsored folk scenes.