author
Frank Kidson
1855–1926
A pioneering English collector of traditional songs, he helped preserve melodies and lyrics that might otherwise have disappeared. His work also made him an important early scholar of music history and publishing.
1 Audiobook
English Folk-Song and Dance
by Frank Kidson, Mary Neal
About the author
Born in Leeds in 1855, Frank Kidson became one of the key figures in the early study and collection of English folk song. He is remembered as a folksong collector, music scholar, writer, and antiquary, and he was among the founders of the Folk-Song Society in 1898.
Kidson published widely on traditional music and on the history of British music printing and publishing. His work helped document songs from England, Scotland, and Ireland at a time when many oral traditions were fading, and his research linked practical collecting with careful historical study.
He died in Leeds in 1926. More than a century later, he is still valued for helping to preserve vernacular song and for shaping the serious study of folk music in Britain.