Polyphonic voices: National identity, world music and the recording of traditional music in Corsica

Following a brief introduction tracing the interplay of changing socio‐political conditions and musical tastes behind the Corsican cultural revival of the past two decades and the extensive recording activity which has resulted, this article goes on to discuss recent recordings of traditional vocal music—in particular polyphony—and the way in which performers’ political and artistic motivations and ideologies inform their interpretation of the songs. Implications of the medium itself for performance practice are also addressed. I then consider the nature of field recordings and associated issues and propose the complementarity of field recordings and commercial recordings as material for ethno‐musicological study. Questions of authenticity, the nature of “tradition” and the reception of recordings by insular audiences are also raised. The spirit behind my analysis is not to show how traditions might be subverted, but rather to investigate and suggest some of the many ways in which the process of musical evolution can operate.