New Jersey
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The traditional folk music of Jersey was common in country areas until the mid-20th century. It cannot be separated from the musical traditions of continental Europe, and the majority of songs and tunes that have been documented have close parallels or variants, particularly in France. Most of the surviving traditional songs are in French, with a minority in Jèrriais. The majority of Jèrriais-language songs are composed pieces dating from the 19th and 20th centuries, and not of folk origin. Research conducted in the 20th century also revealed the existence of folk songs in English (eg. “The Greenland Whale Fishery”, “Died for Love”.) Only one folk song is believed to be of specifically Jersey provenance with no variants collected elsewhere: “La Chanson de Peirson”.

Very little survives of an indigenous musical or dance tradition. Written testimony from the 20th century (Frank Le Maistre; George F. Le Feuvre) points to the practice of archaic dance-forms such as the "ronde" or round dance, 18th-century dances such as the cotillon and 19th-century forms such as the polka, the schottische and the quadrille. Dances such as the "Gigoton" and "La Bébée" are both forms of polka. The violin, the chifournie (hurdy-gurdy), and later the accordion were traditional instruments for sonneurs (country dances). The decline of these dances has often been ascribed to the influence of Nonconformist Christianity that discouraged such cultural frivolities, or at least placed such a low value on these activities that they were not thought worth recording. It is more likely that, as in many other parts of Europe, they were a victim of changing fashion and a cultural shift away from traditional regional society and toward English-speaking modernity.

There is also a lot of musical talent shown by the younger community of Jersey. The dominant genres are Indie, Punk and Metal. The main event that these bands take part in is a Battle of the Bands each summer, the most recent winners being No Star Hotel. The bands often have trouble getting their music well known due to the isolation of the island. However, pop singer Nerina Pallot has enjoyed international success.

Music events include the Liberation Jersey Music Festival

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