Note 169 — Chapter II · RHYTHM AS THE ESSENTIAL FACT OF POETRY
Reading edition
The reason why a folksong often fails to have a musical effect, says Böckel in the introduction to his collection of Hessian ballads, p. civ., is because it is taken down from a single singer, whereas all these songs are essentially choral, and need the voices of a throng. This hint is valuable in many directions; for example, see below on social singing at labour.