What is the function of the music? What role does it serve in the lives of the performer and his or her audience? How is the “group” defined that uses it—age, sex, occupation?

Where is the music performed—on the street, in a home, in a church, in a rural or urban setting? How is this context reflected in the music?

What is the history of the musical form? Have similar examples been found in other parts of the country or in other cultures?