WALK down any street in France and it won’t be long before you hear music and song from the rich tradition of times past.
You may hear the rhythmic lyrics of the Occitan language, the ancient pipes and drums of Breton or the mystical strains of North African berbère music.
For those who want to explore the music of France further then a new website, Langues de France en Chansons, offers a chance to listen to some incredible musicians.
The site brings together around 75 different French dialects and languages from both mainland France and overseas, including Basque, Breton and Occitan, as well as Judéo-Espagnol, Romani and Yiddish.
Using a train journey as its method of discovering the different musical styles, you are taken past the names, faces and costumes that describe the music and you can click on each one to discover more.
When you go through to an individual page you can listen to a selection of tracks, as well as read articles and interviews about the history of the music as well read how current musicians keep the traditions alive.
My only complaint is that the site requires a broadband connection, less really is more with a site like this, as it is relying on people to have a fast internet connection and a powerful computer when the site is just a collection of articles and music clips.
But if you are able to surmount these technical issues then there is plenty to enjoy, so that next time you are passing an open window in the village you will be able to say, ‘oh yes that’s the music of Alsace’.