Generic term for music which became popular in the 20th c., mostly via modern mass media (records, broadcast, TV), while formally leaning on traditional music. Frequently, it deals with social or political issues and is not intended to be mere entertainment. Although many, particularly American folk songs are internationally acknowledged, many are also closely attached to their original cultures in a nostalgic way (yearning for lost homes/childhood places, etc.). In sharp contrast with Classical music and Romanticism, folk music is open for the active participation of „amateurs,“ either by singing or by use of „popular“ instruments, such as guitars or recorders. Therefore, folk music goes extremely well with the ukulele.