Episode #3.4 - There Were Two Sisters

About this episode

This episode explores the origins and variations of the murder ballad 'Twa Sisters' across different cultures.

A harrowing murder ballad in which an older sister shoves her younger sister in the water (and sometimes a musician makes an instrument from the drowned girl's corpse) can be found all over Great Britain, North America, and Scandinavia. But where did it originally come from? And how has the story changed as it's traveled across seas? Find out in this episode of Folk Files, all about "Twa Sisters." Host: Olivia Harding Learn more about the Spokane Fall Folk Festival: https://www.spokanefolkfestival.org/ For more on this ballad, check out the In the Roud podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pj8x5X1kCc0 Support Folk Files: https://www.patreon.com/FolkFilesPodcast Special thanks to Aaron J. Morton For a full list of musical excerpts associated with this episode, head to the episode page on the new Folk Files website: https://folkfilespodcast.com/uncategorized/episode-3-4/

People in this episode

Host: Olivia Harding

Topics covered

• murder ballad
• folk music
• cultural history
• storytelling
• ballad origins

Keywords

• Twa Sisters
• murder ballad
• folk music
• cultural variations
• history

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Spokane Fall Folk Festival, In the Roud podcast

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• Bonus Episode: The Ballad World of Anna Gordon · December 5, 2025 · 46 min
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