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Great music -- does everyone knwo that among all his other talents and achievements, Rich was a composer?

He wrote a tune widely used by Morris dance groups for the dance "Three Musketeers." It also goes by the name "Mr. Morse's Morris." Here's the abc:

 

(snip)

I'm not sure if the last 3 notes in the first line are part of the tune or embellishment, but it hardly matters...

I put a standard musical notation (dots, spots) plus my version of the chords, under Tunes and Songs.

Enjoy this little bit of Rich's legacy -- Mike K.

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He wrote a tune widely used by Morris dance groups for the dance "Three Musketeers." It also goes by the name "Mr. Morse's Morris." Here's the abc:

 

X:1
T:Three Musketeers
C:Rich Morse
M:C|
K:G
GABc d2G2|e3e  dBG2|GABc d2g2|edcB AcBA|
GABc d2G2|e3e  dBG2|c2ec dBAG|E2F2 G4  ||
G2G2 E2E2|F2FE D2F2|G2E2 F2D2|E2F2 G2A2|
GABc d2G2|e3e  dBG2|c2ec dBAG|E2F2 G4  |]

 

I'm not sure if the last 3 notes in the first line are part of the tune or embellishment, but it hardly matters...

Greetings from the Red Roof Inn, near the Button Box. The Northeast Concertina Workshop weekend got started tonight with an open house at the BB and when Doug Creighton heard me and Mike K (ragtimer) playing Rich's tune, he handed us photocopies of the composer's manuscript. The handwriting is what you'd expect from someone who's day job was an architect. The tune is a little different from how I learned it (and posted it, above). Some of the differences are likely because I learned it wrong. One looks like it may be an inaccurately written note in the manuscript.

 

Anyway, here is the abc for the tune as Rich penned it, including his chords (and his complete title, including the word, "The").

 

X:2
T:The Three Musketeers
C:Rich Morse
M:C|
K:G
P:A
|: "G"GABc d2d2|"C"e3e "G"dBG2|   GABc	 d2g2|"Am"edcB "D"A2-A2 |
  "G"GABc d2d2|"C"e3e "G"dBG2|"C"c2ec  "G"dcBA|"D7"D2F2 "G"G2-G2:|
P:B
|:"Em"G2G2 E2E2|"D"F2FE   DEF2|"Em"G2E2 "D"F2D2| "C"E2F2 "D7"G2A2 |
  "G"GABc d2d2|"C"e3e "G"dBG2|"C"c2ec  "G"dcBA|"D7"E2F2 "G"G2-G2:|

Editing music is difficult enough when the composer is available to answer questions (isn't that right, Alan?). That not being the case, I wrote what I saw, and offer these notes:

  • The last note in measures 1, 5, and 13 is a d where I learned a G. Folk process at work.
  • My (2nd) guess turned out to be right about the end of measure 4. The notes I posted earlier are an ornament, not part of the tune as Rich wrote it.
  • I have no idea what Rich was trying to do in the 2nd half of measures 4, 8, and 16: Why pairs of tied quarter notes (crochets) instead of half notes (minims)?
  • The 2nd half of measures 7 and 15 is decidedly different from how I learned it. Rich writes it the same way twice, so one has to assume he knew what he was doing and that I learned it wrong. And yet...
  • The first note in measure 8 really looks to be below the E line, making it a D, although eight bars later it is clearly an E in the same context. It is not as completely below the line as the other D's in the tune, however, so my guess is that it should probably be an E. But I wrote what I saw, and it looks like a D, so that's what's in the abc.

I'll ask around at the workshop tomorrow. Maybe someone (Doug?) who knew Rich better can shed light.

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I'll ask around at the workshop tomorrow. Maybe someone (Doug?) who knew Rich better can shed light.

Well, I spoke to Doug about it. He is as puzzled as I am. He was aware of the discrepancies and said "That's not how I play it." I said "But is it how Rich played it? He said "It's been so long since I heard Rich play it, I don't know." So there we are.

 

Great workshop, by the way. Doug dedicated the evening concert to Rich's memory, and several of the performers also mentioned that their performances or particular tunes that they played were also dedicated to Rich.

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I'll ask around at the workshop tomorrow. Maybe someone (Doug?) who knew Rich better can shed light.

Well, I spoke to Doug about it. He is as puzzled as I am. He was aware of the discrepancies and said "That's not how I play it." I said "But is it how Rich played it? He said "It's been so long since I heard Rich play it, I don't know." So there we are.

 

Great workshop, by the way. Doug dedicated the evening concert to Rich's memory, and several of the performers also mentioned that their performances or particular tunes that they played were also dedicated to Rich.

Yes, it was a terrific workshop, with many remembrances of Rich.

 

To add to the confusion over the tune, the women's Morris side, that Rich once coached, performed a fine dance (with the sticks), using Rich's tune, at Rich's memorial service. A lady played it on a diatonic button accordion. I got most of the dance and the tune on my camera in movie mode. My impression so far is that she palyed it pretty close to Rich's manuscript, with the ambiguous parts palyed as David and I would. Might we assume that she learned it from Rich, and played it his way?

 

Earlier in the service I choked up as the Button Box folks palyed Rich's "The New Box" -- but that one's published, no question about notes.

 

More about the Morris after I listen to the movies. --Mike K.

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To add to the confusion over the tune, the women's Morris side, that Rich once coached, performed a fine dance (with the sticks), using Rich's tune, at Rich's memorial service. A lady played it on a diatonic button accordion. I got most of the dance and the tune on my camera in movie mode. My impression so far is that she palyed it pretty close to Rich's manuscript, with the ambiguous parts palyed as David and I would. Might we assume that she learned it from Rich, and played it his way?

 

More about the Morris after I listen to the movies. --Mike K.

I've audited my movies, and the ladies do Rich's tune pretty much as his manuscript shows, with a few changes. David, send me private email and we can hash out the details off-forum.

 

Then we can put up a version close to how the Morris team danced it yesterday, and figure that's as close as we'll get to Rich's intentions -- not that he wouldn't have varied it from verse to verse and meet to meet. --Mike K.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I've been away from c-net for a while, and today came on hoping to see what has been going on here. I was shocked when I saw the news of Rich. Rich and I never met, but we have spoken on the phone over the years as well as hiving exchanged emails and private messages. He was always eager to help me out and dealing with him on either a personal level or a business level was always a pleasure. As I said, we never met, but I had hoped to attend one of his events, or even just take a trip up to the Button Box to meet. Unfortunately this is never to be.

 

Sorry to be responding to this so late, but I felt that I had to add something.

 

Tony Iacoviello

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Hi all,

 

this is very sad news. I didn't hear about this news of Richard Morse's death until yesterday, because I haven't been on here lately, nor was I keeping up-to-date with forums on here around the time when this forum started.

 

I am very sad. :( Even though I never knew Richard personally, or not even concertina related, I feel that I have lost an important piece of my concertina's history.

 

Every time I play my concertina, I will think of Richard Morse; an excellent man. Mr. Richard Morse will always be in my prayers and thoughts.

 

Patrick

 

Richard, you will not be forgotten. Rest In Peace

Edited by Patrick King
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Well said Patrick.

 

 

Thanks Mark,

 

I mean I own a 31-key (Anglo) C/G Morse concertina, so by 'any concertina-related,' I mean any questions about them, because I own one of his concertinas.

 

Best Wishes to all,

Patrick

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  • 1 year later...

I never met him, but spoke to him the phone a few times... He was always a gentleman, light hearted and kind.

We all lose eventually, but only some of us are missed. He is part of that group.

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