cboody

The body of "conventional melodic patterns" is once of the things I want to add to my tutorial, but it's not an easy subject to get started on. In mediaeval chant there were only a few tunes to classify and a few conventional patterns were identified (mostly not found now in Western folk music). In Middle Eastern music the modes are mostly made up of conventional patterns with the scale being rather secondary, and sometimes (as in the Iranian "radif") the list of patterns built up to encyclopaedic size and any practicing musician is expected to know them all explicitly. The only simply presented but thorough list of such patterns I've seen that sticks to the Western scale is for Maltese folk guitar improvisation. Mining these patterns out of the tune corpus of Scottish trad (or any other tradition from Western Europe) is a huge task. They're in there, and they're used all the time instinctively, but practicing musicians don't identify or name them. Does anybody know what research has been done in this area already? I don't want to reinvent wheels. I don't know of any sources, but would very much like to. Please keep us informed, Jack, if you find anything or start to develop your own set of patterns. I'd be happy to chime in, but I can't find the time to do a proper job.

Seems to me the issue here is how much you want to know. Jack comes from a background similar to mine, and I relish all the information about gapped scales his discussion includes. Part of my reason is that I like the intellectually more complete nomenclature, but part of it is because knowing those things gives some useful information about harmonizing. And yes, I think one can, eventually, learn to hear many of those gapped modes. After all, most of us can hear pentatonic things. Why not six note things? That said though, I think the starting point is really to aurally and intellectually understand the "standard" 6 church modes Ionian (what some folks would simply and correctly call a major key) Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, and Aeolian (minor), Just start on the white notes of the piano and if you start on C you get C Ionian (or as most of us would say C Major), move up one note and you get D Dorian, move up another note and you get E Phrygian, move up one more and you get F Lydian, one more G mixolydian, and one more and you get A Aeolian (or what most folks would call A minor). But, you say, all those contain the same notes. Right you are, but it is the patterns of notes (in the scale and in the melodies) and (usually) the final note that defines the mode for us. Going back to the piano notice where each scale has whole and half steps (just notice where the black keys are. A black key between two white ones defines a whole step. Play the scale up and down a few times and you'll hear they will sound different. So, it is that pattern of whole and half steps along with lots of conventional melodic patterns that give pieces the "modal" sound. Once you get that in your mind and ear you can go on to think about harmonizing things and dealing with those pesky scales that don't use all 7 notes so you can't always be sure what mode they are in. Notice I said "church" modes. The Greek modes use the same names, but apply them to different scale patterns, something that left us in antiquity. The names are Greek, but applied (and originally misapplied) to the church mode scale patterns. Now, I've either confused everyone or help some folks out. I hope the latter.... There's lots left out here, but if anyone has questions I'll be happy to try to clarify...at least clarify what I mean

that's not concertina shorthand, that is ABC music notation. If you copy the whole thing from the X: to the W: yoiu can paste it into a converter like the one at http://www.concertina.net/tunes_convert.html you can get standard notation, or awful MIDI files.

Nice work Wolf. To sing in a non-native language besides managing the style is no mean feat even if one ignores the nice 'tina playing. It is always nice to hear versions of this story song. The one I usually hear is quite different from yours,and is usually harmonized as a simple major key tune. Here's one close to what I know: X: 1 T:Barbara Allen O:English M:3/4 L:1/8 K:D D | FG A3 G| FE D3 E| FA d2 d2| (c A3) z c| dB G2A-B| AF D3 E| FA B2 A2 | (F D3) z2 |] W: And, this page has four transcriptions from various singers. http://folkopedia.efdss.org/Take_6_Transcription_Programme:_The_Butterworth_Archive,_MS_6a

My pleasure Chris. It is always good to know someone appreciated what you did.

I would hope that folks are collecting the "dots" for these pieces too. It is much more difficult, at least for me, to sift through what is available and discover the gems of Scandinavian music than it is to do so with the music from various Celtic regions. Finnskogen ah yes...Livet ins Finnskogen as i recall (Life in the Finnish Woods is the usual translation). The source tune for "Molkingbird Hill." A great waltz. I don't have a concertina version handy. Anyone interested in a Hammered Dulcimer one?

Here's an ABC of one version of the tune along with a little note about the story apparently associated with it, and theo words. I don't have a translation of the words.. X:42 T:L'Inconnue de Limoise C:Maxou (J.F.) Heintzen M:3/4 K:G D/ G>A|:B2-B>G c>B|B2-B>B c>d|c2-c>B A>G|D2-D>D G>A| B2-B>G c>B|B2-B>B c>d|c2-c>B A>G|1A2-A>D G>A:|2A2-A>B c>d|| B/ c>d|:e2g>f e>f|d2-d>c B>A|G>F G>A B>G|D2 G2F2| E2-E>F G>A|G2F2E2|F2-F>E F>G|1A2-A>B c>d:|2F2-F>G A>B|G2-G3/|] W: W:The name (The Stranger From Limoise) has a story behind it, as you might guess. W: When they were doing some roadworks, or demolition, or moving a graveyard, W: or something like that in Limoise they came across a grave containing both a skeleton W: and the remains of a set of pipes. The grave was un-named, so the identity of the piper W: was unknown, but the story caught the imagination of the French folk world and W: M Heintzen penned the tune in the piper's honour. Words reflect on the pipes and their meaning W: to the dead man. W: Il doit dotmia depuis tout ce temps Rieû Bentimeû|, soûs trois pieds de tene V'là qu'on le déranse, impoliment Quelle dûle d'idee, dchaneet d'cimetière Dcllans M tomhc. tout.ontre sa tê12 O a trcuvé son seul bagaqe Sa cornem se, sû chère musette Qui acîompaenë son srand vqraqe Car on na pas pu les sépater Et c'est peul-êtrc beaucoup nieu-\ ainsi On les a trouvés, ik dorment dans le ûême lil C'étai.t peut ètte pas uû maîlre-sonneur Mais il ainait ce sacré bout de bois Un peu comme une soeur que l'on vut gaftler pès de soi.

Dutch! Who knew? I just assumed it was French because I've heard French trad musicians play it and because of the composer's name, which sounds French: Jean Christophe Lequerre. Then again, my language skills have always been deficient. But it's a great tune even if it isn't actually French! The tune is french. The collection is Dutch

Doesn't get any better than this. Thanks. What Pete left us is a legacy that will be hard to follow, but follow we must if we are to have a truly free society. The only musician I know of that is really following that tradition is David James, but I'm sure (or at least I hope) there are many others. Pete became famous. But he had fame "thrust upon him." He didn't ask for it, he just lived life as his beliefs dictated. Neither money nor fame was important to him, but music and music's power to bring the world together in common causes were. A living example for everyone regardless of their beliefs...speak your mind honestly and politely and best through music.

Looking for the history of petit dejeuner I came across this http://bladmuziek.dennisreidsma.nl/gonnagles/index.php A nice set of three collections of mostly Netherlands music. Dejeuner is in the first volume with a composer I've seen in other places listed (sorry, I've forgotten and it is too late here to go back and look). Lots of good things, some with parts and all with chords. First book is tunes common enough so that I recognized some. For those not faint of heart about rhythm try L'Orage in the third collection Written out in 4/4, but actually in 3 3 2|3 3 2| 3 3 3 3 2 2| You'll stumble a bit at first but soon the pattern gets built in! There are at least some midi and mp3 files for some of the tunes on the site too if you hunt around. My Niederlandish (is that the right name for the language or is it Dutch?) is pretty much non-existent so...

I thought I had a version of Ma Mère Chantait around, but apparently it never got recorded. I'll try to get myself together and get it done.

He's really quite wonderful, but somehow all I can think of is "Lady of Spain>"

If I may be forgiven for not having one on concertina handy here are a couple of versions I've been involved with. The tune is the "other one" that Burns supposedly liked best. The instrumental version is a tag on another piece and uses guitar, flute, and hammered dulcimer. The vocal version is the closer from a concert we did recently and uses piano, flute, guitar and voices. Audience joins in at the choruses, but clearly they don't know this tune as well as the other I hope some of you will tackle this tune. It is truly lovely and I certainly like it better...maybe because when I hear the usual tune all I can hear is the Guy Lombardo Orchestra sax section (must be showing my age!). https://www.dropbox.com/sh/8n99idh6xmygdx7/OZJvwxjQVt Edited to add: I'll leave this up until the end of January. If you like them download them by then...

Better say Happy New Year, or Maybe even Happy Easter for the time this will take! Good Holidays to you too Pete. I wish we had Boxing Day!

Did he?

Lovely explanation Jim. You even avoided all the stuff about "but if you are not tuned equal tempered…."

It looked OK on my screen , but i did not try printing it. i used a program called CutePDF, which was a free download. It installs as a virtual printer. You select print in the usual way, then select CutePDF instead of your actual printer. It then prompts you to save the file . regards, John Thanks for the info John. That's interesting. On the Mac, which I'm using, there is print to PDF built into the printing routines. But for my version I used the abcm2ps capabilities built into EasyABC.

Figured out the attach files thing, and updated Midwinter Waltz. Will add PDF to Hanging Starfish also.

does this work? Looks a bit weak on the staff lines on my screen, but seems OK otherwise. It is probably fine printed out. I have a copy here, but just haven't taken time to figure out how to put a PDF up here. Thanks for your efforts!

heard it in Amin and Eminor around here. I play it in Aminor (usually on the Hammered Dulcimer)

It is rushing the season a bit but here's my Midwinter Waltz which gets some play here and there: X:377 M:3/4 T:Midwinter Waltz C:Chuck Boody 2006 R:Waltz K:Emin E2|"Em"B4 BB |"Am"c2 B2 A2 |"Em"G2 E2 G2|"B7"F4 E2|"Em"B4 BB|"G"c2B2 G2|"Am" A6-|"D"A4 E2| "Em"B4 BB |"Am"c2 B2 A2 |"Em"G2 E2 G2|"Bm"F4 F2|"Em"E2 G2 B2|"D7" B2 A2 F2 |1"Em"E6-|E4 :|2"Em"E6-|E3 G "D7"Bd|| |: "G"g3 g g2|"D"f2 d2 d2|"C"e3 f g2|"G"d2 B2 G2|"Am"c3 d e2|"Em"d2 B2 G2|"A7"A6-|"D7"A3G Bd| "G"g3 g g2|"D"f2 d2 d2 |"C"e3 f g2|"G"d2 B2 G2|"Am"c3 d e2|"D"d2 c2 F2|1"G"G6-|G3 G Bd:|2"G"G6-|G4|] PDF later if I can figure out how. Midwinter Waltz.pdf

Both this and Haste are nicely done. This is perhaps the only way I might learn to like Hop and Skip. Guess I've a problem there I particularly like the harmonic stuff which isn't over done and doesn't get in the way. I personally hear the concertina as a melody line instrument or a chord backup instrument, and generally don't care for harmonic playing, even when well done. But yours is nice. I also appreciate leaving Haste out there with the "warts" still in place. That encourage me to be more active in contributing here.

Hi Chuck, Well spotted and right you are. Before I completely identify them can you guess their range? Hint: position of the thumb strap and finger plate in relation to the layout of the lowest notes. As a bonus place them in their decade of manufacture. Mega bonus question: There is another Aeola shape in the bunch. Can you identify the model and maker? (The difficulty of this question should make you a millionaire but I have not lined up the sponsorship. Go for it anyway!) Greg Well, I'm not much of an expert at this, but it looks like a tenor / extended treble and perhaps an extended treble (maybe tenor/treble?) to me. I've no idea who built the other one. Can I get a quarter million??

Err…not to complain about your choices, but how do these reflect the holiday season. You indicated they would, and I don't see it. OOOPS edited: I see what you are saying….

Vielen Dank! Interesting reading and good to see my translation had muddled out part of things. I agree that it is likely the setting was not the original if the setting in the article is original.