Kautilya Posted November 3, 2012 Share Posted November 3, 2012 Any got a name please? tks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gcoover Posted November 3, 2012 Share Posted November 3, 2012 (edited) Any got a name please? tks To be technical, it's called "The Twin Sisters", collected by Maud Karpeles in Vermont sometime before 1933. However, she decided it went well with the Upton-on-Severn stick dance and the melody has "stuck" ever since. Gary Edited November 3, 2012 by gcoover Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Barnert Posted November 3, 2012 Share Posted November 3, 2012 To be technical, it's called "The Twin Sisters", collected by Maud Karpeles in Vermont sometime before 1933. However, she decided it went well with the Upton-on-Severn stick dance and the melody has "stuck" ever since. Gary Agreed, but the first 27 seconds are the B section of another tune that I don't recognize. Any idea who the musician is? Is he one of us? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Wild Posted November 3, 2012 Share Posted November 3, 2012 Any idea who the musician is? Is he one of us? I believe that is Mike Long, a member of the West Country Concertina Players Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kautilya Posted November 3, 2012 Author Share Posted November 3, 2012 (edited) To be technical, it's called "The Twin Sisters", collected by Maud Karpeles in Vermont sometime before 1933. However, she decided it went well with the Upton-on-Severn stick dance and the melody has "stuck" ever since. Gary Agreed, but the first 27 seconds are the B section of another tune that I don't recognize. Any idea who the musician is? Is he one of us? Ta Gary and...... I knew some troublemaker would ask who it is! I am going into the kitchen (I know I had my memory somewhere at breakfast this morning).In the meantime, it is one of the West Country Concertina PLayers at the WCCP and International Concertina Players AGM 2008 at Ruishton in Devon. Will shame myself (I was there!) and send an email to WCCP asking. Separately hearing the jig "South Downs" it triggered the WCCP peformance in my memory and I thought there might have been some element of one in the other... There is a discussion going on elsewhere whether "South Downs" by Jim Harding is better slow as composed or if variants improve, detract from, lessen the import of the original. will report back on name. Edited November 3, 2012 by Kautilya Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Drinkwater Posted November 3, 2012 Share Posted November 3, 2012 Any idea who the musician is? Is he one of us? I believe that is Mike Long, a member of the West Country Concertina Players Yes, it's definitely Mike Long. Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kautilya Posted November 3, 2012 Author Share Posted November 3, 2012 Any idea who the musician is? Is he one of us? I believe that is Mike Long, a member of the West Country Concertina Players Yes, it's definitely Mike Long. Chris I think the voters are telling us it is Mike Long!!!! Are u going to the Horseshoe at London Bridgee this Sunday Chris? Here is a tina version of South Downs by Howard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin Harrison Posted November 8, 2012 Share Posted November 8, 2012 .........in case you were interested. Tune info. at bottom. Robin Karpeles.UptonOnSevern Stick.EFDSS journal.1933pdf.pdf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kautilya Posted November 8, 2012 Author Share Posted November 8, 2012 .........in case you were interested. Tune info. at bottom. Robin Tks! I assume u reckon it is just one toon - not one at start followed by another as David suggested earlier ? "(Agreed, but the first 27 seconds are the B section of another tune that I don't recognize." I am waiting for someone at WCCP to contact Mike and ask him whether it was a mix or no. I find it riveting,no matter how many times I listen to it, and that has been quite a few times since 2008! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Barnert Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 .........in case you were interested. Tune info. at bottom. Robin Tks! I assume u reckon it is just one toon - not one at start followed by another as David suggested earlier ? "(Agreed, but the first 27 seconds are the B section of another tune that I don't recognize." I see nothing in Robin's post to support that assumption. I stand by what I said. He's playing in the key of C. The video begins with a few notes at the end of a half-cadence, then twice through an 8-bar phrase (that I am interpreting as the B section of an unrecognized tune) that features a "g|a2g a2g|a2..." figure that we do not hear again in the video after the first 27 seconds. After 27 seconds, he starts in with new material that is recognizably "Twin Sisters" as discussed above and presented at the bottom of Robin's pdf (though in a different key and eliding over some of the fussy notes). He is still in C, and he plays twice through ABB. I know the tune well, having accompanied a Morris team for 26 years that regularly performs the Upton stick dance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dirge Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 ...Upton.... I stayed there earlier this year; a particularly charming place. Lots of delightful old buildings and decent pubs. Too small to interest the supermarket chains but big enough to still maintain a real highstreet with proper shops and real shopkeepers. And they make decent cider locally. I was most taken with it. Just down the road from Malvern and the Morgan factory too but they were on holiday (damn) I bought a superb gong there for £20. Rank Organisation quality. Consequently it weighs a ton and was left behind in favour of lots of bits of Morgan and Triumph. Next year. Didn't see any morris dancers though, or even realise it is important in that field. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Barnert Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 I bought a superb gong there for £20. Oh. Do you have a presence on gong.net? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Mansfield Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 ...Upton.... Didn't see any morris dancers though, or even realise it is important in that field. The Upton Upon Severn stick dance is one of the central Border Morris dances and has also been adopted by many Cotswold sides; and as has already been mentioned it is traditionally performed to the Appalacian tune Maud Karpeles put to it. Once again proving that innovation + time = tradition There's also a big Morris presence at the May Day weekend Upton folk festival, although as there is no attempt to timetable the performances or separate the big noisy sides (like, er, us!) from the quieter and more introverted performances, the overall effect is fairly unsatisfactory ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dirge Posted November 9, 2012 Share Posted November 9, 2012 I bought a superb gong there for £20. Oh. Do you have a presence on gong.net? Probably should. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Barnert Posted November 10, 2012 Share Posted November 10, 2012 ...Upton.... Didn't see any morris dancers though, or even realise it is important in that field. The Upton Upon Severn stick dance is one of the central Border Morris dances and has also been adopted by many Cotswold sides; and as has already been mentioned it is traditionally performed to the Appalacian tune Maud Karpeles put to it. Once again proving that innovation + time = tradition Except that the dance most American teams (and, I gather, British teams as well) call "Upton Upon Severn Stick Dance" is only distantly related to the dance Karpeles describes in the above pdf. It is derived from an expanded version performed by the Chingford Morris Men, and some suggest (read: demand) that it be referred to as the Chingford Stick Dance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Mansfield Posted November 10, 2012 Share Posted November 10, 2012 (edited) ...Upton.... Didn't see any morris dancers though, or even realise it is important in that field. The Upton Upon Severn stick dance is one of the central Border Morris dances and has also been adopted by many Cotswold sides; and as has already been mentioned it is traditionally performed to the Appalacian tune Maud Karpeles put to it. Once again proving that innovation + time = tradition Except that the dance most American teams (and, I gather, British teams as well) call "Upton Upon Severn Stick Dance" is only distantly related to the dance Karpeles describes in the above pdf. It is derived from an expanded version performed by the Chingford Morris Men, and some suggest (read: demand) that it be referred to as the Chingford Stick Dance. True enough, but as I understand the Chingford MM called their version of the dance by the original name (e.g. Upton), those seeking to retrospectively rename it 'Chingford' are fighting an uphill battle by now! Anyhoo we seem to have deviated .... I also don't recognise the first 27 seconds of the original video, sounds Cotswold-ish but no idea. Edited November 10, 2012 by Steve Mansfield Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marshall Posted December 8, 2012 Share Posted December 8, 2012 Just stumbled across this thread. I would suggest that the first fragment of tune is the back end of "Room for the Cuckoo" (Wheatley). Chas ...Upton.... Didn't see any morris dancers though, or even realise it is important in that field. The Upton Upon Severn stick dance is one of the central Border Morris dances and has also been adopted by many Cotswold sides; and as has already been mentioned it is traditionally performed to the Appalacian tune Maud Karpeles put to it. Once again proving that innovation + time = tradition Except that the dance most American teams (and, I gather, British teams as well) call "Upton Upon Severn Stick Dance" is only distantly related to the dance Karpeles describes in the above pdf. It is derived from an expanded version performed by the Chingford Morris Men, and some suggest (read: demand) that it be referred to as the Chingford Stick Dance. True enough, but as I understand the Chingford MM called their version of the dance by the original name (e.g. Upton), those seeking to retrospectively rename it 'Chingford' are fighting an uphill battle by now! Anyhoo we seem to have deviated .... I also don't recognise the first 27 seconds of the original video, sounds Cotswold-ish but no idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Barnert Posted December 9, 2012 Share Posted December 9, 2012 Just stumbled across this thread. I would suggest that the first fragment of tune is the back end of "Room for the Cuckoo" (Wheatley). Chas Indeed, it is! Mystery solved. See #7 on this page. Never met it before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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