Tune Of The Month, June 2015: Vedder Michel

[David Barnert]

That's obviously right, David - just like everyone have been playing it, haven't they?

 

Best wishes - Wolf

 

Of course. Everybody's learning it by ear. But if anybody needs to see it written out, I thought I'd point out the correction.

 

Here's my take. A few small inaccuracies, but I don't have the patience to do it again right now.

[Wolf Molkentin]

A very nice version, David - propulsive bass and elaborate B section...!

 

Besides, didn't imply any critique regarding your pointing at the false note; surprisingly none of us had spotted it so far...

[Jim Besser]

A flurry of recording today, now that I'm back from the beach.

 

Thought I'd try the English version of Vedder Michel - Turk's March. More or less learned from the Brian Peters version on his Anglophilia CD. The primary difference seems to be in the B part.

 

From the liner notes:

 

From the manuscripts noted down two hundred years ago by members of the Winder family, social dance and church gallery musicians from Slaidburn, Lancashire."

 

So the obvious question: does the German Vedder Michel derive from the English Turk's March, or vice versa?

 

Isn't traditional music interesting?

 

Played in G on a 30 key Jeffries G/D Anglo.

[Wolf Molkentin]

Very interesting in fact, and more in the region of march or even polka this way... Really nicely played too!

[Wolf Molkentin]

...and you wouldn't consider "the Turks", would you?!

[Jim Besser]

Very interesting in fact, and more in the region of march or even polka this way... Really nicely played too!

 

Thanks. The more I play around with this tune, the more I like it.

[Rod]

Turks March. A jolly version from Jim which would be virtually impossible to actually march to ?

[Patrick Scannell]

Here it is on a Beaumont.

[Jim Besser]

Here it is on a Beaumont.

 

Cool sound, and an interesting approach the last time thru.

[iradcliffe]

Here's my Vedder Michael contribution, played on a Wheatstone this time.

First came across the tune on a kids computer game called 'the bears' hailing from New Zealand I think.

Had no luck trying to match it to any of the Turks marches I have.

[Jim Besser]

Here's my Vedder Michael contribution, played on a Wheatstone this time.

First came across the tune on a kids computer game called 'the bears' hailing from New Zealand I think.

Had no luck trying to match it to any of the Turks marches I have.

 

A kids game, eh? Interesting. Thanks.

 

Here are the dots for the version of Turk's March I picked up from a Brian Peters CD, in case you're interested.

 

http://abcnotation.com/tunePage?a=www.andyhornby.net/Music/WINDER.ABC/0146

 

I wasn't able to find examples on YouTube.

[iradcliffe]

 

Here's my Vedder Michael contribution, played on a Wheatstone this time.

First came across the tune on a kids computer game called 'the bears' hailing from New Zealand I think.

Had no luck trying to match it to any of the Turks marches I have.

 

A kids game, eh? Interesting. Thanks.

 

Here are the dots for the version of Turk's March I picked up from a Brian Peters CD, in case you're interested.

 

http://abcnotation.com/tunePage?a=www.andyhornby.net/Music/WINDER.ABC/0146

 

I wasn't able to find examples on YouTube.

 

 

Thanks for the dots Jim, I've got the Winder book somwhere in the pile of books of music to play!

 

The sources I was looking at are the little know ones from the Isle of Man, the main one being 'Kiaul Vannin' which I am slowly puttting up in ABC (http://www.mannincloud.info and follow the music link) and a couple of others one by a John Moore and the other by a William Killey.

[Jim Besser]

 

 

Here's my Vedder Michael contribution, played on a Wheatstone this time.

First came across the tune on a kids computer game called 'the bears' hailing from New Zealand I think.

Had no luck trying to match it to any of the Turks marches I have.

 

A kids game, eh? Interesting. Thanks.

 

Here are the dots for the version of Turk's March I picked up from a Brian Peters CD, in case you're interested.

 

http://abcnotation.com/tunePage?a=www.andyhornby.net/Music/WINDER.ABC/0146

 

I wasn't able to find examples on YouTube.

 

 

Thanks for the dots Jim, I've got the Winder book somwhere in the pile of books of music to play!

 

The sources I was looking at are the little know ones from the Isle of Man, the main one being 'Kiaul Vannin' which I am slowly puttting up in ABC (http://www.mannincloud.info and follow the music link) and a couple of others one by a John Moore and the other by a William Killey.

 

 

Interesting. I've gotten into playing some Manx music in recent years, thanks to another c.netter. Lots of great tunes.

[lachenal74693]

A clear winner this time, from northern Germany comes this ridiculously catchy little number -

(first tune in set). etc...

Help me out here please folks.

 

I'm a concertina novice (9 months), but I've been lurking on melodeon.net for a few days (I'm a melodeon

virgin, but intending to buy a melodeon real soon now...).

 

I came across this TOTM post on melodeon.net this morning and thought 'what the hell, let's give it a go'.

So I managed to work out the first few bars on the C row of my C/G Lachenal. What a great tune!

 

However on the concertina, in order to free up the left hand buttons to allow me to try some

rudimentary chords, I transposed it up 5 semi-tones to play the melody on the right hand only (starting

on C rather than G). Amazingly (to me), it still sounded something like the original. Later, I discovered

that this was also TOTM on concertina.net, and that someone had posted a video on melodeon.net

playing the thing in three keys on the same melodeon, so clearly some 'fiddling about' is allowable.

 

I'm not sure that my crude 'on the fly' transposition retains the original intervals between notes, but,

as I say, the thing still sounds something like the original (allowing for my as yet dodgy playing).

 

My questions are these: Just how much 'folk-processing' can I get away with when learning new

tunes on the concertina (and soon, on the melodeon)? Can I transpose 'on the fly' like this and get

away with it? Will my name be mud amongst real concertina and melodeon players when they

discover my awful secret?

 

Thanks.

 

Roger

 

[cross-posted to both melodeon.net and concertina.net]

 

[Jim Besser]

 

My questions are these: Just how much 'folk-processing' can I get away with when learning new

tunes on the concertina (and soon, on the melodeon)? Can I transpose 'on the fly' like this and get

away with it? Will my name be mud amongst real concertina and melodeon players when they

discover my awful secret?

 

 

Hi Lach - I can speak only for myself, but my view is that it's fine to do what works for you. Especially on an Anglo, with its inherent limitations (and 2 row melodeon, as well), there's no 'right' way to play most of these tunes. Vedder Michel is a great example - there are so many ways to play it. Do what sounds right for you.

 

This has to be qualified, of course, if you're playing for dancers, in which case your job is to make the tune work for them. And I have more qualms about playing around with modern written tunes, although in cases when I've talked to the composers they've been OK with people doing different versions (see the discussion in the Halsway Schottisch TOTM thread).

 

On a C/G Anglo, my preference is to play Veder Michel in C, but I tried it in D, G and F, and each had its merits (well, to be honest, the merits were hard to detect in F - very awkward fingering). I tried it at a fast contra dance pace, as a march and the way I'd play it for Morris dancers - slow and chunky. Ultimately, I decided I liked the English Turk's March version better.

 

In other words: there is no right way. Do what's pleasing to you.

 

One more thing: crossposting to mel.net is great. I'd love to see more interaction between the two TOTM forums, since we have a lot in common. And Melnet's TOTM is the model for the forum on c.net.

Edited June 25, 2015 by Jim Besser

[Tradewinds Ted]

From the melodeon.net TOTM forum

"- let's see what you can do with the tune, and don't be afraid to interpret it any way you like"

I sure the same is true here.

 

Transposing to a more convenient key happens all the time, so no problem there. Of course playing in the customary key will offer more opportunity to play with others who already know the tune, if you want to do that.

 

I do think it is worthwhile to take the time to determine whether you are retaining the same intervals though. If you want to make changes and variations in the intervals, or decorations on the rhythm, that is usually fine, but do it by choice to serve the tune, rather than because you didn't know.

[Wolf Molkentin]

Roger, why don't you record at least some bars, post on soundcloud and have it discussed here?!

 

Best wishes - Wolf (fellow-MelNet-novice)

[lachenal74693]

Roger, why don't you record at least some bars, post on soundcloud and have it discussed here?!

 

Thank you for your confidence, but I think I'll wait for a while before I attempt to post anything in a

public forum for much the same reasons as cited by a recent poster on melodeon.net.

 

1) Despite progressing, I'm still not good enough

2) Bad as I am, I disintegrate still further if I try to make a recording

3) My recording equipment is rudimentary, and in any case I haven't yet worked out how to use it

properly. My attempts so far are, frankly, pathetic ('Happy Birthday' for a 100 year old aunt, nice

try but no coconut, I'm afraid).

 

However, I worked this one out (finally) in C on the 'tina. Nice tune. I haven't quite fitted the words

to the tune yet, but I'll get there...

 

R