More 'slow is more'

[Jim Besser]

(New thread, not to hijack Jody's).

 

I've long been intrigued by the idea of taking tunes commonly played fast - mostly dance tunes - and slowing them way town, so Jody's 'Slow is More' project immediately appealed to me.  His playing of oldtime tunes in this mode, in particular, really opens up qualities that are blurred when they are played at normal session speed.

 

Here's one I've played at contra dances for years - and which Jody's band Grand Picnic plays at an extremely brisk pace - slowed to a crawl.  There's much more I can do with it when I get a chance.  Scollay's Reel, provenance unclear.

 

Conversely, forum contributors have talked about playing slow tunes fast.  I've done this - my band Frog Hammer plays several sets of Morris tunes for contra dances, including a wickedly fast Upton on Severen - but the process isn't nearly as satisfying.  Slowing tunes down opens up intriguing new possibilities for playing; speeding slow tunes up generally requires eliminating or blurring some of the elements that give the tunes their charm.

 

 

 

 

Edited August 17, 2025 by Jim Besser

[Ed Nardell]

Thanks for this, Jim.  Beautiful indeed. My attraction to the concertina (Hayden Duet) has been inspired by the legato playing of Didie Sendra, through his many YouTube recordings on concertina (

bandontin, and Sriso - all instuments using the Hayden-Wiki keyboard. Of course, he selects mostly slow tunes rather than slowing down fast tunes - your point.  His Beaumont concertina even has an extra large bellows to better accommodate legato playing. To me, having the time for nuanced phrasing is a great attraction of these pieces. However, my first (almost) performance ready song is The Wellerman - far from a legato piece, and one where the stomping of a foot to keep time seems an essential part of the song.  I've played it slowly to learn it, but eventually it needs to be at tempo.  But Jim is talking about slowing down some fast pieces to smell the flowers, and I wholehardedly agree. It also facilitates learning.