"firedance" Tune Name Needed!

[Jim Besser]

These guys are certifiably crazy, but it's a great act and I've learned the tune. But no clue what it's called. The site says it was written by Bryony Griffith, but fails to give its name. Anybody know?

 

http://www.thedemonbarbers.com/default.aspx?tabid=135

 

Proves once and for all that rappers don't have a lick of sense . I know, I live with one.

Edited July 8, 2006 by Jim Besser

[Bry]

Hello Jim, I was dorected to this site to answer your question. Thanks for your comments, glad you like the tune!

I'm afraid it never really got its own name as it was written specifically for the firedance and hasn't been played much since. So I suppose we could just call it The Firedance?!?!

 

Hope it's easier to play on a concertina than it is on the fiddle......it's a bit of a bugger!

 

Cheers,

 

Bryony

 

[Jim Besser]

Hope it's easier to play on a concertina than it is on the fiddle......it's a bit of a bugger!

 

Thank you!

 

I've started playing the tune at sessions around here, where people seem to share my enthusiasm for it (but as you suggested, the fiddlers complain that it's hard). I found it manageable on concertina, but those shuffley phrases took a while to get up to speed. Thank heavens for the Amazing Slower Downer!

 

Thanks for a great tune and for responding. I'd be interested in hearing some more of your tunes.

[Bry]

Aw, that's nice to know! Don't think I've had one of my tunes put into circulation before!

Where are you based?

I don't really write very many tunes, my fella Will's more of a composer, I do more arranging really. But there are a few on Bedlam albums and a few we've written together for friends

 

xx

[Jim Besser]

Aw, that's nice to know! Don't think I've had one of my tunes put into circulation before!

Where are you based?

 

I'm in the Washington DC area. My wife is on a rapper team, and I've been trying to convince them to bring some combustion into their act, but so far they are resisting, claiming a fear of immolation.

 

Are you the fiddler in the film clip?

[Leo]

These guys are certifiably crazy, but it's a great act and I've learned the tune. But no clue what it's called. The site says it was written by Bryony Griffith, but fails to give its name. Anybody know?

 

http://www.thedemonbarbers.com/default.aspx?tabid=135

 

Proves once and for all that rappers don't have a lick of sense . I know, I live with one.

Jim

Must have overlooked this post in my looking for interesting new things. Absolutely fascinating performance. I didn't know what to expect. Rapper with concertina pictures in my mind meant something different?!?!? Shaded of Snoop Dog. Boy what ignorance, and pleasant surprise. I agree both fiddle and video were mesmerizing to the end wanting more. It's tough living in a hole not knowing all thats really out there.

 

Thanks

Leo

[Leo]

Aw, that's nice to know! Don't think I've had one of my tunes put into circulation before!

Where are you based?

I don't really write very many tunes, my fella Will's more of a composer, I do more arranging really. But there are a few on Bedlam albums and a few we've written together for friends

 

xx

Bry

 

Thanks for the captivating performance, especially the fiddle. I agree with Jim, it is wonderful. I didn't know of that style before seeing your video that Jim pointed out. Put it on Google, and who knows, you might just make the top 100 shortly. Thanks for your efforts.

 

Thanks

Leo

[PeterT]

These guys are certifiably crazy, but it's a great act and I've learned the tune. But no clue what it's called. The site says it was written by Bryony Griffith, but fails to give its name. Anybody know?

 

http://www.thedemonbarbers.com/default.aspx?tabid=135

 

Proves once and for all that rappers don't have a lick of sense . I know, I live with one.

Jim

Must have overlooked this post in my looking for interesting new things. Absolutely fascinating performance. I didn't know what to expect. Rapper with concertina pictures in my mind meant something different?!?!? Shaded of Snoop Dog. Boy what ignorance, and pleasant surprise. I agree both fiddle and video were mesmerizing to the end wanting more. It's tough living in a hole not knowing all thats really out there.

 

Thanks

Leo

Wow, now I know what I've missed at Sidmouth, in recent years! Amazing. I kept thinking "surely they are not going to do the somersault"

 

Regards,

Peter.

[Leo]

Got my curiosity up a little bit (I hate it when that happens), and found on their website another video: fiddle, dancers, swords, and yes they somersault. Absolutely fascinating. Takes a while to load but well worth the wait. I can't help it. I still get excited when i find something new.

 

http://www.thedemonbarbers.co.uk/Promo_DVD...0Rapper_Med.mpg

 

From this site:

http://www.thedemonbarbers.com/Default.aspx?tabid=152

 

Thanks Bry I may look into this further, and thanks Jim for pointing to something neat.

 

Thanks

Leo

Edited July 26, 2006 by Leo

[Jim Besser]

Got my curiosity up a little bit (I hate it when that happens), and found on their website another video: fiddle, dancers, swords, and yes they somersault. Absolutely fascinating. Takes a while to load but well worth the wait. I can't help it. I still get excited when i find something new.

 

What I like about this group is that they use interesting music. I've hung around a lot of rapper events, since my spouse is a dancer,, and around here, most teams use the same music -- very ordinary jigs that fiddlers can play very fast, like Tenpenny Bit and Calliope House. This group uses some very interesting tunes.

[Bry]

Hello guys, yes that's me in the clip.......I think I was probably more scared than the lads! Lee (who's also the bass player in the Demon Barbers) got a really bad burn in the morning rehearsal........so I was expecting the worst all the way through.....don't think anyone suffered in the performance though luckily.

 

The Newcastle Kingsmen (who normally do rapper) did a North West dance with Firey slings a while back too, not sure if there's any footage of it though and a couple of them did get burnt.....

 

I don't know.....these silly boys and flames!

 

There is a tendancy to play the same old tunes for rapper over here too, mostly the Blackthorn Stick, but I try and find different ones. I've got a lot of tunebooks with old yorkshire tunes in that a very good. (But I'm perhaps biased as I'm from there!)

 

xx

[PeterT]

I don't know.....these silly boys and flames!

Hi Bry,

 

I think that we musicians have the best time of it, apart from when we play in the middle of winter!

 

Thanks for your contribution to this thread.

 

Regards,

Peter.

[Jim Besser]

There is a tendancy to play the same old tunes for rapper over here too, mostly the Blackthorn Stick, but I try and find different ones. I've got a lot of tunebooks with old yorkshire tunes in that a very good. (But I'm perhaps biased as I'm from there!)

 

Any suggestions for particularly interesting yorkshire tunes that work well with dancing?

[Bry]

I get a lot of my tunes and songs from books and there a some brill ones published at the mo.

 

The Joseph Kershaw manuscript (19th century fiddler from Saddleworth)

Joshua Jackson Manuscript (1798 fiddler from North Yorkshire)

A Northern Lass, mainly North-West ish tunes compliled by Jamie Knowles

And my favourite with loads of great Rappery jigs is Lawrence Leadley, the fiddler of Helperby

 

A friend of ours Nick Barber also has a book out called Nick Barber's English Choice with a lot of popular dance tunes in all sorts of styles.

 

But my favourite tune for Rapper is called Cheviot Blast and was written by Scottish fiddler Ian Hardie and is from his book A Breath of Fresh Airs. Think we might use it for the new rapper dance in the new roadshow......although it's rather hard so I might not risk it cos it's gonna go rather fast!

 

xx

 

Oh, and re playing in winter, I've twice now damaged my fiddle at Whittlesey Straw Bear because of the extreme cold! (And possibly the hangover......induced obviously by the need to keep warm!)

[Jim Besser]

I get a lot of my tunes and songs from books and there a some brill ones published at the mo.

 

Thanks. Maybe I can get my kid to buy me some of the books before she returns from the UK. Found a small online selection from the Lawrence Leadley collection; some nice tunes.

 

Funny how we get so focused on the tunes everybody else is playing that we don't tap the amazing variety out there.

 

Personally, I'll be very happy if I never play Tenpenny Bit again.

[Bry]

 

I get a lot of my tunes and songs from books and there a some brill ones published at the mo.

 

Thanks. Maybe I can get my kid to buy me some of the books before she returns from the UK. Found a small online selection from the Lawrence Leadley collection; some nice tunes.

 

Funny how we get so focused on the tunes everybody else is playing that we don't tap the amazing variety out there.

 

Personally, I'll be very happy if I never play Tenpenny Bit again.

 

 

Hello again! I've just found the tatty bit of manuscript that I wrote the tune on when it was first written and it seems we called it 'Flame' after the show that it was part of.

 

I'm glad you reminded me about the tune as I've now decided to use it in the new rapper dance in our new show (launched on September 14th in Bradford, West Yorkshire.......not a plug at all!), but I've moved it up to E minor.....much easier on a fiddle and it's quite a bit faster so we'll see what happens!

 

But thank you for bringing it back to mind!

 

Bryony

xx

[Leo]

Hello again! I've just found the tatty bit of manuscript that I wrote the tune on when it was first written and it seems we called it 'Flame' after the show that it was part of.

 

I'm glad you reminded me about the tune as I've now decided to use it in the new rapper dance in our new show (launched on September 14th in Bradford, West Yorkshire.......not a plug at all!), but I've moved it up to E minor.....much easier on a fiddle and it's quite a bit faster so we'll see what happens!

 

But thank you for bringing it back to mind!

 

Bryony

xx

 

Will we get a sneak peak, or maybe a listen, or best yet the notes??

Hopefully; from the other side of the pond

 

Thanks

Leo

Edited August 23, 2006 by Leo

[Jim Besser]

I'm glad you reminded me about the tune as I've now decided to use it in the new rapper dance in our new show (launched on September 14th in Bradford, West Yorkshire.......not a plug at all!), but I've moved it up to E minor.....much easier on a fiddle and it's quite a bit faster so we'll see what happens!

 

Goodness, playing it at real rapper speed would be a challenge.

 

It's great at contra dance speed (~120 or so), and I plan to put it in a dance set sometime this fall, now that I've taught it to some other musicians.