Playalong tune YouTubes are listed here: Playalong tunes
If you haven’t got abc software installed and would like to try using abc coded tunes, There are various thinkwebsites that are good for playing tunes written out using the notation. The once I currently use is https://abc.rectanglered.com/
4th December: The Belfast Polka, Percy Brown’s Waltz for the Veleta, Cock of the North, Ding Dong Merrily on High
Music and chords:
– The Belfast Polka, Percy Brown’s Waltz for the Veleta, Cock of the North, Ding Dong Merrily on High
abc files:
– The Belfast Polka
– Percy Brown’s Waltz for the Veleta
– Cock of the North
– Ding Dong Merrily on High
YouTubes:
(To come)
20th November: The Shropshire Lass, The Glakey Two-Step and The Sloe
– music and chords for The Shropshire Lass, The Glakey Two-Step and The Sloe
abc files
– The Shropshire Lass
– The Glakey Two-Step
– The Sloe
YouTubes
– The Shropshire Lass
– The Glakey Two-Step
– The Sloe
6th November: The Kentish Cricketers, Buttered Pease No 2 and Dr Fauster’s Tumblers
– music and chords for The Kentish Cricketers, Buttered Pease No 2 and Dr Fauster’s Tumblers, (Also Jenny Lind and Buttered Pease No 1)
abc files:
– The Kentish Cricketers
– Buttered Pease No 2
– Dr Fauster’s Tumblers
YouTubes:
– The Kentish Cricketers
– Buttered Pease
– Dr Fauster’s Tumblers
– The Jenny Lind Polka
16th October: Buttered Pease, Jacob (or Enrico), Inisheer
– music and chords for Buttered Pease, Jacob (or Enrico), Inisheer
Tenterden Folk Festival 2023 tunes workshop
– music and chords for Speed the Plough and Jenny Lind
Youtubes:
– Speed the Plough
– Jenny Lind
– The Man in the Moon
Bradfield Traditional Music Weekend learn a tune workshop 15 July 2023
Although I put this material together for another group, U3A tunes group types are very welcome to try them!
– music and chords for A Trip to Highgate, Hey Diddle Diddle, Tweedly Park, The Ornithologist
YouTubes:
– Hey Diddle Diddle
– Tweedly Park
– Trip to Highgate
– The Ornithologist
19th June: Harlequin Air, A Trip to Highgate, The Oratava
– music and chords for Harlequin Air, A Trip to Highgate, The Orotava
abc files:
– Harlequin Air
– A Trip to Highgate
– The Oratava
YouTubes:
– Harlequin Air
– A Trip to Highgate
– The Oratava
5th June – Theme Vannetaise
YouTube:
– Theme Vannetaise
15th May – The Happy Farmer, The Moon and Seven Stars, and Elsey’s Waltz
– music and chords for The Happy Farmer, The Moon and Seven Stars, and Elsey’s Waltz
abc files:
– The Happy Farmer
– The Moon and Seven Stars
– Elseys Waltz
YouTubes:
– The Happy Farmer
– The Moon and Seven Stars
– Elsey’s Waltz
24th April – The Ball and Cock of the North (and pairs)
– music and chords for The Ball; and The March of St Timothy
abc files:
– The Ball
– The March of St Timothy
YouTubes:
– The Ball
– The March of St Timothy
3rd April – Rig-A-Jig Jig and Captain Lanoe’s Quick March; and The Cumberland Waltz
– music and chords for Rig-A-Jig Jig and Captain Lanoe’s Quick March; and The Cumberland Waltz
abc files:
– Rig-a-Jig Jig
– Captain Lanoe’s Quick March
YouTubes:
– Rig-a-Jig Jig
– Captain Lanoe’s Quick March
27th March – The Kelso Accordeon and Fiddle Club; One More Dance and Then; and The Cock of the North
– music and chords for The Kelso Accordeon and Fiddle Club; One More Dance and Then; and The Cock of the North
abc files:
– The Kelso Accordion and Fiddle Club
– One More Dance and Then
– The Cock of the North
YouTubes:
– The Cock of the North
– The Kelso Accordion and Fiddle Club
– One More Dance and Then
6th March – Jamie Allen and The Dashing White Sergeant; Over the Hills and Far Away, The Kentish Cricketers
– music and chords for Jamie Allen and The Dashing White Sergeant; Over the Hills and Far Away, The Kentish Cricketers
abc files:
– Jamie Allen
– The Kentish Cricketers
– Over the Hills and Far Away
YouTubes to play along with
– Jamie Allen
– The Kentish Cricketers
– Over the Hills and Far Away
20th February – The Kentish Cricketers, some pairs and a list of tunes for the 21st February
– Music and chords for The Kentish Cricketers (as requested)
– Music and chords for Brighton Camp/Donkey Riding, The Hundred Pipers/The Famous Fiery Clockface, The Patacake Polka/The Sloe and The Kirkgate Hornpipe/Strike the Bell, Three Around Three/Sussex Bonny Kate
abc files:
– Brighton Camp/Donkey Riding
– The Hundred Pipers/The Famous Fiery Clockface
– The Patacake Polka/The Sloe
– The Kirkgate Hornpipe/Strike the Bell
– Three Around Three/Sussex Bonny Kate
6th February 2023 – Sussex Bonny Kate, The Kirkgate Hornpipe and The Ornithologist
abc files:
– The Kirkgate Hornpipe simpler chords
– The Kirkgate Hornpipe more complex chords
– The Ornithologist
– Bonny Kate simpler chords
– Bonny Kate more complex chords
YouTube tunes to play along with:
– The Kirkgate Hornpipe
– The Ornithologist
– Sussex Bonny Kate
16th January 2023 – Pat-a-Cake Polka, The Sloe, Up the Sides and Down the Middle
abc files:
– The Pat-a-cake Polka (simpler chords)
– The Pat-a-Cake Polka (more complex chords)
– The Sloe
– Up the Sides and Down the Middle (simpler chords)
– Up the Sides and Down the Middle (more complex chords)
YouTube tunes to play along with:
– The Pat-a-Cake Polka
– The Sloe
– Up the Sides and Down the Middle
20th December – Roxborough Castle, Dan Leno’s and The Man in the Moon
abc files:
– Roxborough Castle (simpler chords)
– Roxborough Castle (more complex chords)
– Dan Leno’s
– The Man in the Moon, with lyrics as it’s also a song
YouTube tunes to play along with:
– Roxborough Castle
– Dan Leno’s
– The Man in the Moon
5th December – Paddy Godden’s Lancers, The Italian Schottische, Ding Dong Merrily on High
abc files:
– The Italian Schottische (simpler chords)
– The Italian Schottische (more complex chords)
– Paddy Godden’s Lancers (simpler chords)
– Paddy Godden’s Lancers (more complex chords)
– Ding Dong Merrily on High (simpler chords)
– Ding Dong Merrily on High (slightly more complex chords)
YouTubes (for playing along with)
– The Italian Schottische
– Paddy Godden’s Lancers
– Ding Dong Merrily on High
21th November – Sally Sloane’s Mazurka, Galopede, The Dashing White Sergeant
– Music and chords
Abc files:
– Sally Sloane’s Mazurka (simpler chords)
– Sally Sloane’s Mazurka (more complex chords)
– Galopede (simpler chords)
– Galopede (more complex chords)
– The Dashing White Sergeant (simpler chords)
– The Dashing White Sergeant (more complex chords)
YouTubes (for playing along with):
– Sally Sloane’s Mazurka
– The Dashing White Sergeant
– Galopede
7th November – Albert Farmer’s Bonfire Tune, Rusty Gully
– Music and chords
Abc files:
– Albert Farmer’s Bonfire Tune (easier chords)
– Albert Farmer’s Bonfire Tune (more complex chords)
– Rusty Gully (easier chords)
– Rusty Gully (more complex chords)
YouTubes (for playing along with):
– Albert Farmer’s Bonfire Tune
– Rusty Gulley
3th October: The Cumberland Waltz
– Music and chords
YouTube (for playing along with):
– The Cumberland Waltz
6 September: Cock of the North and Redwing
– Music and chords
– YouTube demo Cock of the North
– YouTube demo Redwing
– abcs Cock of the North, Redwing
15th August: Strike the Bell and Brighton Camp
– Music and chords
– YouTube demo Strike the Bell
– YouTube demo Brighton Camp
– Strike the Bell, Brighton Camp
– abcs Strike the Bell, Brighton Camp
1th August 2022: Donkey Riding and The Fiery Clock Face
– Written music and chords
– YouTube demo Donkey Riding
– YouTube demo The Fiery Clock Face
– abcs Donkey Riding, The Fiery Clockface
18th July 2022: The Hundred Pipers
– Written music and chords
– YouTube demo The Hundred Pipers
– abcs The Hundred Pipers
4th July 2022: Three Around Three and The Sussex Cotillion
– Written music and chords
– YouTube demo Three Around Three
– The Sussex Cotillion
– abcs Three Around Three, The Sussex Cotillion
An aide-memoire for tunes playing
There are various tips and tricks that you can use to bring interest and life to tunes. Good country dance tune players find all sorts of ways of embellishing them and emphasising their shape and form and especially their danceable rhythm – and they all do it in subtly different ways.
A good analogy is a child’s colouring book picture. The written music is like the printed outline waiting for the crayon to fill in the colours, and the pencil strokes and colours used and any added details are what makes the image individual.
Perhaps the most basic but also most important advice I can offer is this: generally keep notes considerably shorter than they are written, though lending extra length (within the specified length) when the phrase seems to call for it. This is a great place to start with nearly all types of tunes used for dancing, including the waltz. (Though clearly not the slow air or the slow retreat.)
I’ve listed out some ideas you might like to try using to add ‘colour’ to your playing below.
Phrases
Listening to the eight-bar phrases in the tunes, you’ll notice that there’s often a recognisable ‘call and response’ type of structure – perhaps two bars seem to make a statement and then the next two form a response, and then maybe you’ll recognise two or four bars where you can imagine the callers and responders are all together.
Consider playing the calls and responses slightly differently – say make the call louder and more clipped, and the response slightly softer or just a tad more legato.
Long notes
Where you have a long note, consider:
- – inserting a lower note and going up to the higher
- changing the chord during the note (if you have a chording instrument), say from the most obvious chord to one a fourth or fifth above and back. This is something to experiment with: try different options and see which one works best
- – playing a second open or double-stopped note if your instrument can do this
- – breaking it up into two or more notes and playing the first short and sharp (this is also good wherever you have two notes that are the same, ditto three notes, which you might play short, short, long)
- – using turns (one note up, one the same, one down, one the same ) or trills (quickly and repeatedly play the p and the note above)
- – playing the long note short and very loud, and then leaving a space
- – if you’re a fiddler or a brass or wind player, add a little vibrato at the end of some of the long notes (I’m not how trad this is, but I’m sure the original owners of many of the fiddlers’ tunebooks that have come down to us were easily capable of using vibrato)
- – again, with long notes, where possible play with a little pulse – that is, get louder and softer in time with the rhythm. This is particularly effective with waltzes. If pulsing isn’t possible on your instrument, try achieving the same kind of effect by repeated plucking on a mandolin or banjo, by using a little vibrato on a whistle or recorder, or perhaps by breaking the note up – though this may not work if you do it too much!
- Repeated notes
As above, where you have repeated notes, consider making all the notes short /except/ for the last one.
Where you have repeated notes and you’re playing a chording instrument, consider changing the chord underneath, perhaps through a cycle of chords containing the same note.
For example, if the repeated note is a G, you might consider using the chords of C, Em, Am7 etc.
Dominant chords, perhaps with the 7th
Using a note or chord to add tension and ‘announce’ the next phrase. The last note of a tune is likely to be the key note – for example, if you’re playing in G, it’s likely the written music will end with a G note. (Ditto a C note when playing in C, or a D note if you’re playing in D. A good way to give shape to a tune and to ‘announce’ that the next phrase (say, the A music, B music or C music) is about to begin is instead of the key note to slip in the chord (even better the 7th chord) of the note that’s a fifth above.
This is called the dominant. So, for example, in a 4/4 tune in G, you might let the tune finish on a G notes with a G chord for two or three beats – but the last one or two would be a D or F# or A (all notes from a D chord) accompanied by a D or D7 chord. Ditto, an A or A7 chord when playing in D, of an F or F7 chord if you’re playing in C. It’s much easier and much more instinctive than it sounds! But be warned – it doesn’t usually work with waltzes!
Tune types
Thinking about different kinds of tunes, my take has been that in English sessions there seem to be broadly two kinds of tunes – lifting tunes such as polkas, jigs, hornpipes and schottisches where the emphasis is on the off-beat (oom-PAH, oom-PAH or oom-PAH-pah-PAH), and running tunes such as marches and reels where it is on the down-beat (OOM-pah-Oom-pah or OOM-pah-pah-pah). This is something to think about especially if you’re playing a chording instrument. In particular with guitars, I’ve found the ‘running’ tunes work best with all down-strokes across the strings, while the ‘lifting’ tunes work best with an alternating down (down-beat) and up stroke (off-beat). It’s especially cool it you can play the downbeat short (by damping on a guitar, or releasing the keys on a piano) and let the following chord sing a little.
Getting the emphasis that works best into a tune can bring real excitement to the tune itself and to a dance.
If you have any questions about any of this, please email me at gmatkin@gmail.com and I will be pleased to try to help.