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Author Topic: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes  (Read 25790 times)

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shift

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #40 on: February 11, 2011, 09:22:52 PM »

Hi Mcgrooger no worries, I really enjoyed your playing... I've had a bash at Gathering Peascods, although it's probably a little too quick and bouncy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzpGQQyI_jw

Cheers
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Mcgrooger

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #41 on: February 11, 2011, 11:07:11 PM »

Thanks Shift. And thank you for posting your two nicely Play(ford)ed tunes! As to the slight visual gloom - don't know if it helps, but I filmed Newcastle with the sun streaming in through our big window. Good job I didn't record it today - it was hoying it down here - as it usually does. Anyway I was having loads of fun getting my broken car towed away and some young techie trying to sort out the headphone socket on my PC - as usual he fixed one problem and left me with a load of new ones - oh the joys of Windows 7 - NOT!  :||:
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jackson10

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #42 on: February 12, 2011, 03:15:21 PM »

Not having been familiar with Playford I was finding it hard to choose something that I might be able to play that would sound good. But really enjoyed your posts and I realize that the interpretation given to the tune is what makes it sound good. Especially use of the basses, which I haven't been doing before. Encouraging! I will try one before the end of the month. (Might have to repeat something that has already been done.)
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Gary P Chapin

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #43 on: February 12, 2011, 10:55:19 PM »

Just checking in.  I'm working on a few tunes and should have at least one up by the end of the month, but I'm finding this very interesting.  I very much enjoy Brit dance music, but don't play much.  I play mainly French, and what I'm noticing is that the melodic structures of different styles of music have certain characteristic qualities.  The types of intervals and rhythms that are common in French music and the types that are common in British music are subtly different.  I'm playing some fairly easy Playford tunes -- Nottingham Ale (Lilebulero), for example -- but they just feel foreign because I'm not used to playing intervals like that.  The same for the Dark Girl Dressed in Blue.  It's not a hard tune, but it feels strange to me.

Anyway, not complaining, just finding it interesting.
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Anahata

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #44 on: February 13, 2011, 12:51:44 AM »

I play mainly French, and what I'm noticing is that the melodic structures of different styles of music have certain characteristic qualities.  The types of intervals and rhythms that are common in French music and the types that are common in British music are subtly different.

English musicians find exactly the same when playing French music! The melodic building blocks (Mary H. calls them "Lego pieces") just aren't the same.

Playford is different again from later English music such as the 19th/20th century hornpipes, reels, polkas and jigs that make up the common current  English dance band and session repertoire.

I'm sure that Dark Girl Dressed in Blue is a fairly recent invention. Well, C.20 anyway.
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Ziachmusi/Louise

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #45 on: February 13, 2011, 05:42:35 PM »

Kemp's Jig

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVLpwMZJRWI

I choose this because

A. it's a lovely tune
B. Norwich (Playford was born there, I was born there and Will Kemp danced there)

Louise
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Chris Ryall

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #46 on: February 13, 2011, 06:01:31 PM »

Just to say Playford is popular in Paris, where they call it contredanse anglaise.  Went to a club dance when I used to commute there and there must have been 200 of them.  None of that mimsy 'walk it through' several times either.  The band launched straight into the tunes and madame on the stage called each figure a second or so before it started.  Now that's proper dancing!   

http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contredanse    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=va0f-Y-eojc -  costumed!

... the related video links suggest that the term covers a bit more than the gig I was taken to  :|glug
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Gary P Chapin

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #47 on: February 13, 2011, 06:05:05 PM »

Just to say Playford is popular in Paris, where they call it contredanse anglaise.  Went to a club dance when I used to commute there and there must have been 200 of them.  None of that mimsy 'walk it through' several times either.  The band launched straight into the tunes and madame on the stage called each figure a second or so before it started.  Now that's proper dancing!  
When I went to Alsace some years ago, the dancing had it's fair share of English Country Dance.  A CD I have of French dance music for dance leaders includes four or five Playford tunes.  Because I didn't know the tunes, I put down my accordion to dance -- yeah, that is funny -- and you're right.  No wimps these.  The centrifugal force was impressive.
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Chris Brimley

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #48 on: February 14, 2011, 11:19:29 AM »

My contribution:

http://www.onmvoice.com/play.php?a=40975

The first tune is 'Epping Forest', published in Playford's 1670 edition.  The second is 'Nonesuch', and the third 'A la Mode de France', from the 1651 edition, with another go at Nonesuch to finish off.  If you consider Nonesuch as being in Dm, and replace the C and F with C# and F#, you get A la Mode de France in D major.

Following the recent discussion on this thread, I thought it was interesting that the third tune was named 'A la Mode de France', because to today's ears the minor version 'Nonesuch' sounds much more 'French' than the major version.  This is probably because of the vielle à roue or hurdy-gurdy sound it seems to generate, which I tend to associate with France (or Italy) rather than England, though I don't know whether there was an English version of the instrument made in the 17th Century.  Speculating, and bearing in mind the continual rivalry between the two countries around this time, I wondered if Mr Playford named the tune himself, and was having a little joke at the expense of those 'uncultured Frenchies across the channel', considering the 'A la Mode de France' tune rather rough and ready compared with the much more delicate 'Nonesuch'.
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Owen Woods

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #49 on: February 14, 2011, 01:35:43 PM »

Those are lovely tunes Chris (:)
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mayord21

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #50 on: February 14, 2011, 01:58:17 PM »

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Sandy

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #51 on: February 14, 2011, 02:51:07 PM »

My contribution:

http://www.onmvoice.com/play.php?a=40975


I really like the choice of tunes and lovely playing. Thank you Chris.
 (:)

Chris Brimley

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #52 on: February 15, 2011, 01:58:48 AM »

Quote
multi-layered symphony

Thanks Don for kind comments - it's actually just one track with plenty of reverb from Goldwav's sound editor, and the strange 'percussion' is just very clacky bass buttons and a heavy foot, I'm afraid.  The initial bird song clip came from my garden, with reverb on as well to try to suggest being deep in Epping Forest.

Thanks also, Sandy and Ukebert, for your kind words.
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Alan Morley

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #53 on: February 15, 2011, 08:07:54 AM »

My contribution:

http://www.onmvoice.com/play.php?a=40975

The first tune is 'Epping Forest', published in Playford's 1670 edition.  The second is 'Nonesuch', and the third 'A la Mode de France', from the 1651 edition, with another go at Nonesuch to finish off.  If you consider Nonesuch as being in Dm, and replace the C and F with C# and F#, you get A la Mode de France in D major.


Nicely done Chris, Nonesuch is a tune I have been familiar with for years but never played it and never knew what it was called - thanks for posting, well played.
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Anahata

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #54 on: February 15, 2011, 06:33:58 PM »

My contribution:

http://www.onmvoice.com/play.php?a=40975

The first tune is 'Epping Forest', published in Playford's 1670 edition.  The second is 'Nonesuch', and the third 'A la Mode de France', from the 1651 edition, with another go at Nonesuch to finish off.

Lovely sound and playing, and a stunning imitation of a hurdy gurdy on the second tune.
I had to look up the Saltarelle Tramontane to find out what it was - some of those combinations of chords and accidentals just aren't to be had on an unmolested two row box.
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Chris Brimley

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #55 on: February 15, 2011, 09:16:31 PM »

Thanks, Anahata - the hurdy gurdy sound was actually surprisingly easy to get - I held down the LH chord, and tred to simulate the zizzy effect with the bellows movement like the crank on a hurdy gurdy. Because the high RH reeds take much less air to activate them than the basses, I found you can get them to sound fairly constant, at the same time as the LHS sound stops and starts.  To get the drone I had to plan the RH fingering around playing all on the pull, then all on the push, and running out of air was the big problem.  But I changed direction on the gaps in the 'zizz', as it were, so you can hardly notice it.  Of course the box has one big advantage over the hurdy, and that's having a whole range of different chords to drone with, which I used on the B music. 

I found these tricks only work if you've got enough air, so I had to arrange some constant push bits on the B music to get the bellows back into position for the two A parts, which are all pull.  I've found playing in D minor is often difficult because of this 'mostly pull' problem, even with lots of buttons on each side.
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mayord21

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #56 on: February 16, 2011, 12:44:20 AM »

Another version of Kemp's Jig.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NsUk9rWvg5g

Don
« Last Edit: February 27, 2011, 09:33:42 PM by mayord21 »
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Gary P Chapin

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #57 on: February 19, 2011, 02:28:53 AM »

Liliburlero on my Salterelle with only the low reed sounding.  Just simple.  Might do something more ambitious later.

http://www.youtube.com/user/Accordeonaire#p/u/6/G-29_bcH58k
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Chris Brimley

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #58 on: February 19, 2011, 10:08:00 AM »

Nice playing, Gary, it's a sound that deserves to be used, more often.  I also liked your http://accordeonaire.blogspot.com/2011/02/bourrees.html, from another thread.  Sensitive and rhythmic, I thought.
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folkbluesnbeyond

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Re: Theme of the Month for February 2011: Playford Tunes
« Reply #59 on: February 19, 2011, 11:51:25 AM »

Hi Mcgrooger no worries, I really enjoyed your playing... I've had a bash at Gathering Peascods, although it's probably a little too quick and bouncy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzpGQQyI_jw

Cheers

Not too fast at all: in the dim and distant past i played for GP as a dance,(on piano accordion).
see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlIitSG5l70

(The audio is slightly out of sync but you will get the general idea that your playing is certainly neither too fast or too bouncy, in fact excellent to dance to.)
 All the best

Bill
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