Did You Get Your Shot for Polka Season?

What? Joe Bane AGAIN?

As you know, I'm what I like to call "Clare-nerdy" and I keep bringing these tunes I learned from folks in County Clare. The "Clare Polkas" (a/k/a Joe Bane's or Bill Malley's) seemed to be popular on my trip to East Clare this year. And yes, here's Joe Bane again! I don't know why. I'll try to share something about him in an upcoming post.

Why did I bring a polka for the "learn by ear" tune for last week's February Irish Slow Session? Glad you asked! (You didn't really care, did you?) Firstly because I've always wanted to learn those tunes, and secondly so I could torture you all (of course).

Q. Why was the River Shannon Invented?

Polkas are pretty much associated with counties Cork, Kerry and Limerick, according to Fintan Vallely, and also the Cork-Kerry border area called Sliabh Luachra (say SHLEEVE LOO kruh). You don't hear a lot of polkas in the east of county Clare, but go out to the western side to Miltown Malbay where Jackie Daly lives and you'll hear plenty. Sadly, I couldn't find a recording of Jackie playing them. Listen here to Paddy O'Brien and friends playing Joe Bane's #1 in G major (really nice bouzouki work on this track):

Start at :50 seconds to hear Joe Bane's (p.s. Sue and John, you were right about the more square rhythm of the first few phrases of the tune)



On the subject of Polkas, Fintan Vallely also had this to say:

A popular dance form which was developed in Bohemia in the early 1800s, gained popularity and spread epidemically all through Europe. It reached England by the middle of the century, and there was called the 'German polka'...Introduced to Ireland in the late 1800s, two distinctly different kinds are now found - the simple polka of Sliabh Luachra music, and the 'double' polka associated with such as John McKenna.

       - The Companion to Irish Traditional Music (1st Ed.), Fintan Vallely

A. To keep the Polkas out of Clare!

So, how in the heck did this polka break into county Clare? No clue, because I've heard it said that the River Shannon was invented to keep the polka out of Clare. They probably just forgot to get their polka shots to keep the epidemic under control... Just a joke, folks, just a joke...

[Read all the way to the bottom for a special surprise]

It's all just to say "Thank You" to you all for going with me on this! It was really fun to work on the tune, and I'd like to continue working on it some more next month, if you all don't mind.

Anyway, Moving On...

I'd like to recap what we did last week at the February session so there's some institutional memory for it! Also, thank you very much to Paul for giving us next month's Reel of the Month! Keep reading to find out what it is...

Learning Tunes

Learn by Ear Tune: Clare Polka #1 (Joe Bane's Polka/Bill Malley's Polka)
Promenade - This was so much fun! You all did so well. Here's a clip of us playing it together
Reel of the Month: Man of the House sheet music w/chords (PDF)

Tunes We Played in February 2017

Clare Polka #1
Promenade (Hop Jig)
Father Kelly's (Reel)
Kinnegad Slashers (Jig)
Mug of Brown Ale (January Learn by Ear Tune)
Connaughtman's Rambles (Jig)
Torn Jacket (Reel)
Trip to Parliament (Reel)
Boys of Blue Hill (Hornpipe)
Man of the House sheet music w/chords (PDF) (February's Reel of the Month)
Merry Blacksmith (Reel)

Question of the Week: Are Polkas Easy or Hard?

Post in the comments below! Please send me tune suggestions! You can get me at hilary.schrauf@gmail.com I'm loving that you guys have cool tunes you want to work on. Thanks for sharing them.

If you haven't come to our slow session yet, but you've been reading the blog or you are on the email list, we'd love for you to come join us! We're having a lot of fun learning one tune by ear and then playing our learning tunes and finally ending up choosing music from our repertoire. There's a chair for you in the circle so come join us!


All I can say is "Keep on playing!" and...

Happy Monday,

Hilary

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You Found It! Here's the special surprise!

March's Reel of the Month - Flowers of Red Hill Sheet Music w/chords (PDF)
Flowers of Red Hill M4A (melody only)

This Week: The Realz about Reels? And Slow Session....weather permitting!

IN THE CASE OF BAD WEATHER, I WILL DECIDE TO CANCEL BY 6:00 PM WEDNESDAY: CHECK HERE ON THE BLOG, CHECK YOUR EMAIL IF YOU'RE ON THE EMAIL LIST, AND LOOK ON THE OLD SONGS FACEBOOK PAGE FOR CANCELLATION ANNOUNCEMENT.

Getting Ready for the February Session?

Hey there! Here's a a firehose of musing about reels just in time for the Old Songs Irish Slow Session this Wednesday, Feb. 15 at 7:30 p.m. 

Hey, Tune-Buddies! 

What a crazy weather week - 50 degree weather followed by tons of snow...followed by tons more snow. Of course we only get winter AFTER Punxatawny Phil popped his head out of the ground to tell us "six more weeks of winter." I guess what he meant to say was, "Six weeks of winter starting....NOW!"

What's with the Obsession with Reels? 

Of all the types of Irish "chunes" there are to play, the reel is the one people tell me they have the most trouble with. And I get it. I do. Some reels just make sense and others...well... If I could avoid ever playing The Salamanca, I would. In fact, if you asked me to play it right now, whatever came out of the fiddle would be a hot mess and not sound anything like the tune is supposed to sound. 

A friend of mine has played Irish concertina for a few years. She loves jigs. They make sense to her. "I don't ever get lost playing a jig." But reels? "Well, it's like you're going upstairs to get something. You get halfway upstairs and forget why you were going up there. So you stop for a second in the middle and then forget what you were doing altogether."

Playing a reel is like going halfway upstairs and forgetting why you were going up there in the first place.

Her trick? She tries learning the tune as if it were played in twos instead of fours: one and two and one and two and....  Like I mentioned last week, there are words that perfectly illustrate the reel rhythm: rutabaga rutabaga, for instance, or as a piper friend says "animated alligator animated alligator." We are not alone in our confusion around reels. Seems like everyone has this question at some point. Listen to what fiddler Natalie MacMaster has to say about it.  

Natalie MacMaster explains the difference between a jig and a reel:

Jump to 3:03 to hear Natalie's answer 

Where do Reels come from?

Brilliant Donegal fiddle player Liz Doherty, in Fintan Vallely's "The Companion to Irish Traditional Music," explains the reel as "...2. The most popular tune-type within the Irish tradition. In 4/4 time it consists largely of quaver movement with an accent on the first and third beats of the bar. ...It is likely that the reel originated in France in the early 1500s as the haye. It was being played as 'reill' in Scotland in 1590 and its modern form was brought to Ireland from there in the late 1700s. Many of the older reels in the tradition are borrowings from the Scottish tradition and the tunes are often found in more than one variant in different parts of the country...."

How do I love to play a reel? Let me count the ways...

There are quite a few ways to play a reel: smooth, rolling, jaunty - some of it is personal style, and some is regional tradition. Here, Slaibh Luachra musicians Matt Cranitch, Jackie Daly and Conal O'Grada play a set of reels with a slight bit of a bounce. Lovely stuff:

Can you play it straight?

My first teacher was (still is) a huge fan of The Bothy Band. He didn't give me the philosophy of playing reels, he just taught me the reels. Speed notwithstanding, listen to the flow of the music. The reels flow like rushing water - onetwothreefour onetwothreefour - there's a drive to this approach, right? 

Punch It, Willie!

Johnny Doherty is a brilliant Donegal fiddler who plays reels with a more single-bow style associated with the north: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEdM2jHbxUc and  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DL_9r0kSGYA.  

And finally....my favorite...

French-born Irish fiddler Patrick Ourceau has won the hearts of fiddle players and music lovers the world over. Can you tell why? His music just floats, and is full of magic and lift (and Laura and Josh ain't half bad either!). 

What's Your Favorite/Least Favorite Reel?

Thanks for checking all this out! I hope you found something to love in here. If you are so inclined, share why you love or hate reels in the comments below! Could you tell us which reel is your favorite or least favorite? 

Hope to see you on Wednesday!

Happy Monday,

Hilary

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February's Reel of the Month - Man of the House sheet music w/chords (PDF)

Man of the House mp3 with chords (NOTE: the chords should fairly closely match what's on the PDF)

Warm Up Your Fingers at the February Slow Session!

This is the place to be...

This cold snap is really becoming quite a nuisance! I don't want to leave the house, but I don't think I can spend another minute with myself. I'm going stir crazy!

We can't fix the weather, but one time-tested remedy for cabin fever is a nice evening playing tunes together. Old Songs Irish Slow Session will be held this Wednesday, February 18 from 7:30-9 PM at the Old Songs Community Arts Center, 37 S. Main, Voorheesville, NY 12186.

We'll be working on old tunes, including recent jigs Geese in the Bog/Lilting Banshee, and we'll add a third tune: Maid on the Green. (We can dream of Spring at least). For reels, we'll review Up Against the Buachallans and Within a Mile of Dublin.

Learning tunes for Wednesday will be reels Trip to Parliament and Torn Jacket, as well as the epic three part jig, The Battering Ram.

$4 for heat/lights/photocopies. We'll be in the downstairs where it is warmer! See you then!

Cheers,

Hilary

p.s. fun trad Irish band "Socks in the Frying Pan" will be performing at Old Songs on Saturday, February 21! Check it out: www.oldsongs.org.

Slow Session Wednesday, Dec. 18!

Hi, Friends,

While Tuesday was a bit frightful, Wednesday looks All Clear! and we'll be holding our Wednesday evening Slow Session on December 18 from 7:30-9:00 PM.

All the tunes we'll be working on are on the tunes page. Tomorrow night's learning tune is Mrs. Crotty's Hornpipe. I'll have a surprise tune for us to learn...

I hope to see you all out at Old Songs Community Arts Center tomorrow night!

Hilary

Great Little Session Last Night!

Hiya, Friends!

Dang, I keep forgetting to take photos of us playing tunes at Old Songs! All right, maybe the photo wouldn't be so exciting (not that you're not all nice looking and everything, especially the bouzouki player), but the music is really nice! Thanks to everyone who showed up, and to those who couldn't be there but wanted to.

Our next session will be Wednesday, December 18 at 7:30 PM. The December Learning Tune is Mrs. Crotty's Hornpipe. (Of course you'll all know it by then so I'll have a surprise hornpipe to go with it. Practice your b flats, folks!)

Once again, we had a small but dedicated group of musicians. We worked our way through tunes we've worked on in September and October. Our learning tune last night was The Shaskeen, a nice reel in G. There are a few changes I need to make to the version that's up in Google Docs. There are a couple of C#s in the A part that I neglected to include, and there are some variations in the B part that need to be adjusted. That should go up soon. In the meantime, you'll still be able to grasp the tune with the sheet music that's up there.

Our tune list from last night:

Eddie Kelly's #1 & #2 (jigs) - OK, I found the sheet music for Eddie Kelly's 1, so print that out if you haven't already. This is such a great set of tunes. I think we have Joe Leathem and Amy Schoch to thank for bringing this set of tunes to the session.
Taims in Arrears / Hardiman the Fiddler / Snowy Path (slip jigs) - we messed around with the order on this a little bit, but I think this order is the final for now
Humours of Glen - this is a sweet little jig introduced by Amy Schoch (Amy strikes again!). I seem to recall hearing the Mulcahy Family play this tune. Anyone else have a recollection of who recorded it?
The Shaskeen (reel) - see the notes above about the tune. We played this for a while and had some in-depth discussion about variations and adjustments. It's such a great tune! I hope we can get this back into the repertoire - thanks to Amy Schoch for suggesting this tune as well.
Friendly Visit / The Honeysuckle (hornpipes) - great tunes, nicely played!
O'Malley Waltz - Sweet tune by Tom "Rabbit" O'Hare.
Knotted Cord (reel) - we went over this nice reel, and explored some differences in endings. I will transcribe the ending that Joe Leathem plays, which he says he learned from Planxty on their first album. He gave a different name for the tune. I'll grab that for you soon!

I wish you all happy tunes and friendly faces! Happy Thanksgiving!

See you in December!

Hilary

p.s. remember the Olde English Pub session on the second Wednesday of the month (7:30 PM), and the Albany CCE (Comhaltas) session on the third Sunday of the month (slow session at 2:30 PM, regular session at 3:30 PM).

Slow Session Next THURSDAY 11/21/13!

Friends,

I'm moving the November slow session from Wednesday, Nov. 20 to Thursday, Nov. 21 because Peter Jones is hosting a special Thanksgiving Ale House concert/session on our regular Wednesday evening date.

Claudine at Celtic Colours Festival 2012

Please join us to hear the always amazing Claudine Langille with special guest Triona at the Ale House, 680 River Street, Troy at 7 PM.


We'll be there for dinner, come and join us, and then hear a concert by two amazing musicians and listen to the live session that follows. Faster players are invited to join us.

Please RSVP to Peter Jones. The evening of music is FREE, so don't miss it!!!

SLOW SESSION 11/21
Our Monthly Irish Slow Session will be held on Thursday, Nov. 21 from 7:30-9:00 PM.

We'll play the tunes from the last two sessions, and I'm hoping that some of the Spotted Dogs will come and share the tunes they've been working on for the past season.


Contact me with questions. See you next THURSDAY!!!

Hilary

October Slow Session Wednesday 10/16

Hi, Friends!

What a beautiful fall this has turned out to be! I hope you've had a chance to get out and wander in it. And perhaps even hear or play some tunes...

I hope you'll come out and play some tunes with me on Wednesday evening, October 16 from 7:30-9:00 PM. We'll work on some of our "Learning Tunes" and then go around the table and pick tunes/sets - you can use the list below and the Sets Lists on the Set Lists Page to choose if that helps. 

I encourage you to print that page out - I've linked to a PDF. I also encourage you to bring a recording device so you can capture pieces of a tune you don't know.

I've put some recordings of some of the tunes below on our Tunes page from last month's session.

As we sat around the tables last month, we discussed what tunes we might like to learn for the season. Below is the suggested list. Links to printable PDFs of these tunes are (or will be) on the Tunes page.

Last month we went over the tunes in the learning list (see the Tunes page for printable PDFs). I also handed out a bonus tune, O'Malley Waltz, by a Massachusetts composer, Tom O'Hare (known to his friends as "Rabbit"). Eric and I had the pleasure and challenge of playing his compositions for a one-woman story-play by Marni Gillard a couple of years ago. (Marni's really good people - and an awesome story-teller!) I really liked this piece and thought it might be a nice little brain twister for us to try.

You won't be surprised when I tell you that last month's stuff got all shuffled in with a pile of papers. In my case, they happen to be campaign materials. You see, I'm doing my civic duty (not without a firm push from friends, of course), and my campaign letters and voter lists are all over my desk! So, this morning I woke up and realized that HOLY CANNOLI! Tomorrow is Slow Session and I'd better get the tunes up on the blog. And then I ran off to work and didn't get back here until about 8:30 pm.

Well, hey! Better late than never, and you should always bring your suggestions (and sheet music if you have it) to the session.

SEE YOU WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 16 at 7:30 PM!!!

Best,

Hilary

February/March Slow Session Tunes Up

Howdy, folks! We are finally ready to go with the February/March list of tunes for playing/learning.

It's a lot of work to get all these tunes ready, and I'm sure you'll find a mistake here or there, so please bring a pencil this Wednesday so we can mark stuff up.

The tunes are linked to PDFs which will open in a separate browser screen. You can download, print, or otherwise admire our handiwork as much as you like.

CLICK HERE for the February/March Tune List. 

I'm still working on allowing posts on the "Tunes I Wanna Learn" page, as well as putting together older lists and creating zip files for you to download. Also, hopefully we'll have mp3s and/or videos linked to the page so you can hear what the tunes are supposed to sound like.

I'm looking forward to seeing anyone and everyone at:
The Old Songs Traditional Irish Slow Session
37 South Main Ave., Voorheesville, NY 12186
Wednesday, February 8 from 7:30-9:00 PM!

$3 per person for heat/lights/photocopying if necessary.

Thanks, lads,

Hilary 

p.s. Thank you so much to Lisa and John for reviewing the spots for me (and checking alternate sources for comparison's sake). Also to everyone who sent me feedback on links, access, PR, etc. for the blog. My heartfelt gratitude goes out to all of you!

Welcome to my new blog!

Hi, folks. It's the new year, and while I don't usually make resolutions, this year I resolved to make it easier to share and enjoy the music we all love. This blog will be the home (hopefully) of the .pdfs of sheet music for the Old Songs Irish Slow Session, and a place to find the mp3s of the tunes. This will also be home of tunes for my students and for my melody class. I hope to start a page here for "Tunes I Want to Learn" and maybe we'll even publish that "secret hidden tune list" that everyone keeps talking about...

We had a brilliant visit to Ireland this year, and that's inspired me in all kinds of ways, so look for offshoot posts about various projects that I'm hoping will grow out of this year's trip.

Stay tuned for fun, music, and inspiration. I wish you all the best in 2012!

Hilary