Very early morning here, 5am, still working on Old Cotton Fields and hanging out a bit for the inspiration. Failed at my new job... failed to fit in, did not get fired but had a (very) negative evaluation because of it and crashed hard. Been doing nothing but playing the fiddle since ... which is kind of crazy but it helps me to cope.

Sorry Anja! :-(
yes me too, music helps me to cope whenever life is hard. I don’t know what I would do without it.
I hope things get better with the job.

Same NCNotes...music saves my soul! and thanks <3

"Islay Rant" I told my teacher that the last 2 tunes I learned are my best. Completely out of the blue songs and genre but really sticking in the brain so I said let's keep on going. Technically I haven't "played" it yet but it's in the chamber.

Ooo that's a pretty one, Erockin...
And I could see it making a nice break between the fast sets...
That second half of part B is pretty radical! Sounds almost like a key change!

quote:

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Originally posted by NCnotes

Ooo that's a pretty one, Erockin...
And I could see it making a nice break between the fast sets...
That second half of part B is pretty radical! Sounds almost like a key change!

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I agree! I haven't found a version that's clear and not muddled with other instruments. My most success comes from learning from solo clear versions out there and once I'm up to speed, then I can play along with official takes from bands on Spotify.

I like this one , just had a go at it , and i think that learning to lilt it is the way forward for me. i have a sketchy version going after about an hour or so. :)

"Jump in the well pretty little miss".. in A and D

A rant is an old dance type, Scottish maybe? I was going to post an example but the videos were all super boring with people in fancy dress dancing as if they were afraid they might fall or break a sweat.  

Working on Bitter Creek / JP Fraley - some more - again...  

Islay Rant ...again. Half speed. Not official version. Bowed ornaments.

Well it's snowing for the first time here, this morning. Just a few days ago we were still sweatin' it out with abnormally high temperatures...lol...but now with the snow and gloom, although what's left of my garden is still sending up flowers, but this particular morning is the first visible sign that makes me think of Thanksgiving and Christmas. And for some unknown reason, Christmas always puts Jacks Creek Waltz to going in my head. I'm probably the only one...but I see myself as a 3 year old, watching Santa ride along the railroad track on horseback in the snow...and I hear in my head, Jacks Creek Waltz. But my fiddling has gotten so rusty, I'll probably just play through it on the guitar, if I get the chance...lol.

I feel like giving Christmas Day Ida Moarnin another try this year. Maybe study it for the coming time !!

A tune that comes to mind for me around Thanksgiving is “Simple Gifts”…love that one…

At every December session, somebody is gonna start the Christmas Eve reel…so I have been trying to dust that one off :-)

Wow Pete - you have really made it easy for us to learn the Islay Rant! Thanks!

quote:

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Originally posted by NCnotes

A tune that comes to mind for me around Thanksgiving is “Simple Gifts”…love that one…

At every December session, somebody is gonna start the Christmas Eve reel…so I have been trying to dust that one off :-)

Wow Pete - you have really made it easy for us to learn the Islay Rant! Thanks!

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Thanks for giving it a look and a listen. Do the dots make sense to you as a "reader"? i just put em down as best i can, but mostly  i learn by ear. i would love to know if my efforts at  music notation make any sense to someone like yourself  who can actually play off the page.... And please tell me if i could do anything different to make it more readable. Thanks again Pete

I will try it out, Pete! I am impressed by your sheet music, looks pro!
Hmm, My only thought so far is that maybe not necessary to write out the ornaments/rolls, since people will vary in their timing, where to put them, or not use ‘em at all? usually a squiggle above the note seems to suffice, if anything.

( Funny and NOT related to your music at all:
I was checking out the dots on the session.org for some other tune, and somebody had commented: “If you play this how it’s written here, you are an idiot.”  pretty harsh! 

Oops...back to tune update:
Still on Golden Keyboard...finally got it by memory...slurring the triplets at speed, because I can't do them as separate bows yet...will woodshed...
 

NCnotes - I saw that comment too, and it was for this tune. There's lots of notation for it there, I only looked at the first one, which I thought was quite readable. No ornaments - just a basic melody.

Not entirely related, yet the ranting and raving of a wound-up groundhog drinking too much coffee...I remember when we were kids and the grown ups would get on us and tell us to quiet down for a while and stop acting like we had the St. Vitus Dance. Then as an adult, one time I got curious and looked that up...it's really awful...terrible disease. Why did I even bring it up? Lol...it was used to make us shut up, sit still, behave, but always sorta a joke of sorts. But sounds like a terrible disease. So there...that's not a good post, is it?

Maybe I can do better...what tunes am I playing today? None. But yesterday while Six Chihuahuas (really only two) Passed while the Rice Boiled...lol...little dumb joke there...I grabbed the old harmonica and messed around with Cumberland Gap. And yeah, in case anybody saw my other harmonica post...I quickly found the missing note in Cumberland Gap on the harmonica...lol. I played it anyway.  One can sorta turn their harmonica into an emergency kazoo as necessary.

i play "Islay Rant" exactly like the music i posted...Albeit twice as fast....Lol.

It will probably change over time though (if i keep playing it). It's just a sketchy working version that seems to sound and feel like i want it to at this point in time. And feels right bowing and fingering wise to me anyways.

I find writing stuff down good for analysis to further interpret a tune. This one seems to be mostly A Dorian with a wee A Mixolydian tag on the end ?

Folk who play music how it is written are idiots because someone on the session site says so? ...Hmm....i don't think so.

Sourwood Mountain ... what a great tune to play now. Video says it's the Dwight Diller version. I can do this!

Looked up Dwight Diller, that is great stuff , he has a very interesting way of bowing!! Also a very strong and expressive way of playing <3

Quincy, you know Dwight Diller was a big influence on GroundhogPeggy, with his playing and pholosophy of music. I think she visited him once for a personal session.

Dwight was one of the very best. His buddy, John Morris, also of West Virginia, is also one of the very greatest Old Time fiddlers. Anja...you're looking at the best version out there (just my opinion, of course)...lol...go for it!

How amazing is this what you write now, Doug!!

When I looked up more info on Dwight Diller I felt sad to read he passed away ... just way too young! This is exactly the sound and rhythm and dynamics I will always strive for and the way he handles that bow and how that sounds on his fiddle, it gives me a major thrill , I also feel that when Peggy plays the fiddle, I feel that in a similar way <3
I hope Peggy jumps in to tell me more on this session and how she got influenced by him !

Is there anything more that can be said about this way of playing or about the dynamics I hear? Are/were GroundhogPeggy and Dwight Diller in the same area?!
I really wish to know more !

quote:

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Originally posted by groundhogpeggy

Dwight was one of the very best. His buddy, John Morris, also of West Virginia, is also one of the very greatest Old Time fiddlers. Anja...you're looking at the best version out there (just my opinion, of course)...lol...go for it!

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There you are! Can this be called like a specific OT 'dialect' within OT music? I believe you I am looking at the best version, what a great discovery today:-D I'll search on your channel for the tune also when I have finished this post, I want to  compare now hehe I want what you got and Dwight Diller.

I really have an absolutely great connection with my good distant friend from Kentucky,  we always fix eachother haha ... he does not play fiddle though,  but we call eachother a lot, that is like the same  area almost if I look on the map , these are neighbour states!   That cannot be coincidence :-D