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1 fiddle hell 2015 Frank Ferrel Workshop Notes

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3 Friday Schedule 12:0 1:0 Obscure Yankee Fiddle Tunes [Adv] on Messer Room Learn an obscure pipe jig, A Trip to Bugland, collected from a 1788 manuscript written by Benjamin Gardner in Salem, Massachusetts, and Lady Bartlett s Whim, from the 19 th century New Hampshire fiddler, John Taggart 2:00 :00 Fiddle Tune Writing Workshop [All Levels] Messer Having composed well over 00 fiddle tunes, many of which are in the common repertoire of Maritime and New England fiddlers, I will explain the traditional tune archetypes he uses and work with participants to craft their own brand new old time tunes (Look for Frank s book, The Ferrel Collection along with his C of original tunes, Moxie, in the Fiddle Hell store) 5:00 6:00 Learn an original jig composed by Tommy oucet [Int] Clifford - Franco fiddler Tommy oucet, a legendary player around Boston in the mid-20th century, was noted for his elegant and sophisticated style Learn one of his tunes from Frank As a bonus, find out how this relates to the visual design style called art deco Saturday 12:0 1:0 Easy own East Tune as Played by Tommy oucet [Beg] Messer - Legendary Boston fiddler Tommy oucet ( ) played some deceptively easy tunes Learn one titled, The Lucky Scap collected from one of his original had-written manuscript books 5:00 6:00 The Boston Franco Fiddling Tradition [Adv] Messer - A look and listen to the rich mid-20 th century Franco fiddling tradition as exemplified by players Tommy oucet, Emil Melanson, Oliver Tremblay, Romeo Lemay and others Hear some original home recordings and learn one of their favorites, The St Lawrence River Sunday 9:0 10:0 Learn a Tune from Prince Edward Island (PEI) [Int] Baker - From the repertoire of the noted PEI fiddler, Eddie Arsenault, we ll learn his classic tune, The Acadian Reel in 11:00 12:00 The Bee s Wing Hornpipe [Int] unham - Wrap your fingers around the key of Bb and learn a own East Version of the Classic Bee s Wing Hornpipe 2:00 :00 on Messer Tune Workshop [Adv] Messer - Learn a medley of tunes from Legendary Canadian fiddler on Messer representing his early CBC radio broadcasts from Charlottetown, PEI; The Ladyslipper Reel, Woodchopper s Reel and the Spud Island Breakdown

4 Lady Bartlett's Whim From NH Fiddler, John Taggart 19th c Manuscript A & # 4 2 B & # ~ & # C & # J & # John Taggart (New Hampshire Historical Society, Concord, NH) Taggart ( ), born and raised in Sharon, New Hampshire, and was a onetime orchestra leader and composer Taggart wrote in his ms that the tunes were all taught me during my boyhood days in Sharon (NH), by the various fiddlers in that vicinity Miller points out that Sharon is in the heart of the Monadnock Region of southwestern New Hampshire, where fiddlers and contra dances abound to this day John Taggart bio information thanks to Rodney Miller

5 A Trip To Bug Land Fm: Benj'n Gardner Manuscript, 1788, Salem, Ma & # # 8 6 j J J j J J J J ance music was a principal private entertainment in Europe during the period that Europeans were settling in the Salem area Sets, Country ances, contra dances, quadrilles, and cotillions were danced to reels, jigs, marches, hornpipes, and other tunes Many of the dances and tunes popular in England, Scotland, and Ireland were played for dancing in the Salem area, and local repertories were developed Itinerant dancing masters taught the latest styles, and historical sources reveal that dances held in private homes in the Boston area were open to the public From hand-written manuscript in the early music collection of the Peabody Essex Musem, Salem, MA

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8 Tommy oucet ( ) was legendary among Boston and New England fiddlers and dancers Originally from Concession, Nova Scotia, he immigrated to The Boston States in the 1920s He was an active club and dance hall musician, embracing the full spectrum of required repertoire from jigs and reels to foxtrots and hot tunes In 1929 I was pretty well advanced I went to play in East Boston at the Music Hall They didn t have no mikes, you know, and I had to play so all the people could hear me with a piano, and a banjo, and a drum Believe me, that was hard work I used to take care of everything play for the square dance, and play for the waltzes, polka, fox, whatever they want I d be ashamed to tell you how much we were getting If you got $2 for an evening you were a rich man Tommy oucet interview, 1974 His playing is characterized by a very smooth, clipped bowing style, extensive use of chromatic runs, syncopation, transposing tunes to suit playing in higher positions on the fiddle, and use of a full range of bowing techniques all the while never loosing the dance style and feeling of the music

9 Tommy oucet's Original Jig & # # 8 6 J Tommy oucet ca 1952 & # 1 # # n & # # 2 B j & # # & # # j & # # # n J

10 Lucky Scap From Tommy oucet Manuscript & # # C Jimmy Shand Composed by Scottish Accordionist, Jimmy Shand ( ) most likely to commemorate the Lucky Scalp beacon near the mouth of the river Tay Lucky Scalp beacon is described as a folly, although it was more likely a navigation aid and site of a salmon fishing station The 20 metre tower was built on an outcrop to the north of Tentsmuir during the middle of the 19th century, and torn down in 1979 Shand s original title is spelled SCAP which may phonetically reflect the local dialect

11 & # # # # C The Saint Lawrence River As Played by Tommy oucet Sid Plamadon 5 & # # # # 1 n # # # J 2 n J 10 & # # # B 14 & # # # 0 # # # # 18 C & # # # # 2 2 n 4 2 & # # # n 4 # n # # # J 4 n & # # # rd position rd position n n & # # # n n 1

12 The Acadian Reel As played by Prince Edward Island legendary fiddler, Eddie Arsenault, ( ) The Acadian reel is standard repertoire among PEI fiddlers and was composed by Edward P Arsenault, not Eddie Originally composed in the key of A, it is common to start the tune in the key of then swith up to A Edward P Arsenault G G A & # # C G G A & # # G A & # # G A & # # & # # # C A A A E & # # # A A A E A A & # # # A A E & # # # A A E A

13 * *As published in the Ryan s Collection

14 on Messer Medley Lady Slipper Reel & # # 2 4 Cecil McEachern & # 1 # 2 j & # # r & # # Woodchopper s Reel & # # 4 2 # n & # # J & # # & # # J

15 Spud Island Breakdown Cecil McEachren & # # 4 2 & # # j & # # & # # J

16 NOTE: Audio samples of all transcriptions are available at: wwwfrankferrelcom/tunes For sale at Fiddle Hell: The Ferrel Collection: Over 00 original compositions by Frank Ferrel, including jigs, reels, marches, strathspeys, hornpipes, waltzes, two-steps With an introduction by ave Richardson of the Boys of the Lough Moxie: 44 original Ferrel compositions from the Ferrel Collection featuring pianist, Peter Barnes and guitarist, John McGann along with special guest, legendary Irish-American accordionist, Joe errane and Maritime pianist, Janine Randall Produced by the late Johnny Cunningham HomeTapes and Favorite Cuts: The recordings included on this disc are some my favorites, dating back to the early 1980 s, almost all informally recorded on cassette or in one case, reel to reel I love the sound of dancers in the hall, café chatter, and general ambience of the moment Studio recordings are great, but there s nothing like the spontaneity of a house party or informal performance With these recordings, it s not the audio quality, but the music that shines through So forget the tape hiss, cheap microphones, and background noise - enjoy the music Contact Information Frank Ferrel, 114 Old Brunswick road, Bath, ME / fferrel@aolcom wwwfrankferrelcom