EFDSS News Page - May 2008 |
Quick
Links New
EFDSS Saturday Banjo, Piano Accordion and Voice Workshops Announced “O
Thou Transcendent” DVD Now Available |
| The
Great Northern Tune Book Republished
The Great Northern Tune Book comprises the whole of the William Vickers’ eighteenth-century tune book manuscript, and is an essential resource for every musician and student of traditional music. The William Vickers’ tune book was compiled in 1770, probably in Newcastle upon Tyne. It contained 580 tunes under the general heading ‘country dances’: jigs, reels, rants and common-time and triple-time hornpipes. The tunes come from England, Scotland and even France, but the emphasis in the collection is on the local fiddle and Northumbrian pipe tunes of north-east England. There is a mixture of old favourites, as well as obscure, high-quality tunes. The Vickers’ collection served as a source for the book Northumbrian Minstrelsy in the nineteenth century, and also played a key part in the renaissance of traditional music on Tyneside in the twentieth century in the hands of The High Level Ranters, The Cut and Dry Band and Alistair Anderson. The tune book provides a unique insight into the traditional music repertoire 200 years ago, and shows that today’s musicians are part of a continuing tradition. Matt Seattle edited and published the Vickers’ collection as The Great Northern Tune Book in 1986-7. It was the first fiddler’s manuscript to be published in its entirety, but has been out of print for many years. This new edition, completely re-edited – again by Matt Seattle – has been published by the English Folk Dance and Song Society and the Northumbrian Pipers’ Society. Editor Matt Seattle says, “The collection provides an excellent entry point into the whole world of traditional music, and the notes in the new edition give a multitude of avenues for further exploration.” Julia Say, secretary of the Northumbrian Pipers’ Society, says, “We have long been aware of the importance of this collection and its republication in partnership with the English Folk Dance and Song Society, long supporters of the traditional music and dance of England, is particularly welcome.” Katy Spicer, Chief Executive of the EFDSS, says, “We are very pleased indeed to be able to make this marvellous resource of music available again, and we welcome this opportunity of working with the Northumbrian Pipers’ Society. Matt Seattle’s work has been invaluable”. The Great Northern Tune Book: William Vickers’ Collection of Dance Tunes AD 1770, ed. Matt Seattle, published by the English Folk Dance and Song Society in association with the Northumbrian Pipers’ Society, 2008. ISBN: 978 0 85418 201 5. Softback. Price: £22.50 plus £2.25 p&p from the EFDSS or from the Northumbrian Pipers’ Society.
|
Saturday Workshops in Banjo, Piano Accordion and Voice Announced The English Folk Dance and Song Society is proud to announce a series of Saturday workshops at Cecil Sharp House. The workshops are set to begin on 19 April 2008. Sessions are geared toward beginners, although students of all levels of experience are welcome. Classes will occur on the first and third Saturdays of the month, from 10.30-12.30 at Cecil Sharp House in Camden Town. The series will feature widely renowned teachers, lecturers, and workshop leaders. Instruction will be offered in banjo, piano accordion, and voice . Each day will include both classes and lectures, with classes in the morning and lectures following. Please see the EFDSS web page for more information. Classes will run for two terms. The first term will begin on 19 April and end on 19 July, and the second will begin 6 September and run through 12 December. Instructors include Ed Hicks (banjo), Paul Hutchinson (Accordion), Sam Lee (voice), and Tim van Eyken (voice). Lecturers include Malcolm Taylor, Vic Gammon , Doc Rowe, Shirley Collins, John Howson, and Reg Hall. Places in the workshops
are limited, so advance booking is recommended. Some instruments may
be available for students who do not have their own; please call Cecil
Sharp House on 0207 485 2206 to enquire about instruments or to book
a place. Here you can download flyers for the Workshops and the What the Folk? lecture series
|
| Bert
Lloyd Centenary Event Announced
February 29th 2008 marks the centenary of the birth of A.L. (Bert) Lloyd, the renowned English singer, folklorist, journalist, and writer. To mark this anniversary, the English Folk Dance and Song Society will publish a biography, by Dave Arthur, entitled Bert: The Life and Work of A.L. Lloyd. To launch the publication and to celebrate Bert Lloyd’s life and work, the English Folk Dance and Song Society will host a day of concerts at its London headquarters, Cecil Sharp House, on Saturday 15 November 2008. Guests confirmed so far include folk luminaries Frankie Armstrong, Martin Carthy, Bob Davenport with Roger Digby, Will Duke, Dan Quinn and Alex West, Roy Harris, Louis Killen, Maddy Prior, Dave Swarbrick, Norma Waterson, Martyn Wyndham-Read with Iris Bishop and, from the current explosion of young singers and musicians, Lisa Knapp and Sam Lee. Bert Lloyd (Albert Lancaster Lloyd, 29 February 1908 – 29 September 1982) was not only a world-famous scholar but also a spellbinding singer who inspired many of today’s leading folk performers, giving generously of his time and material. He continues to influence new generations of singers through his books and recordings. Bert’s daughter Caroline Clayton and her husband Ted are pleased to support the occasion, all proceeds from which will be donated to the English Folk Dance and Song Society’s Vaughan Williams Memorial Library.
|
“O Thou Transcendent” DVD Now Available Did you miss seeing or would you like your own copy of “O Thou Transcendent”? This film by Tony Palmer about the life of Ralph Vaughan Williams was screened on Channel 5 on New Year's Day. Available at £20, plus post and packing, direct from EFDSS! Please contact verity@efdss.org to place your order or ring 020 7485 2206 Extension 25
|
|
Verity, Gwen and Jane can
always use a bit of extra help in the Society's administration office.
Roles range from picking and packing CD's and books, through to general
secretarial support. |
| New Releases |
THE
FOLK HANDBOOK – WORKING WITH SONGS Backbeat Books, in a partnership with the English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS), has just published The Folk Handbook – Working with Songs from the English Tradition. The Folk Handbook is an authoritative overview of the English tradition and its continuing relevance. It includes the words and melodies for over eighty traditional songs, with detailed explanatory notes illuminating each song’s origins and meaning. A number of essays place the tradition in a wider cultural and musical context, in particular examining its continued impact on contemporary performers in the UK and the US. The spiral bound, hardcover book also includes an extensive discography, bibliography and a fourteen-song CD of field recordings compiled from the Veteran Records archive. Malcolm Taylor, Library Director of the English Folk Dance and Song Society’s Vaughan Williams Memorial Library, worked extensively with Backbeat Books on The Folk Handbook. Malcolm said, “This will be a valuable resource book for folk song enthusiasts of all ages and for those involved in music education. The English Folk Dance and Song Society is proud to be working with partners such as Backbeat Books.” The songs in the book have been selected by Malcolm Taylor, and David Atkinson, Editor of the EFDSS’s Folk Music Journal, who also wrote annotations to the songs. They include ‘Scarborough Fair’, ‘Barbara Allen’, ‘The Daemon Lover’ and ‘George Collins’ Vic Gammon has contributed an introductory essay, while folk singer Martin Carthy has written about performing traditional songs. The book’s other contributors and editors include Mark Brend, John Morrish, Ricky Rooksby, David Sheppard, Stephanie Smith and Nigel Williamson. Mark Brend at Backbeat Books says, “The English Folk Dance and Song Society is the carrier of a vast amount of knowledge and expertise on the subject of English traditional song, and we were happy to work with it to produce what we think is a unique book.” There is an associated website www.folkhandbook.com which contains supporting material for The Folk Handbook, including MIDI files of the tunes for the songs in the book. “This is a very fine, user-friendly collection, a sharing of experience and knowledge by some of our best contemporary English folk singers and scholars”. Charlotte Greig, The Independent on Sunday, 19 August 2007.
|
|
This inspired collection of 300 tunes gives an overview of our current understanding of English traditional dance music. This book includes booklists of re-published musicians manuscripts, important compilations of English traditional music. Fascinating studies of English traditional musicians, how folk music varies regionally and an up-to-date guide to the enormous resources, including thousands of tunes now available on the internet. The double CD with the same title, also compiled by Barry Callaghan, contains thirty-two tracks of tunes played by many of the leading ceilidh bands, including The Old Swan Band, The Bismarcks, Geckoes, Florida and Pete Coe. Book and CD £32.50
+ £2 p&p (UK only, Overseas rates available on request) Book only £20..00
+ £2 p&p (UK only, Overseas rates available on request) CD only £16.00 +
£2 p&p (UK only, Overseas rates available on request) |
|
The long-awaited new edition of Marrow Bones! Marrow Bones was originally published in 1965 and edited by Frank Purslow, Marrow Bones played a crucial role in the burgeoning folk song revival of the 1960s, providing young singers with a whole new repertoire. Out of print for many years, Marrow Bones has been completely revised by Malcolm Douglas and Steve Gardham, with new and extensive notes on the songs. £15.95 + £2 p&p (UK
only, Overseas rates available on request) |
|
The Gloworms are a trio from London: Laurel Swift (fiddle), Jon Brenner (accordion) and Colin Cotter (banjo, stompbox). They play lumpy, thumpy English music with metropolitan sophistication, swing and 100% commitment to dance rhythm. The Gloworms’ sound reflects a wide range of ideas and influences drawing on anything that might meet the needs of a sweaty ceilidh dance floor! From contemporary dance music to a strong interest in the roots of the English folk tradition, The Gloworms create a layered texture of driving rhythms and counter-melodies rich in the bouncy rhythms of English dance music. Pilfering great tunes from the huge wealth of English dance material, The Gloworms also write over half of their tunes, many of which have already crept into the session repertoire. Look no further for the fresh, vibrant sound of new English country dance music! The CD title – Running Joak – comes from the title of one of their traditional tunes – The Yellow Joak. The CD has eleven tracks covering the wide range of English traditional dance rhythms – polkas, jigs, rants, waltzes, step-hops and double hornpipes. Great to listen to … great to dance to! Derek Schofield, editor of the EFDSS’s magazine, English Dance & Song, welcomed the new recording, “The EFDSS is proud to be releasing this CD of such a talented trio of young musicians”. The band is featured in the latest issue of the magazine, http://eds.efdss.org
Quotes £13.95 + £2 p&p (UK
only, Overseas rates available on request) |
|
£16.00 + £2 p&p (UK
only, Overseas rates available on request) |
|
|
Travellers
Joy
ERRATUM: Subsequent
to the publication of Traveller's Joy, the author and editors discovered
that the song 'The Widow's Moor' (no. 49 in the book and track 18
on the accompanying CD), credited to singer Duncan Williamson, actually
derives from the song 'Widow's Promise' written by Mick Ryan. We apologise
to Mick for this oversight and he will be fully credited in any reprint. |
| GOLD
BADGE AWARDS - 2007 The EFDSS Gold Badge is the highest award the Society can confer and may be awarded to either: Those who have made unique or outstanding contributions to the art or science of folk dance, music or song; or to Those who have rendered distinguished service to the aims of the Society through their exceptional contribution. The English Folk
Dance and Song Society is delighted to announce the Gold Badge Awards
for 2007.
|
| FESTIVAL
LISTINGS - 2007 Please check out our new Festival Listings (indexed on our "Resources" page), which is brought to you in conjunction with English Dance and Song, and presents a great view of the UK festivals this year. |
| IN
SEARCH OF TOPIC RECORDS Topic Records is reputed to be the oldest independent record company in the world and has certainly been a cornerstone of the commercial production of traditional music recordings in the UK since the 1930's. Initially appearing under the banner of the Workers' Music Association (WMA), it continues this pivotal role with epic publications such as The Voice of the People series. The library is currently digitising its card catalogue of Topic holdings (mostly donated by Topic, I should add) and does indeed own the vast majority of Topic's catalogue. But there are some gaps, particularly from the early period. If anybody out there has any of the items listed below and would care to donate, loan or copy them for inclusion in the audio collection, please contact the librarian. We are looking for the actual vinyl for the following 7", 10" and 12" Topic records at various speeds: WMA 101 TRL 1 T 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 10 T 12 / 15 / 17 / 21 / 49 12 T 53 / 54 / 55 / 163 12TS397 / 421 / 446 12001 (Songs Against The Bomb) TOP 32 / 33 / 37 / 46 / 47 / 48 / 49 / 60 / 62 / 63 / 65 / 77 / 92 / 98 / 99 / 100 / 109 / 124 STOP 101 / 102 / 108 / 109 / 115 / 116 / 7001 / 7002 / 7003 / 7004 TRC 1, 2, 23, 25, 26, 27, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 49, 54, 61, 62, 72, 76, 79, 81, 87, 93, 95, 96, 100, 101, 105, 106 12TFRS503 STR803 12TMH782 For further details of all these LP's, go to http://www.mustrad.org.uk/discos/discog.htm or call the Library |
One
of the foremost collections of English fiddle music ever assembled
-- The Great Northern Tune Book -- has been republished. 
The
Gloworms, hailed as one of the freshest young bands to hit the scene,
released their debut CD on the English Folk Dance and Song Society
– EFDSS - label at Chippenham Folk Festival at the end of May.
Dance
music from the sound archives of the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library.
This
new release from EFDSS is designed primarily for special needs educators.
Traveller's
Joy is a celebration of the extraordinary and ultimately unique musical
legacy of the Gypsies and Travellers of England and Scotland.