Fiddle Club of the World
Ten Strike strikes again!
When Chirps Smith visited the Fiddle Club of the World, he played a tune called “Ten Strike” that, well, struck a chord. A Club member requested that the tune be posted to this blog. It already has, on the report of the April 20th meeting. It’s still worth taking a closer look at “Ten Strike.” (Here it is again.)
Chirps learned the tune from the playing of Les Raber (1911-2000), a lifelong resident of Michigan. We both heard Les play the tune on numerous occasions. On this example, I am seconding on guitar and Paul Gifford is on hammered dulcimer. It’s February 1998, and we’re getting Les prepared to perform that summer at the Festival of American Fiddle Tunes in Port Townsend, Washington. The scene is the cozy living room of Les and Rosemary’s farmhouse outside of Hastings in rural Barry County.
Properly speaking, the tune is for the 4th figure or change of the Ten Strike quadrille, as printed in Gems of the Ballroom, compiled circa 1890 by Geo. B. McCosh of Dekalb, Illinois. Les also played the tunes for both the 1st and 3rd changes. (In fact you can hear both on this CD: Come Dance With Me . . . Again.)
When I first met Les in 1981, Paul Gifford had, at my behest, brought him along from Michigan to Battle Ground to perform at the Indiana Fiddlers Gathering. Les had just acquired a copy of the first violin edition of Gems of the Ballroom, had polished up his music-reading skills, and was working his way through book while sitting under the shade of a tall oak that had witnessed the Battle of Tippecanoe in 1811, a full century before his birth.
Here’s how, over ten years ago, I wrote down what Les Played.
There is some debate whether Geo. B. McCosh’s “Ten Strike, No. 4″ is the source for “Oklahoma Rooster,” a tune associated with old-time fiddler Uncle Dick Hutchison. You can judge for yourself.
Oklahoma Rooster
I’m planning on adding a few more pieces to this post, so check back.
Paul Tyler, convener
May 14, 2008
Filed under: Musings by Paul | May 14, 2008 | Comments (0)
Fiddle Club meeting coming up May 10th!
It’s Cajun fiddling with Will & Holly Whedbee
Leadway Bar and Gallery 5233 N. Damen, Chicago
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NEWS FLASH!!! or The meeting will start at 4:00 pm (Not 3:30 as previously announced. The bar doesn’t open till 4. Doh!) or You can still sign up. Find workshops here. |
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And
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DOUBLE NEWS FLASH!!! We’ll begin with a special showing of or 
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The producers are Old Town School parents who, at one time, were in a variety of fiddle and banjo classes and the Old Time Ensemble. They will be there. This is something extra special.
You can still sign up for the May meeting by calling the Old Town School of Folk Music at 773.728.6000. If you want to bring a guest, you’ll have to sign them up for the Club. Hurry. It’s first come, first served.
Paul Tyler, Convener
| The Fiddle Club of the World meetings start with an unplugged concert by the featured guests. The concert will be followed by a jam session for club members with the featured guest. Several tunes you can learn are posted on this website under the category “Tunes” linked on the right sidebar. |
Filed under: Meeting Schedule by Paul | May 6, 2008 | Comments (0)
Report on April 08 meeting
Lynn “Chirps” Smith was our featured guest, playing a variety of old time dance tunes native to the Midwestern United States.
Chirps cut his old-time teeth during his college days in Charleston, Illinois, where he played with the Indian Creek Delta Boys. More importantly, following the lead of fiddler Garry Harrison, the “Crik Delters” recorded and learned tunes from scores of senior fiddlers in the southern and eastern reaches of the Prairie State. Several of these tunes showed up in Chirps’ performance at the Leadway Bar & Gallery.
Ten Cents
Joe Wingerter tune
Stella’s Jig
Gallatin Special
He started his set off with a version of “Paddy on the Turnpike,” which may owe something to Harvey “Pappy” Taylor of Effingham. But then again, it may have been closer to the “Paddy on the Handcar” recorded in 1928 by Texas fiddler A.L. “Red” Steeley.
For the last several decades, Chirps has lived in the Chicago area. For much of that time, he played with the Volo Bogtrotters an old-time string band named after a natural feature located a short hop away from Chirps’ home in Grayslake. Representing that period of his life are tunes he learned first-hand from elders elsewhere in the Midwest, including Les “Red” Raber from Michigan, Nile Wilson from Missouri, Dwight “Red” Lamb from Iowa, and Lotus Dickey from Indiana.
Ten Strike
Old Reunion
Old Ladies Pickin’ Chickens
Sweet Bundy
Other pieces he played were learned from lesser known recordings of Nebraska fiddler Bob Walters, and a favorite piece of the Native and Métis fiddlers from Central provinces of Canada.
Bob Walter’s Hornpipe
Red River Jig
Finally, we must note that Chirps is now a resident of Wisconsin. Thus he performed a piece learned from a recording of Leonard Finseth of Mondovi, and a waltz from Madison-area concertinist (I believe he calls a bandoneon), Bruce Bollerud.
Stegen Waltz
Leonard Finseth’s Polka
Around 30 musicians enjoyed the performance and the jam that followed. We played all six of the tunes posted earlier on this blog. Plus a bunch more. A request was made for “Ten Strike,” the Les Raber quadrille piece, to be posted here. The tune is, in fact, the melody to be played for the 4th figure of the Ten Strike quadrille, as printed in Gems of the Ballroom (compiled circa 1890 by Geo. B. McCosh of Dekalb, Illinois). Les learned the tune from the book, which he had just acquired in 1981 when I brought him to perform at the Indiana Fiddlers Gathering in Battle Ground. Here’s the the tune as played by Chirps. It’s in C.
The next Fiddle Club of the World meeting is coming up soon, on Saturday, May 10. It will feature the Cajun team of Will & Holly Whedbee.
Paul Tyler, convener
Filed under: Reports by Paul | May 6, 2008 | Comments (2)
Notation for Paddy Jones tunes on a single page
| All tunes transcribed by Paul Tyler. Musical notation is only a guide to one way to play a tune. Use the written notes along with the recordings. If you hear something different than what is written down, good. Trust your ears. Play what you hear. |
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Click on thumbnail to enlarge.
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Written music is a sketch. Sound documents are the ultimate authority. or To hear some Paddy Jones tunes. Paddy Jones performed at the Fiddle Club of the World’s meeting on Friday, March 14 at the Leadway Bar & Gallery. |
Filed under: Notation by Paul | May 5, 2008 | Comments (0)
Notation for Chirps Smith tunes
| All tunes transcribed by Paul Tyler. Musical notation is only a guide to one way to play a tune. Use the written notes along with the recordings. If you hear something different than what is written down, good. Trust your ears. Play what you hear. |
or
Click on thumbnail to enlarge.
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Written music is a sketch. Sound documents are the ultimate authority. or To hear some Chirps Smith tunes. Also, more Chirps Smith tunes. Chirps Smith performed at the Fiddle Club of the World’s meeting on Sunday, April 10 14 at the Leadway Bar & Gallery. For now, the Old Town School is handling the club meetings as if they were workshops. Call 773.728.6000 to register. Cost is $12. Your name will then be entered on a list that allows entrance to the club meeting. Only those registered for the workshop will be considered members. Space is limited. Register early. |
Filed under: Notation by Paul | May 5, 2008 | Comments (0)
Cajun tunes from Will & Holly Whedbee
| Click blue link to download or to listen to these .mp3s. or Click here for tips and troubleshooting on how to get at these .mp3s. Note on the recordings: Following customary practice, the tunes are played on two fiddles tuned a full step lower (F-C-G-D). One fiddle plays the melody, and the second fiddle plays chords with some harmony and counterpoint. The slow versions are played on a single fiddle in standard tuning (G-D-A-E), to make it easier to learn the tunes without having to retune. For the jam session with the Whedbees, we’ll all tune down a step. Choupique Two-step Kathleens Waltz Lake Charles Two-step All tunes recorded by P. Tyler at Whedbee home in Chicago on April 21, 2008 Will & Holly Whedbee are the featured guests for the Fiddle Club of the World’s meeting on Saturday, May 10 at the Leadway Bar & Gallery. |
Filed under: Tunes by Paul | April 23, 2008 | Comments (0)
More tunes from Chirps
| Click blue link to download or to listen to these .mp3s. or Click here for tips and troubleshooting on how to get at these .mp3s. Ten Cents Bob Walter’s Hornpipe Leonard Finseth’s Polka in G All tunes recorded by P. Tyler at Chirps’ new country home in LaGrange, Wisconsin on March 30, 2008 Go to Paul Tyler’s transcriptions of these Chirps Smiths tunes. To hear the first batch of Chirps Smith tunes. Chirps Smith is the featured guest for the Fiddle Club of the World’s meeting on Sunday, April 20 at the Leadway Bar & Gallery. |
Filed under: Tunes by Paul | April 20, 2008 | Comments (0)
Some tunes from Chirps Smith
| Click blue link to download or to listen to these .mp3s. or Click here for tips and troubleshooting on how to get at these .mp3s. Stella’s Jig Rocky Road to Jordan Mississippi Palisades Go to Paul Tyler’s transcriptions of these Chirps Smiths tunes. To hear more Chirps Smith tunes. Chirps Smith will be performing at the Fiddle Club of the World’s meeting on Sunday, April 20 at the Leadway Bar & Gallery. For now, the Old Town School is handling the club meetings as if they were workshops. Call 773.728.6000 to register. Cost is $12. Your name will then be entered on a list that allows entrance to the club meeting. Only those registered for the workshop will be considered members. Space is limited. Register early. |
Filed under: Tunes by Paul | April 11, 2008 | Comments (2)
Report on Paddy Jone’s visit to the Fiddle Club
The Leadway Bar & Gallery was full of fiddlers last Friday night, for the first meeting of the Fiddle Club of the World. About 30 musicians showed up. Most had a fiddle and a bow. I counted one guitar and one banjo. And a handful of folks showed up just to listen.
I got there right at 7:30, and several Fiddle Club members pitched in right away to help set up our small p.a. and arrange the Leadway’s long, narrow party room for listening and playing. (Some eating was going on as well. The Leadway has a kitchen, and Frank, the owner–he’s also a fine sculptor–had set out several trays of veggies and dip for us.)
The music started about 8 pm, as we all played a few tunes together. Since the Fiddle Club members come from various musical walks of life, I thought it valuable to talk about what people expect from a session. Old-time players jump on a tune and ride it till it finds its groove and finishes the course. You might play one tune through a dozen times. At Irish sessions, a tune is usually played two or three times through, and strung together with several others in a medley. Someone or most everyone knows what tune comes next. Bluegrass sessions start by establishing a rotation of lead breaks, and pass the tune around from one player to the next. The Fiddle Club of the World has no established set of rules, but seeks to allow players to stretch boundaries and extend horizons to experience more of what fiddling can do for the world.
Paddy Jones, a truly delightful man and musician, got started about 8:30. He was artfully accompanied by Jesse Langen, who arrived just in time after a gig with the proprietor of Chief O’Neill’s pub. Paddy’s playing was strong, sensitive and rhythmic. He enthralled the room.
(I was very pleased with the acoustics and atmosphere of the Leadway. Paddy could be easily and clearly heard. We used just a bit of p.a. reinforcement, but it may not have been necessary. The front bar room filled up as Paddy played, but the noise from that side never caused a problem. It’s a good room. It would work better if we could move the tables out of the way.)
After close to an hour of concertizing, Paddy was ready for a break. He said he was used to having a singer step up with an occasional song, so he could rest his bow arm for a few moments. We’ll keep that in mind for future meetings.
Then it was time for everyone to play a session with Paddy and each other. A few young players could hardly wait to play through the tunes we’ve had posted on this website. Paddy asked if anybody had any questions. There was a suggestion that he demonstrate how to ornament. Paddy put on his teacher’s hat and led everybody through a demonstration of grace notes, bowing rhythms, and the essentials of playing for dancers. (We’ll post some samples of his “lessons” in a few days.)
Everybody got to play. We went through the tunes posted ahead of Paddy’s visit–the Kerry Polkas, the Kerry Slides, and the unnamed reel that is, in fact, The Galtee Rangers. Jessica Zeigler and her students from Old Town School Irish fiddle classes led us through some standard Irish session tunes. We ended sometime after 11 pm.
Thanks to all who attended, participated, and helped. A special thanks to Tim Joyce and Colby Maddox from the Old Town School, and to Frank and the Leadway Bar & Gallery,
See you April 20.
Paul Tyler, Convener
Filed under: Reports by Paul | March 17, 2008 | Comments (1)
Paddy Jones will be here this Friday! (March 14)
And that’s how the Fiddle Club of the World (Chicago Chapter) begins.
At the Leadway Bar and Gallery 5233 N. Damen, Chicago
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NEWS FLASH!!! The party room at the Leadway is a bit bigger than I thought. We’ve opened up space for six more members. Sign up quick. Find workshops here. |
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Please note a slight change in the schedule for the evening.
In the interests of Paddy’s accompanist being able to show up on time, we’ll start about 8ish. And we will begin with a bit of a session, to try to find some common ground between the enthusiasts for Irish trad and the old-time crowd.
Paddy’s concert set will start at about 8:30. Around 9:30 we’ll have a big session and play the tunes that are posted here for you to learn.
And then we’ll have some more tunes.
Also note. Space is limited.
We have room for only twenty members. As I write this, there are just two slots still available. If you want to bring a guest, you’ll have to sign them up for the Club. Hurry. It’s first come, first served.
I might have to look for a bigger space for the next meeting.
Paul Tyler, Convener
Filed under: Meeting Schedule by Paul | March 11, 2008 | Comments (0)
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