 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Steve Epstein
Date: 2000-03-07 23:57
We in the USA love to absorb and mutilate other people's folk traditions:-)
Actually, contradance is a wonderful form of dance and music, because it's 100% amateur; even the best of pros have "day" jobs, even if they're music-related. Nobody can support themselves on this stuff, let alone get rich:-). What this means is it's 100% participatory; you play for your friends and peers. Both the music and the dancing are derived from Irish, English, Scottish, and French set dances, plus during breaks, we play hambos, waltzes, schottisches, polkas, etc. The dances are done both in long line (reel) and square (quadrille) sets. Most are "improper"; i.e., you hold hands with a person of the opposite sex. There is more time between figures than in the aforementioned root dances, so you can play around and spin your partner or corners extra times, and so on.
Our bands down here love to play French Canadian tunes, which seem to me to be the hardest of all on clarinet. I play on a Patricola C, but the really good players can transpose on a Bb. In addition to Bill Tomczak, who is based in New England, there is Dean Herrington, who used to play with a North Carolina based group called Footloose. Get one of those CD's and you can hear what Irish reels sound like on clarinet. In fact, speaking of woodwinds, up in Canada you have La Bottine Souriante, although their band instrument stuff is more contemporary sounding than traditional. You might also want to listen to one of your fellow Newfoundlanders, Keith Murphy, who plays guitar and sings with a New England group named Nightingale. No clarinet here, but a sound which is typical of contradance music.
I have even heard alto sax, oboe, and shawm used (David Cantieni of Wild Asparagus and Swallowtail).
All these groups have CD's and I can post URL's to them if anyone is interested.
BTW, Steve and Steve Epstein are different people, just in case there is any confusion (which I don't think there is).
Steve Epstein
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Author: Sean
Date: 2000-03-08 12:20
Thanks for the info. I did a bit of searching on the Internet and found some sites that gave good descriptions of the types of music and dance. I must admit that we have no such beast here in Newfoundland. The closest we would have is a good "kitchen party" where the instruments rarely break oustide of realm of fiddles, guitars, whistles & bodhrans. Heck, even the piano does not really find its way into our traditional music - quite unlike the folks across the straits in Cape Breton where there is a great Scottish influence.
As I have only recently picked up the clarinet after a 20 year break (and I might add I was not all that good 20 years ago either), I have to ask if it is possible to perform the typical ornamentations (cuts, rolls etc) effectively on the clarinet? Can you play the "piping" style? I have to admit that "the other Steve's" references to "arpreggios" and "ostinati" prove to be a little bit beyond my musical knowledge (I'm a self- taught, play-by-ear kinda guy) so I cannot comment on them and I have never heard of discussed before in terms of traditional Irish music.
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Author: Steve Epstein
Date: 2000-03-08 15:50
I don't have extensive training either, although I did learn to play in school and had private lessons. I unfortunately play very little by ear. In our bands it's not necessary to add ornaments or play harmonies as many others can do it. I just read the melodies and hope to get through them. Like many amateur players, I tend to bastardize these tunes with a lot of jazz - klezmer like note bending, not exactly the authentic style, although I'm conciously trying to imitate the bending of the fiddles. Even the best players have to slur the runs; tongueing at those tempos (120 or so) is very difficult. I don't understand what you mean by piping style.
If you can make it, April 14 - 16 is the New England Folk Festival Association's annual weekend in Natick, MA, near Boston. www.neffa.org
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Author: Sean
Date: 2000-03-08 16:24
Steve:
Here is a site that describes the "piping" style. Check out the audio file. This is the kind of stuff I have a hard time imagine playing on a clarinet.
Sean
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Author: Sean
Date: 2000-03-08 16:25
Here is the site:
http://www.oblique-design.demon.co.uk/flow/piping.html
Sean
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Author: Steve Epstein
Date: 2000-03-08 20:09
Ok. I checked out the audio file. Even to do it on a flute, you'd need open tone holes, and most of our flute players leave the covers on theirs.
Each instrument adds a different flavor to the music. The clarinet is not going to sound like a flute or bagpipe or fiddle; it's going to sound like a clarinet. Remember, you guys are the real "folk" in this kind of folk music; we're just messing around with it, apt to play this one day and Balkan stuff the next.
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Author: Sean
Date: 2000-03-09 11:32
Point taken. I guess I have to learn to, as they say these days, think outside the box. Thanks again for the new insights into contradance.
Sean
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Author: Willie
Date: 2000-03-09 20:28
My wife (the flute tooter) saw this thread and ordered me to search for a group in the S.E. Houston area. Nuthin! Anybody out there know of any? She got a couple contra type CDs for Christmas and is hooked.
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Author: Steve Epstein
Date: 2000-03-10 06:05
Go to http://members.aol.com/hatds/home/htm
(the site of the Houston Area Traditional Dance Society). I found this site on another site I browse often, www.voicenet.com/~squeeze/contras.html, by going to their state list.
Don't just try to order a CD. Go to a dance. Dance (it's easy to learn). See and hear the band play live. Buy a CD from them right there.
You will thoroughly enjoy yourselves.
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Author: Steve Epstein
Date: 2000-03-10 06:20
I browsed this site (HATDS) and they've got a pickup band! You can play! How's your transposing? (Forget the contra, unless you like playing in 5 - 6 sharps). Have a C clarinet? An A isn't bad either (fiddles like sharp keys).
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Author: Steve Epstein
Date: 2000-03-10 06:20
I browsed this site (HATDS) and they've got a pickup band! You can play! How's your transposing? (Forget the contra, unless you like playing in 5 - 6 sharps). Have a C clarinet? An A isn't bad either (fiddles like sharp keys).
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Author: Willie
Date: 2000-03-11 02:04
Hey,thanks a lot. I was a total loss on this. I have Bb clarinets, cornets, trombones. Hmmm, tuba, sax and contra in Eb. Maybe they'll let me try one of my pennywhisles. Got one in C and D. Then again I don;t play, they won't throw stuff at me. Ha! Thanks again.
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