minorkey
C.O.G.
On book 3 of the Guitarist's Way, thanks Keith
Posts: 3,626
My main instrument is: Tanglewood TU13M concert ukulele named Kalea
Mini-Profile Background: {"image":"","color":"72dd99"}
|
Post by minorkey on Oct 5, 2024 15:27:59 GMT
I'd like to discover the world of old folk tunes playable on guitar/ukulele and was wondering what sites are out there with freely downloadable scores. I'm interested in historic stuff, like O'carolan and such. I don't know much about that kind of music but it would be interesting to look into that world.
|
|
ocarolan
Global Moderator
CURMUDGEONLY OLD GIT (leader - to join, just ask!)
Posts: 35,440
Mini-Profile Background: {"image":"","color":"c0cfe1"}
Mini-Profile Name Color: 182a3f
Mini-Profile Text Color: 733a1c
|
Post by ocarolan on Oct 5, 2024 16:33:20 GMT
|
|
minorkey
C.O.G.
On book 3 of the Guitarist's Way, thanks Keith
Posts: 3,626
My main instrument is: Tanglewood TU13M concert ukulele named Kalea
Mini-Profile Background: {"image":"","color":"72dd99"}
|
Post by minorkey on Oct 5, 2024 17:53:21 GMT
Cheers Keith. I see theyre all single line pieces, suitable for tin whistle or recorder. Nothing polyphonic? (I've no idea what era O'carolan was living in, was just using his name as an example of folk music)
|
|
ocarolan
Global Moderator
CURMUDGEONLY OLD GIT (leader - to join, just ask!)
Posts: 35,440
Mini-Profile Background: {"image":"","color":"c0cfe1"}
Mini-Profile Name Color: 182a3f
Mini-Profile Text Color: 733a1c
|
Post by ocarolan on Oct 5, 2024 18:16:32 GMT
Cheers Keith. I see theyre all single line pieces, suitable for tin whistle or recorder. Nothing polyphonic? (I've no idea what era O'carolan was living in, was just using his name as an example of folk music) Trad tunes were largely played by various instruments in unison. Adding "chords" or any kind of harmony is a relatively modern development. Carolan's tunes for harp, although preserved as single line melodies, were often harmonised by the player in many different ways - a fashion which continues today in eg solo guitar arrangements. The single line melodies give you free rein in harmonising on eg guitar or uke - many work well with a small selection of simple chords, but can be treated more complicatedly if you wish. There's plenty of info on the web if you look. Too much really! Keith
|
|
minorkey
C.O.G.
On book 3 of the Guitarist's Way, thanks Keith
Posts: 3,626
My main instrument is: Tanglewood TU13M concert ukulele named Kalea
Mini-Profile Background: {"image":"","color":"72dd99"}
|
Post by minorkey on Oct 5, 2024 18:46:13 GMT
He played harp? Now that's an instrument I'd love to play
|
|
minorkey
C.O.G.
On book 3 of the Guitarist's Way, thanks Keith
Posts: 3,626
My main instrument is: Tanglewood TU13M concert ukulele named Kalea
Mini-Profile Background: {"image":"","color":"72dd99"}
|
Post by minorkey on Oct 5, 2024 19:24:07 GMT
ocarolan if you listen to the piece I uploaded the other day , Yr Wyddfa, that's the kind of music I want to play more of. I'm not sure folk is the right term, maybe celtic would be better...
|
|
ocarolan
Global Moderator
CURMUDGEONLY OLD GIT (leader - to join, just ask!)
Posts: 35,440
Mini-Profile Background: {"image":"","color":"c0cfe1"}
Mini-Profile Name Color: 182a3f
Mini-Profile Text Color: 733a1c
|
Post by ocarolan on Oct 5, 2024 21:21:47 GMT
Your upload Yr Wyddfa is played as a single line piece - as are the majority of the tunes on the sites I referenced. If you look for "Airs", which tend to be slow like the piece you recorded, you should find the kind of thing you seem to be after. But most of the tunes work tolerably well at any speed. Many tunes have lots of chord arpeggios which, with a bit of sustain, provide their own harmony.
Uke can be excellent because of the re-entrant string for playing ringing melodies across the strings rather than just up and down. Just because a tune is "for fiddle" or "for flute" doesn't mean you can't play it on eg guitar - that's what the music notation is for! The tunes have traditionally been passed on by ear, but written dots have their uses.
Labels are tricky aren't they?! "Folk" is a v wide category and means different things to different people. "Celtic" is a modern label, dreamed up for marketing purposes I suspect.
Just Google for traditional Irish/Scottish/English/Welsh etc tunes and you'll have more than a lifetime's work. Fall into a few Youtube black holes and listen to everything you can - it's the only way to get a feel for the music.
Oooh, Rob McKillop is worth a look too, though you'll need to pay (not too much) for his stuff.
Keith
PS. This is a Carolan single line melody which I have harmonised with notes underneath twice through, but if you go to around 1.23 I play it as a single note at a time melody which works just fine. Wherever feasible I play consecutive notes on different strings to get more sustain. The guitar is tiny, but equivalent to a normal one with a capo at fret 5. I used that particular one because of it's harp-like qualities and to make the stretches easier.
|
|
minorkey
C.O.G.
On book 3 of the Guitarist's Way, thanks Keith
Posts: 3,626
My main instrument is: Tanglewood TU13M concert ukulele named Kalea
Mini-Profile Background: {"image":"","color":"72dd99"}
|
Post by minorkey on Oct 5, 2024 22:34:01 GMT
Ah, traditional, that's the word I'm looking for! Nice little guitar there Keith!
|
|
|
Post by Mike Fowler on Oct 6, 2024 8:58:01 GMT
|
|
|
Post by Onechordtrick on Oct 6, 2024 12:08:22 GMT
That’s a great selection. Tabledit’s a great program. As well as producing tab it allows you to transpose and change the tuning. So if you have something written in E for standard tuning in a couple of clicks you can have a tab for the same tune in D for a guitar tuned to DADGAD. Perfect if you’re “notationally challenged “ like me
|
|
minorkey
C.O.G.
On book 3 of the Guitarist's Way, thanks Keith
Posts: 3,626
My main instrument is: Tanglewood TU13M concert ukulele named Kalea
Mini-Profile Background: {"image":"","color":"72dd99"}
|
Post by minorkey on Oct 6, 2024 12:14:10 GMT
Hmm I prefer notation, I find TAB weird, upside down
|
|
ocarolan
Global Moderator
CURMUDGEONLY OLD GIT (leader - to join, just ask!)
Posts: 35,440
Mini-Profile Background: {"image":"","color":"c0cfe1"}
Mini-Profile Name Color: 182a3f
Mini-Profile Text Color: 733a1c
|
Post by ocarolan on Oct 6, 2024 12:58:43 GMT
Keith, I haven't heard Eleanor Plunkett in a very long time indeed and that my friend is a wonderful little version of it, perfect for this misty October Sunday morning. Is that your arrangement? Some of those chords sound lovely. ..... Thank you Mike, kind of you to say so, and yes it is my own arrangement from many years ago. It exists only in my head and that video. Though I seem to remember attempting some rough sort of tab(ish) "description" of it for leoroberts some years back. Only the "full" arrangement though - I didn't try playing the the single line melody until later and trying it out on the Tacoma Papoose just for fun - no idea how to play that section now, though shouldn't be too hard to work oput from the video I suppose. Most of the chords are standardish shapes, or (partial) inversions of them, but the one I like most is basically an Em shape with a 9th added on the 4th string giving a nice almost dissonant sound with the adjacent open 3rd string. Long been a very favourite tune of mine, and there's loads of different versions on Youtube. It also works as a much more sprightly tune, but I thought it easier to play it slowly! A whistle playing friend used to play it, often on low D whistle which sounded heavenly. Keith
|
|
leoroberts
C.O.G.
Posts: 25,859
My main instrument is: probably needing new strings
|
Post by leoroberts on Oct 6, 2024 13:55:41 GMT
Though I seem to remember attempting some rough sort of tab(ish) "description" of it for leoroberts some years back. And I’ve tried to find it on my ‘puter… but can’t 🥲
|
|
|
Post by Onechordtrick on Oct 6, 2024 14:54:59 GMT
|
|
minorkey
C.O.G.
On book 3 of the Guitarist's Way, thanks Keith
Posts: 3,626
My main instrument is: Tanglewood TU13M concert ukulele named Kalea
Mini-Profile Background: {"image":"","color":"72dd99"}
|
Post by minorkey on Oct 6, 2024 15:17:53 GMT
Nice, I saved it to my phone as an image!
|
|