Monthly Archives: January 2013

Intro to Cajun Music Class Starts Feb. 3

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Come learn the basics of Cajun fiddling in a supportive group session. You’ll learn some great tunes and get a solid start swimming in the bayou of bowings, blues ornamentation, improvisation and back-up fiddling which make Cajun fiddling so distinctive. Tunes will be taught by ear, but both recordings and sheet music will also be provided. This is a great way to increase your repertory and be ready to jump in on the Portland Cajun Jam Session (a free Cajun music house party held third Sunday afternoons of the month).

This six-week class meets at my music room in SE Portland on Sunday afternoons from 4-5pm.

Pre-registration is required and oh-so-simple! Just visit the Intro to Cajun Music Class page.

Old-Time Tune of the Month for January 2013: Julie Ann Johnson

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Here’s a great old classic dance tune to start off the year: “Julie Ann Johnson,” from Grayson County fiddle legend Emmet Lundy (1864-1953). You can learn a lot about his life and music by consulting his biography page at the Old-Time Fiddlers Hall of Fame site (www.oldtimemusic.com).

Julie Ann Johnson (dance speed, mp3)[wpdm_file id=175]

Julie Ann Johnson (moderate speed, mp3)[wpdm_file id=176]

Julie Ann Johnson (sheet music, pdf)[wpdm_file id=177]

Old Time Tune of the Month for December, 2012: Xmas Time Will Soon Be Over

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Here is a great barn-burner of a Georgia fiddle tune for those holiday square dances: “Christmas Time Will Soon Be Over.” This particular setting is from Fiddlin’ John Carson (March 23, 1868 – December 11, 1949), a Georgia fiddler who recorded over 150 78 rpm records in the 1920s and 1930s. Roll up the rug!

Xmas Time Will Soon Be Over (dance speed, mp3)[wpdm_file id=150]

Xmas Time Will Soon Be Over (medium speed, mp3)[wpdm_file id=151]

Xmas Time Will Soon Be Over (sheet music, pdf)[wpdm_file id=154]

Dance and Concert at the POTMG!

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Saturday Jan. 19, 2013, from 10:30 to 11:30pm, be there and be square! Come square dance up a storm to Crankset String Band at the Portland Old Time Music Gathering. Crankset String Band is me on fiddle with partners-in-musical-crime Scott Killops (banjo), Joe Moore (guitar), and Robin Wilcox (bass). Charmaine Slaven will be calling- (lucky us and lucky you!) Hope to see you there!

And, from 1-2pm on same-said Saturday, Leela Grace (banjo diva, singer/songwriter, and clogging goddess) will be doing a concert set. She’s invited myself and fellow fiddler Betsy Branch to sit in on a few tunes. Should be some pretty sweet harmonies and hot dance tunes! Hope to see you there!

Quebec Tune of the Month for Jan. 2013: Cotillon de la patte de mouton

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Here is a great tune to start la nouvelle année: “Le Cotillon de la patte de mouton” (“Sheep Hoof Cotillion,” loosely translated!). Aimé Gagnon (see below for bio) is the source of this tune, and it was a favorite melody of  Gens du Québec, a 28-member group of Québécois traditional singers, dancers, musicians, and craftspersons who traveled to Vancouver, BC in 1986 to perform and do crafts demonstrations for ten days at the Expo ’86 Folklife Pavilion. I was the tour coordinator, and one of many happy memories of those weeks was when Aimé would play this tune: after a couple of times through the tune, everyone on stage burst into song on the first part of the tune (with those most universal of lyrics: “la, la, la”). The audience quickly joined in–it was irresistible!

Born in the village of Saint-Louis-de-Lotbinière on the banks of the Saint Lawrence River (about 50 miles southeast of Quebec City), Aimé Gagnon inherited his love of music and a beautiful and unusual repertory of dance music from his father, grandfather, and several uncles. He began playing as a child, and after his marriage to Lisette Lemay, formed a trio with his wife on piano and his brother-in-law Marcel Lemay on accordion. He was by trade a farmer, carpenter, and merchant, but he wove music deep into the fabric of his family and community life. I visited with Aimé at his home in Lotbinière in the 1980s while I was living in Quebec, He was a kindly, gracious, and peaceful person whose music echoed his soft- spoken eloquence.

Cotillon de la patte de mouton (dance speed, mp3)[wpdm_file id=156]

Cotillon de la patte de mouton (slow, mp3)[wpdm_file id=157]

Cotillon de la patte de mouton (sheet music)[wpdm_file id=158]