Chiff and Fipple Forums

So, I am having trouble deciphering whether the C's in this tune are Cnat or C#. The tune on thesession says that it is Edor which would mean C#, correct? But it sounds a little bit better played with Cnat in my opinion. It actually sounds good played either way, but I like the Cnat a tad more. Which is the more perferred C for this tune. Thanks!!

I think the Live at Mona's crew sticks almost exclusively to C natural, and I view them as pretty good arbiters of taste and style for this side of the ocean

That said, I like an occasional C# in there myself, but I'm kind of unstable that way.

Just seeing this on paper ... My urge is to change all those Cs to Ds to keep the tune hexatonic - with the exception of measure 14 where the C# is a neighbor tone below the Ds. Problem solved.

If forced to play Cs under threat of the evil eye, I'd go with C-nats for those. As Cathy says, the Live at Mona's setting sounds good.

Or play C-supernaturals. Finger C# and underblow it slightly. Since those Cs are all off the beat and unstressed, they're "unstable", and that ambiguity sounds good, too.

I think thesession's version should
have been marked Em instead.

If you search for it on JC's Tunefinder,
most of the results seem to be marked
Em.

Thanks guys!!

MTGuru wrote:Just seeing this on paper ... My urge is to change all those Cs to Ds to keep the tune hexatonic - with the exception of measure 14 where the C# is a neighbor tone below the Ds. Problem solved.

I was dubious, but I tried this and it's quite exciting.

Now that you mention it, MT, I've caught myself substituting a D occasionally in this tune myself, though usually as a variation at the last C of the A part. Being the unclever sort I am, I imagine I saw or heard it somewhere; perhaps Ronnie McNamara's Morrison manuscript book? Will look tonight. I think it's in O'Neill's, too though perhaps under a different name.

It'd be fun to trace it back. Makes me wonder if the tune is originally hexatonic and got "jazzed up" along the way with the C#s and then "jazzed" further with the C naturals?

Brother Steve, where are thou?? We need you in this type of discussion!

Once upon a time I tried to decipher some tunes from sheet music, but I always ended up playing the wrong sharps and flats, because many will translate a tune in major or minor, when in fact, it's not! To complicate things, many old fiddlers were playing Cs which were pretty much between C# and C nat... how do you translate that? Even worse, how do you play this on your concertina???

Wow, I tried the tune subbing the C's for D's, and it sounds so much better!!! No more confusion Great catch there MT.

Azalin wrote:To complicate things, many old fiddlers were playing Cs which were pretty much between C# and C nat... how do you translate that?

Half-holing and breath control, no?

crookedtune wrote:

Azalin wrote:To complicate things, many old fiddlers were playing Cs which were pretty much between C# and C nat... how do you translate that?

Half-holing and breath control, no?

But, how do you translate that to sheet music?
Is there a diacritical for C supernatural?
(I'm thinking a halo...)

Oh, sorry. The pitfalls of scanning threads, I guess. A halo would work, or maybe a Çedilla.

I think RyanDuns uses C# on his teaching version on youtube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDQ5v2g232U

cboody wrote:I think RyanDuns uses C# on his teaching version on youtube

Yes, that's right.

Azalin wrote:Brother Steve, where are thou?? We need you in this type of discussion!

I'm basking in the warm sun of do-what-you-likery after a long phase of fretting about and anal-yzing issues of this kind. Feels good... come on out!