Clog Dances from 1883 for Banjo

Comment by Rob MacKillop on April 25, 2012 at 8:18am

Good videos, Ian. That last one reminded me of my Uncle Lester who used to do something similar, though less virtuosic, at family parties when I was a toddler. I only have a vague memory of that. maybe he was just drunk!

Nice to hear from you too!

Comment by James Pentecost on April 25, 2012 at 11:41am

Rob, here is a link to a film produced in 1987 by Mike Seeger  concerning traditional dance in our area including the clog. http://www.folkstreams.net/film,121  

North Carolina has adopted two official state dances, the "Clog" and the "Shag".

At 60 years old I don't clog much anymore but I can still shag.

Comment by flatfoot johnny on April 25, 2012 at 3:44pm

Love that vid James. Ive been learning a bit of flatfoot / clog dancing at Cecil Sharpe house... love it!

Still shagging at 60... there's hope for us all then ;-)

Comment by Rob MacKillop on April 26, 2012 at 2:33am

Thanks, James. Loved the possum dance! That would keep you fit. The music didn't sound very much like Baur's collection of clog dances, however, so I'm wondering what tradition he was tapping into. His melodies use a wider tessitura (or span), with sudden leaps up to the 10th fret, sometimes the 14th, then plunging down to first position. I found some of the pieces hard to play at the tempos I chose, but I confess I only read them two or three times before recording. I was just interested in getting a snapshot of the tunes, and hopefully start a debate. I'll try posting them to clog dancing sites as well. I'd like to hear the tunes with unison fiddle - any takers?

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