BUCKLEY 1860 - Part 3

[Tim Twiss]

11/26/12

http://timtwiss.com/musicstore/

Today I began the last leg of the Buckley adventure. Above is the address where you can tune in and check it out. This will certainly be the most challenging, as it contains the fiddle repertoire in the back. Many are written with one or two sharps, and there is no thumb string indication. What to choose....thumb string as "D" or "E"? I'll talk about it one by one as i get there...so far as I'm concerned, if there is no thumb string indicator, interpretation is up for grabs. These were just added without much thought to being an actual banjo arrangement. I'm sure they were thought out and played by banjoists. What this tells me is that the source is unlimited if we use the fiddle repertoire. Buckley also published fiddle books. He even inducated in this book that these can be played on the fiddle.

Hang on as the fretless goes up into the upper atmosphere. I believe this is fretted territory, but I am going to do them all on fretless. Possible, but not practical...is how i view many of these.

I begin with Picayune Butler's Harmonic Jig. I "found a way" after thinking about it and trying lots of options. The indications for playing the harmonics are not totally clear. See what you think. 

[Strumelia]

...continuing my thought...

I often suspect that tune books and tab books contain a certain percentage of 'filler' tunes included for little more reason than to 'give more examples of the same genre' or to plump up the book to sufficiently merit the asking price.  This same is sometimes true of audio CDs as well!  So all this is to say it never bothers me too much to skip over songs or tunes that don't grab me for one reason or another.  I refuse to feel guilty about it, even with rare material!

On the other hand, what you are doing Tim is a wonderful thing, enabling folks to peruse ALL the material and hear it 'come to life' so that they can more easily pick out tunes they too would love to learn to play.  Honestly, some of that banjo notation/tab is a bear to translate to the fingers!

What you are doing is monumental and much appreciated.  In some ways you are like a guide machete-ing a path through the tangled jungle of vines and roots, for the rest of us poor slobs to travel without stumbling so much.   ;)

[John Masciale]

Having just published a "tune fake book", I can say that there are certain things you have to attend to in putting together a collection of music.  The same music does not appeal to everyone, so there needs to be some variety.  In putting together a collection of popular historical music, it is necessary to consider different genres.  The success of a book of music is in its appeal to as wide an audience as possible. 

I really admire Tim for his thoroughness, his crisp playing, and his attention to detail.

[Tim Twiss]

Added Connecticut Reel. Pretty distracted while doing it...ironic time to arrive at this one. Oh well....just a title. Tried a nice relaxing feel to it. Goes up on octave on the 1st string....do not know the root tune for this one...if there is any.

[Tim Twiss]

12/18/12

New York Reel added this morning. I looked at it last night at let it settle a bit, and got a good take. Unique little triplet phrasing. The B section goes way high, and I kept it all in a closed position. This sure gives a a low tuned fretless a plunky unsustained tone, but I went with it. RH is 43%....seems perfect. And then there were 4.....looks like I'll make it before the end of the year, which was my goal.

[Tim Twiss]

I am glad I decided to take on this project, and do it in one swoop. It gives it some homogenous feel. I lsten at length to my playbacks when I am driving and napping (not at the same time). I like the gentleness that the fiddle tunes took on. It was not by design, but just sort of where they landed for me. Once again....these are my own interpretations. They will be a good guide for anybody wanting to play this material, as you can hear the rhythms and how the notes go together.

[Tim Twiss]

12/19/12

Did the weirdest one yet...Walk Round by Picayune Butler. Open your book and check it out. The rhythm was a huge mystery. Too slow and the offbeat eighth notes have no groove. Too fast, and the sixteenth notes and other figures are unplayable. I will experiment with rhythm instruments after I finish the project. Knowing it was a walk around help settle it in my mind a bit. Never seen figures like this mixed into one song. two other problems...bar 8 that does not add up right, and that repeated note D on the low string in the final measure. I worked out something for each part. I turned the dotted eighth / sixteenth into a dotted sixteenth 32nd note figure. In the end, I did one D on the open string and the other on the 4th string, fingerpicking them all in that measure.

  

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[Tim Twiss]

12/20/21

Able to get Hoboken Reel. Certainly one must find unorthodox solutions to fingering these fiddle tunes. Thinking where to jump...use an open string...when to use a closed position. Always with the goal of making it simple. Although I am not wriring down the fingerings, I can always come back to it. I know these crazy ones in the back are relatively untapped and untabbed.

[Paul Certo]

I suspect the difficulty of executing some tunes is what gave rise to all the different tunings used by the early-mid 20th century banjo players. Some of them might just fall into place in Double C, or open D, or another more modern tuning. Pure speculation on my part, but that's how any hypothesis is formulated, isn't it?

Paul

[Tim Twiss]

Okay....116 down, and 1 to go. Up comes Tullochgorum. Buckley's Favorite is done.

[Tim Twiss]

12/21/12

Like the heart of the melon...the center of a Hostess cup cake...Wonder bread without the crust....I savor this last tune. I am going to offer a huge discount on the Buckley download once this is complete, and run it through the holiday. It will be a code for Ning members that will give you a 50% savings on the launch of this music. That is 117 songs.....EVERY instrumental from the lovely Buckley Banjo Guide of 1860. 3 volumes. Watch for the completion, and I hope many of you enjoy the music in it's entirety.