Peter Ellis's Introduction to Collector's Choice Volume 1
The Book
Collector's Choice is the first of a series of several
volumes of traditional and old-time social dance music in Australia. Special
emphasis has been placed on accurately matching the actual tunes used, and
collected from the living tradition, with the dances.
Over 500 tunes, occupying at least
320 pages, will be divided into three volumes. The series has been designed as
a companion to the all-encompassing singular authority on social dance
instruction and history in Australia Take Your Partners, by Shirley
Andrews, and published by Hyland House, Melbourne. A revised edition of Take
Your Partners, or a supplement, containing further dance instruction and
interesting versions, was planned to follow Collector's Choice.
Volume 1 includes music for the folk style couples
dances Polkas, Varsovianas, Schottisches and Barn Dances, Two-steps, Polka
Mazurkas and Manchester Galop. The set tunes in the opening section are divided
into 2/4, 6/8, and 3/4 time for quick and easy "match and make" use.
They are the tunes used for sets such as the Lancers and First Set, and are
equally appropriate for making up arrangements or brackets for many of the
popular bush dances. The waltzes are equally adaptable to arrangements for the
Alberts waltz sections. Waltz Cotillion, Spanish Waltz and Waltz Country Dance;
or for couples dances - Veleta Waltz, Pride of Erin, Parma Waltz, etc.
Volumes 2 and 3 comprise special arrangements of
tunes for the "sets" and bush dances, and brackets of tunes for the
old-time couples dances. When a dance has its "own tune" (signature
tune) it has been included to lead off the dance with support tunes.
In the case of dances that require
a specially accented rhythm (Polka, Varsoviana, Tangoette), notation and
examples of bass line, matching a sample melody phrase, have been included.
Tempo
Tempos have been given as a guide
and have been carefully arrived at by comparison between old-time country bands
in the living tradition, official ballroom dance tempos, and that from Scottish
and Irish Country Dance records.
In most cases they coincided
closely; however, caution must be observed with some English old-time or
"sequence dances," which can be quite different to the Australian counterpart,
e.g. Pride of Erin 40 bars/min. (G. Br.) -52 bars/min. (Aust.).
Additionally within Australia
there is some variation between districts and players. The comfortable range of
tempo may be given usually within a 2 or 4 bar a minute margin. It is
surprising the difference dance-wise between maximum and minimum range. Also
two bands could play at the same tempo, yet one might sound bright and lively,
the other dull and draggy.
Slow music, particularly waltzes,
can be the hardest to play with respect to keeping the tempo down and steady,
yet maintaining a good, lively beat. Experienced dancers generally prefer the
lower range of tempo, whilst beginners and young folk like dances to be
"up tempo." The best compromise is probably mid-range, but there is a
tendency for some city bush bands to play everything too fast and well above
even the upper limit of comfortable dance tempo.
Be careful not to confuse beats a
minute with bars a minute. If in doubt cross check with a tape or record of
reliable dance music with a tempo that is comfortable and good to dance to.
Following the second hand (or digits) of a watch, tap your foot or hand in time
to the music, and count the "beats" in one minute. With experience
you will be able to count bars to a multiple tap of the relative beat (e.g. in
2/4 or 6/8, two taps (beats) = 1 bar).
The Music and Instrumentation
The aim of this book is directed
more to those who are vitally interested in the genuine Australian tradition.
Modern bands to me seem to be always over-amplified and dominated by
electrified guitars and "bugged" instruments such as violins and
whistles in the hands of professionally trained performers. With the long
brackets (and breaks) of several dances strung together allowing little chance
for socialising by change of partners, it is closer to the past rock n' roll
era of the 50's, and has been aptly described as "folk disco." It is
far removed from an authentic bush dance scene. This does not mean that I am
entirely against modern instruments and equipment judiciously used to advantage
in a traditional scene. If it can improve the music or dance and yet be in
keeping with the style, so be it.
As an example, at one of the
"children's balls" run about four years ago by the North Bendigo
Primary School, an excellent band of district music teachers on varied
instruments including electric piano, bass guitar, saxophone, and drums,
together with traditional instruments (tin whistle, fiddle, piano, concertina)
played wonderful music in a pleasing style for the Varsoviana, an English
Playford Dance, and various folk and old-time dances. I agree that the modern
bush band can be appealing to young people and serve perhaps as a stepping
stone to the real tradition and the better things they might otherwise have
never been introduced to.
However progress has overlooked
the inherent special qualities and sounds of the older instrumentation in the
bush. This should be of particular interest to "dinkum" bush bands
and authentic traditional dance organisations.
In the old days the music was
described as "sweet" and yet was all acoustic, and projected to fill
a hall of several hundred people, emphasised and punched out by the
"squeezeboxes" with great gusto and rhythm. The unique ring of the
concertina and the inherent quality of an old Mezon accordion, and fiddles
played strongly on upper strings and "floating" above all, the trill
of a tin whistle all added to the special sound of a bush band. The piano,
although not as easily portable, was nevertheless much sought after when
available to add its vamp to improve dance rhythm.
THE TUNES in this work are from the players of these
instruments and the dances favoured in the country -Lancers and First Set,
Polkas and Varsovianas, numerous Waltzes and Barn Dances (Schottisches). Some
of the tunes were merely known as "Dad's tune," or a nickname or
possibly derived from the lyrics. An example of this is the well-known MacGregor's
March. Although in many old dance albums it has in the main been passed on
by people who play by ear, and more often than not simply known as the First
Set Tune (It was a favourite tune for the 1st figure of the First Set).
However in Sydney it is known as In And Out The Dirty Windows, whilst at
Nariel it is called Paddy Whack nothing to do with the jig of the same
name, but the folk from Nariel had words Paddy Whack, Paddy Whack, which
were sung to the tune of MacGregor's March.
Keys
Much of the music in this
collection is confined to a particular key with little variation. This is
because many of the tunes have been collected from button accordion players on
fixed key, and determined by whichever accordion was at hand. A button
accordion and Anglo concertina has a diatonic scale related to a critical
push/draw bellows action which gives two notes per button, and an easy system
of playing tunes by a quick "imprinting" of the mind. Whatever the
key the instrument has been pre-tuned to fit, it will be played exactly the
same as another accordion in another key. One could consider, for argument's sake,
that they are all played as if in C, or relative to C, and accidentals, key
changes, and chromatic tunes are not possible. Good players are often able to
"bend" a tune which has only a few accidentals, to suit the
instrument (within reason). Two or more row accordions allow two or more
respective keys, usually a 5th apart.
It is obvious only certain music
suits a "squeezebox" and the bellows action is determined push or
draw in runs allied to the notes of the tune. This gives the button accordion
and Anglo concertina a particular punched-out rhythm which is excellent for
dance music, and which is not so characteristic of the one note push or draw
scale of the chromatic piano accordion or English concertina. Additionally the
left hand chords of the button accordion (dominant and tonic) tune in
automatically by its action. Because of the arrangement of a button accordion
or Anglo concertina, I feel the collected music is free to be replayed in any
key by mutual agreement and convenience of the musicians, and their accordions,
at hand. So there was no necessity to arrange the music with key changes, or
insisting that a piece has "its own key." Even in various old dance
albums, the same tune might be written in a different key, respectively.
One thing the old players would
never do, which some modern exponents attempt, is to play in a reverse bellows
fashion (contrary to the automatic imprinted diatonic scale) to match another
key to which the accordion was never designed. This would mean they could not
use the left hand and the characteristic bellows action, vamp, and rhythm punch
is lost. If it is not possible to change accordions or rows then it would be
more sensible for the fiddles and other chromatic instruments to change key to
suit the accordion. And this in fact is what happened one could not afford,
or carry, a range of accordions to dances.
Tunes from the Nariel band would
now all be in C to match their single row melodeons. The older Nariel band a
generation or so back played Mezons tuned in A. Harry McQueen plays a C/F two
row mainly in F on the inside row, which allows extra chording in the left
hand. Similarly the Wedderburn Old-Timers play two row accordions and change
instruments and keys between some brackets. They play in C, G or F, as
pro-determined to fit a suitable range for singing.
Does the Music Fit the Dance:
Reel Tradition or Real Tradition?
Invariably where a dance has its
own tune it will seem to fit the dance best and "tell the dancers"
what to do. Supporting tunes need to be in a similar style and it is best to
use one tune well played or a simple bracket of two or three, than to muddle
through complicated arrangements of elaborately ornamented tunes that may have
less "danceability." It is good practice to start and finish with the
signature tune and use Irish tunes for Irish Dances, Scottish tunes for
Scottish Dances and so on. Extending this theme it is appropriate to use the
popular tunes to which some old-time and traditional Australian dances are best
suited.
I was impressed on hearing Reel
Tradition using popular waltz tunes such as My Merry Oldsmobile in
the Circle Waltz, and Captain Pugwash incorporating brass (tubas and
trombones) instruments to emphasise a good dance beat in similar dances.
Contrast this with another band
that was so obsessed with playing only Celtic music that their Pride of Erin
was undanceable, to an obscure air with little beat and punch. And in a similar
situation I heard jigs being used for a Canadian Barn Dance. Imagine the flak
we traditionalists would receive if it were suggested a bracket of barn dances
be used for the Waves of Ivory in the reverse situation.
Players from the living tradition
were of course quite adept at sneaking in the odd "different" tune if
they so desired, but had years of experience backed by earlier lines of players
to modify a tune into correct style.
The important thing is to benefit
from their experience, note the tunes that were actually used and not to be
biased by what you wish the "tradition ought to have been."
Pseudo Irish tunes such as Peggy
O'Neil and When Irish Eyes Are Smiling are the popular tunes of the
day to which the Pride of Erin was made up and to which it fits best. Singalong
music-hall tunes of the turn of the century and popular music of the 20's and
30's suit the Progressive Barn Dance admirably. Additionally there are many
excellent collected Australian tunes for these dances.
Traditional players had a tot of
popular music in their repertoire and no distinction between say Come Bock
To Erin and the Irish Washerwoman.
One of the greatest myths is that
Australian traditional dance and music is Celtic. Irish and Scottish music is
an important part of Australian tradition, particularly within their
communities, and old-time players could play this music very well when required
for special dances such as the Haymaker's Jig or the Royal Irish. However the
music and dance in Australia for a large part of our settlement days was
equally affected by other material from Europe, for example, Germany, Bohemia
and Poland, with crazes for the waltz and the polka, and later schottisches,
varsovianas and mazurkas. Typical Australian music from these times includes
some lovely schottisches, waltzes, polkas and mazurkas.
Only a few Irish and Scottish
jigs, with other set tunes from the First Set and Lancers, that were easily and
effectively played on the old diatonic squeezebox, survived in the Australian
tradition. It would be most unlikely for example to find a minor Celtic tune
such as Lannigan's Ball or Rakes of Kildare in the Australian
living tradition, except perhaps as a fiddle item piece, or solo tune for a
step dance. These pieces certainly did not lend themselves as acoustic band
dance tunes which could be punched out with great gusto and rhythm.
No, Australian music owes its
origin to many varied sources, including the Scots and Irish. An American
influence came with travelling minstrel shows. In the goldfields of Bendigo
during the 1850's, at night, strains of Plantation songs by Negroes to the
strum of banjos could be heard. German bands, music hall, brass and military
bands, operetta music, drum and fife music were all popular in the goldfields
in those days. Various ethnic groups would contribute some of their national
and folk tunes.
There was an enormous sheet music trade
flourishing and the ballroom dance music of the day was written in a similar
style to the original folk dance or tune from which it originated. Ron Edwards
has been able to trace the origins of some of our tunes and songs from research
in England into the thousands of broadsheets of the day.
Thus it was very much a mixed
batch in the melting pot, and the old folk learnt anything that took their
fancy or "ear," It developed or altered as it moved from one valley
to another/or up and down the river and this is more accurately, to what we
owe, from whatever source, our Australian tradition.
It is most refreshing to see the
way in which collectors such as John Meredith, Chris Sullivan and Mark Rummery
and David de Hugard have been working to promote the real Australian tradition,
and that the Bush Music Club, Sydney, have similarly perpetuated a balanced
Australian repertoire, both within their excellent publication Bush Dance
by David Johnstone, and in their club activities and performances. Similarly,
in Melbourne, I am grateful to the Victorian Folk Music Club for their total
support in making this production possible and in the way in which they have
maintained our tradition of dance with the Woolshed Balls and well-balanced
programs.
The official site of the Victorian Folk Music Club Incorporated (Reg No A2511Y)
ABN 28 668 156 704
Last modified: July 21 2021 17:18.
