Question about notation in fiddle music

Subject: RE: Question about notation in fiddle music
From: IanS
Date: 02 Oct 00 - 09:22 AM

I have noticed that a lot of fiddlers play these unison notes with there 3rd finger with quite an aggressive slide up to the unison. I've always used my 4th finger with a more subtle slide.

How does everybody else play them ?

On the same subject Gina Le Faux does a brilliant version of Jacksons Reel (the one in D not the Em one) with fingered drones through most of the tune - the 4th finger is held down while the tune is played on the next string.

Subject: RE: Question about notation in fiddle music
From: Bud Savoie
Date: 01 Oct 00 - 10:15 PM

As I understand it, "prime" is the, ahem, correct way to describe playing the same note on the next lower string. Marion Thede uses the term in "The Fiddle Book."

Subject: RE: Question about notation in fiddle music
From: Sorcha
Date: 01 Oct 00 - 09:42 PM

Unisons, yea, I guess. I just call em all double stops if they are fingered. Continuous open string is drone, with fingerings usually on the string above it.

Subject: RE: Question about notation in fiddle music
From: Marion
Date: 01 Oct 00 - 09:24 PM

Holy rapid responses. Thanks.

Bud, what's a prime? Is that the same as a tonic? I've seen the one-circle/two-lines symbol that you mention - I always thought that meant that the sopranos and altos were singing the same note temporarily.

Sorcha, or anyone, I thought when you play a fingered 4th with the matching open string that was called a unison, and playing two fretted notes simultaneously was a double stop, and playing a fretted note with a non-matching open string was a drone. Is this more or less right?

Thanks, Marion

Subject: RE: Question about notation in fiddle music
From: Sorcha
Date: 01 Oct 00 - 09:17 PM

Yes, Marion, you are correct. One is a fingered 4th, the other is the open string which matches it. Called a double stop.

Subject: RE: Question about notation in fiddle music
From: Bud Savoie
Date: 01 Oct 00 - 09:17 PM

I would say yes, but oldish notation just might mean a bow cut. I have never seen anything like that, but the "prime" is often one note with two lines, one up and one down.

Subject: Question about notation in fiddle music
From: Marion
Date: 01 Oct 00 - 09:02 PM

Hello. I have some pages from an oldish book of Scottish fiddle music, and something in the sheet music that I don't understand.

In several places I see a "double" note: there are two circles in the same position on the ledger, slightly overlapping, with one line sticking up (or down) from between them.

My teacher says that this means that I should do a quick bow cut in the middle of whatever length of time that note takes - that the presence of two circles mean the note should be cut in two.

However, I have found that this double symbol ONLY appears with D, A, and E (the D, A, and E that are on open strings). So I suspect that the double note means that the open string should be played simultaneously with the fretted equivalent on the string below.

Am I right?

Marion