The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #15228 Message #135290
Posted By: Mick Lowe
12-Nov-99 - 08:15 PM
Thread Name: You've probably not missed me.. but
Subject: RE: You've probably not missed me.. but
Many thanks for you "Well wishes" and yes Kat, you still owe me an email.. but I won't hold it against you and MK I'm grinning.. I've changed the page slightly as it seemed to be causing confusion with some folk... the entire piece is known as the "Mairi's Wedding Set", that is by those " clog hoppers".. i.e. dancers for whom on occassion I have to play for. There are 4 seperate tunes.. the first being Mairi's Wedding.. then I have a problem re nos 2 and 3 and the fourth is a repise of.. can you guess.. yep Mairi's Wedding and hopefully the dancers are skipping gaily as they go and let us play some proper music (apologies to any dancers who may be reading this). Actually for any true Irish devotees this is somewhat of an interesting conundrum.. and I don't mean why are Irish dancers dancing to Scottish/English/Who knows what music.. in that of all the various "Set Dances", the only ones that have defined tunes.. i.e. you always play the same ones whilst the dancers are knocking over the tables.. are predominately hornpipes.. e.g. The Blackbird, King of the Fairies.. except for the " Three Tunes".. All other Set Dances use any old tune that happens to be playing by the band and yet the exponents of step dancing are nutured with tapes/cd's that label a group of random tunes as "such and such" set.. And so we get back to "Mairi's Wedding Set".. if the manufacturer's/producers/whoever of so called "authentic Irish music for dancing", knew what they were doing, they would quote the correct titles for each tune and I wouldn't have to call on my good friends on the mudcat to try and help me out..
I've been on the soap box too long... It's nice to have been missed.. hopefully I'll be able to spend more time with you in the near future... Mick