Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: maeve
Date: 31 Aug 16 - 01:58 PM

Some fascinating links spinning out from this overall textile and song project. Do explore. http://www.textilefolksong.co.uk/

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: GUEST,janet
Date: 28 Mar 14 - 07:27 PM

Surely the textile industry relied upon sheep-farming for its raw material? And sheep-farming relied upon the textile industry for its market? Is that not the obvious connection between textiles and yan tan tethera etc?

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: GUEST
Date: 28 Mar 14 - 07:27 PM

And again
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiXINuf5nbI

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: GUEST
Date: 28 Mar 14 - 07:21 PM

Another bit of thread drift!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygRN5kx8SWg

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: GUEST, topsie
Date: 28 Mar 14 - 09:13 AM

When my mother was a child in Sheffield they used 'yan tan tethera ...' for counting when choosing the child to be 'it' in children's games, so it wasn't exclusively rural, or only connected with sheep farming.

Selby - the cadence might work for ranting.

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: selby
Date: 28 Mar 14 - 08:45 AM

Sorry topsie for me it suggests sheep farming. The use of Yan Tan in north west does not work the cadence is wrong. A few assumptions to make it fit, although you are correct in one two three does not working as an advert. I would also have thought the project would have been better suited to a venue in sheep/textile country.CSH is not exactly on a tourist trail.
Keith

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: Nigel Parsons
Date: 28 Mar 14 - 08:45 AM

Further discussion Shepherds' counting systems

Cheers

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: GUEST, topsie
Date: 28 Mar 14 - 08:07 AM

As a name for a project, chosen to attract interest among the intended participants, 'Yan Tan Tethera' would, I suspect, be more effective than 'One Two Three'.

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 28 Mar 14 - 07:53 AM

I can't see it myself, Topsie, as the industrial North West and textile mills were pretty far removed from rural sheep farming. Having been pretty involved with North West Morris I have never come across anyone counting the steps using yan tan tethera and coming from a family of demon knitters I have not come across anyone doing the same while clicking away! I think it is a good theory though and probably worth some investigation. I am more than happy to be proven wrong. Again :-)

Cheers

DtG

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: GUEST
Date: 28 Mar 14 - 07:19 AM

Silly Northern me for not being able to see the connections topsie I am pleased you pointed it out to me.

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: GUEST
Date: 28 Mar 14 - 05:07 AM

'Pip' or 'pimp' means five, so your first counting wasn't wrong.
So it says in my Welsh dictionary too but there are versions used in rhyme, as opposed to the actual counting sheep, where the verse structure requres an extra bit of bounce hence the "tethera, hethera, pethera" for what should be the numbers two and three.

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: GUEST, topsie
Date: 28 Mar 14 - 04:47 AM

The connection between sheep and textiles is fairly obvious.
The connection between textiles and counting is obvious to anyone who has knitted anything more complicated than a blanket square.
The connection between textile mills and dance is seen in North-West clog dances - and anyone who has done the dances will know that some counting is involved.

And here's a sad French song about spinning (and war, and loneliness).

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: Acorn4
Date: 28 Mar 14 - 04:35 AM

The late Brian Dawson used to regularly perform this:-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3s_nXcxTd50

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: GUEST,Reinhard
Date: 28 Mar 14 - 03:41 AM

'Pip' or 'pimp' means five, so your first counting wasn't wrong.

I have never heard of 'tetherer' as the original poster used; I know it as 'tethera'.   Wikipedia lists more than twenty regional counting variants, of which the textilefolksong site uses the Lincolnshire variant in the head of their web page, Yan Tan Tethera Pethera Pimp Sethera Lethera Hovera Covera Dik Yanadik Tanadik Thetheradik Petheradik Bumpit.

See also the Mudcat thread Yan Tan Tethera - more words in the count?

And what has it to do with textile songs? Textiles are produced from wool generously donated by sheep counted by shepherds. Quite far fetched but you need some kind of thread to connect it to a tradition lest the topic would be reduced to industrial songs.

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: MGM·Lion
Date: 28 Mar 14 - 02:28 AM

Sorry --

that should say 1 2 3 4 5 6

Too early in the morning to count properly!

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer- at Cecil Sharp House EFDSS
From: MGM·Lion
Date: 28 Mar 14 - 02:26 AM

Indeed. "Yan tan tetherer hetherer petherer pin" just means 1 2 3 4 5 in ancient N English dialect shepherds' counting mnemonics. Can't see at all what anyone thinks it has to do with textile songs.

~M~

Subject: RE: Yan Tan Tetherer
From: selby
Date: 27 Mar 14 - 06:33 PM

I thought Yan Tan Tetherer was a way of counting sheep from Yorkshire, Derbyshire.
Keith

Subject: Yan Tan Tetherer
From: GUEST,Emmie
Date: 26 Mar 14 - 07:17 PM

I just wanted to tell everyone about this exciting new project: Yan Tan Tethera at Cecil Sharpe House EFDSS

http://www.textilefolksong.co.uk/

A project exploring and celebrating the connections between the making of textiles and song.
Curated by David Littler in partnership with the English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS).
The project features:
An exhibition of new work by artists Freddie Robins, Shane Waltener, Prick Your Finger, Stewart Easton and the McGrath Makers Group who will be delving deep into the EFDSS's archive;
A series of textile inspired making and singing events and graffiti stitch chairs for you to embroider your favourite textile song.
The project culminates in a live performance from sonic arts collective sampler-cultureclash as they unite Gaelic song with spinners, weavers and knitters, and traditional and electronic musicians in an exploration of things that spin.
May to Sept 2014 at Cecil Sharp House. London.
http://www.efdss.org/
If you look under songs on the website people are invited to send in any recordings they have of textile based songs.