Name of the tune in 'Seige of Innis'?

Subject: Name of the tune in 'Seige of Innis'?
From: GUEST,Len Wallace
Date: 21 Feb 01 - 12:20 AM

Hello friends,

Here's a difficult one.

There is an Irish set of dances known as "The Seige of Innis" where four dancers face four dancers.

Usually a set of reels/polkas is played for it. The first one seems to be the most common. Played in the key of G the first few notes are (assuming each one is a quarter note): D E D B D G G A B C B A G D D E

What is the name of that tune?

I have been told it may be "Varsovienne". I've tried to find it in my many Irish tune books, but alas no luck.

Can anyone name that tune?

Trying to find it to help my buddy, Charlie King.

Many thanks.

Subject: RE: Name of the tune in 'Seige of Innis'?
From: Noreen
Date: 21 Feb 01 - 12:49 PM

Hi Len and Charlie. The dance is called the Seige of Ennis, and is danced to any set of reels or jigs, according to the choice of the musicians. The tune you give above, which I'm afraid I don't recognise, is probably the choice of your local musicians, so the best thing would be to ask them.

Sorry not to be of any more help.

Noreen

Subject: RE: Name of the tune in 'Seige of Innis'?
From: radriano
Date: 21 Feb 01 - 12:55 PM

Noreen is correct, the polka is The Siege of Ennis. My daughter is a step-dancer so I get to hear all the tunes for her practice sessions and competitions.

Richard

Subject: RE: Name of the tune in 'Seige of Innis'?
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 21 Feb 01 - 01:04 PM

Any set of jigs or reels? I don't know anything about dancing but I'd have thought steps would be very different in 6/8 and 4/4 times.

The notes Les has given don't remind me of any tune I know.

Jon

Subject: RE: Name of the tune in 'Seige of Innis'?
From: Jeri
Date: 21 Feb 01 - 05:45 PM

Click here for a MIDI of Siege of Ennis - it sounds like it might be your tune.
Gif of sheet music

Subject: RE: Name of the tune in 'Seige of Innis'?
From: Manitas
Date: 21 Feb 01 - 05:52 PM

That's better known as 'Salmon Tails Up Water'. There was a third part to it when used for the Siege of Ennis. Another tune used in the same set was 'The Grand Old Dame Brittania' aka 'Leather Away the Wattle-O'.

The Siege of Ennis appears to be one of those dances that any group of Irish people can, and will, get up to perform. And they haven't been too fussy about the tunes when I've seen it done.

Subject: RE: Name of the tune in 'Seige of Innis'?
From: Noreen
Date: 21 Feb 01 - 06:47 PM

I'll show you sometime, Jon! :0)

Noreen

Subject: RE: Name of the tune in 'Seige of Innis'?
From: dulcimer
Date: 21 Feb 01 - 07:17 PM

Parts of the Siege sound like the Rose Tree and variations thereof--Portlaige and Turkey in the Straw.

Subject: RE: Name of the tune in 'Seige of Innis'?
From: Snuffy
Date: 21 Feb 01 - 07:45 PM

Jon,

Morris tunes are about equally divided between 6/8s and 4/4s (or more accurately 2/2s). Both have two main beats in the bar and you dance 1-2-3-hop with the 1 & 3 on the beats.

You can even mix rhythms in the same dance. I have an LP of the Cambridge Crofters which ends with a Circassian Circle set consisting of Little Beggarman/Astley's Ride/Irish Washerwoman/Alabama Jubilee!

Subject: RE: Name of the tune in 'Seige of Innis'?
From: Bob Bolton
Date: 21 Feb 01 - 09:54 PM

G'day Len Wallace,

Just to fill in the other bit of your request, Varsovienne is a dance from the 19th century - in 3/4, but with all sorts of internal and external rhytms that have no relation to the waltz. the French gave the dance the name Varsovienne, (Lady) from Warsaw, in their enthusiasm for fellow revolutionaries ... but the dance is probably Swedish (the Swedes have the best, most complex and oldest versions).

There is no single tune for it - certainly, scores of varso tunes have been collected here in Australia, where the dance was very popular and still survives as a fondly recalled dance in country areas. The tunes have a distinct A part and B part, but you can get an idea of the rhythm if you realise that Happy Birthday is a typical varso A part.

I did hear on a Radio Telefis Eirran program on old players and the early phonograph that some Irish fiddle players were asked for a Varsovienne by a record producer ... and they did scrape up the only one they knew in Ireland: called something like Kick the Donkey. I would have to check back to my tapes for the correct name, but it appears to be the one and only Irish varsovienne. (I know that the Scots also seem to have only one varsovienne: La Va.)

Regards,

Bob Bolton

Subject: RE: Name of the tune in 'Seige of Innis'?
From: DonMeixner
Date: 21 Feb 01 - 11:20 PM

When we do a Siege of Innis we generally do a series of reels. Typically we use "Liberty" and St. Anne's Reel". I think it's a regional thing as to what tunes are associated with the dance. The tune I assoociate with the Siege is the theme played by the accordion player through out "The Quiet Man" the name escapes at moment but its tune bears a similarity to "Victory".

Don

Subject: RE: Name of the tune in 'Seige of Innis'?
From: GUEST,Len Wallace
Date: 22 Feb 01 - 01:00 AM

AHA! Salmon Tails up Water!!!

I knew there was another name to the tune. And thanks for the correction on Innis versus Ennis. My mistake.

Many thanks folks!

Subject: RE: Name of the tune in 'Seige of Innis'?
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 22 Feb 01 - 02:19 AM

Well I must admit that I have not heard that version of Salmon Tails Up The Water. I can hear simialarites but I wouldn't have even been sure that it was the same tune as this.

As for the dancing: Shows how much I learned about the dance side of things in my time with Conwy and All Fools Morris and occasional celiegh band work!

Jon