CD Review: Guardian Angels by MCV

Subject: CD Review: Guardian Angels by MCV
From: Jim Krause
Date: 18 Jan 03 - 08:32 PM

One of the things that I most enjoy about the subject of folk music is the way that study will lead you down paths you least expected. Such is my growing interest in the traditional repertoire of the fife.
        I have long had an interest in American traditional fiddling, especially that of the area around Virginia, West Virginia, and western North Carolina. In studying fiddle music from this area, I of course began to note its roots in the British Isles.   And from there I also found common threads in midwestern fiddling and New England fiddling.
        Some years ago, a friend gave me a book entitled Dance to the Fiddle, March to the Fife, subtitled Instrumental Folk Tunes in Pennsylvania written by Samuel Bayard (Pennsylvania State University Press 1982). In this volume I began to see not only the British roots of the fiddle music I enjoyed playing, but also the common repertoire shared amongst the fiddlers and fifers of western Pennsylvania. Fiddlers borrowed from fifers, and fifers played fiddle tunes. And why not? Almost any good contra dance tune works well as a march. For this and other reasons, I decided to take up yet another instrument, the fife. And in doing so, discovered a wealth of information on the fife tradition.
        It seems that the fife and drum corps tradition has been alive and well in the Connecticut Valley of New England for over two hundred years, stretching westward into upstate New York, and southward into Pennsylvania. Right in the center of this activity is Middlesex County, MA home of the Middlesex County Volunteers, a fife and drum corps. The musicians that make up MCV range in age and vocation from 16 up, students to aerospace engineers, school teachers to truck drivers.
        While surfing the net, I found their website, clicked on a link and listened enraptured to a sample cut from their Christmas CD. I had to have a recording of theirs. And to my delight, on Christmas Day I found under the tree a copy of Guardian Angels.
        This is a most impressive recording. The arrangements are quite sophisticated, some in four parts, many in three parts. Of special interest is their arrangement of the "Lazarus" variant they call "Guilderoy" that most listeners will recognize as "Star of the County Down."    They perform dance tunes, marches and martial music with equal ability, arrangements often being credited to members of the group. One of my favorite selections is a pair of marches from the 18th century grouped in a medley titled "March Past." It consists of the title cut "Guardian Angels" and "York Fusiliers."
        Not all of the music on Guardian Angels has that harrump-ta-dump martial beat, far from it. Some of the arrangements are as delicate as any baroque chamber music. One example of really nifty arranging is "Martini's Minuet" written by an acquaintance of G. F. Handel's named St. Martini arranged by MCV Drum Instructor James Martin Clark.
        Guardian Angels is available directly from the Middlesex County Volunteers by clicking here. Check out their other recordings, too.

Jim

Subject: RE: CD Review: Guardian Angels by MCV
From: Uncle Jaque
Date: 19 Jan 03 - 06:16 AM

Ahoy, Jim!

        We don't often hear from Fifers in here; Welcome to the realm of the "Ancients"!

        The MCV really "rock", don't they? We are big fans of theirs, and have had the priviledge of doing a few parades and events with them.

        By "We" I mean the
Third MAINE Volunteer Infantry
Regimental Field Music.

        My favorite MCV Album is "Banks of Allan Waters", one of the earlier ones, but have GA and I hope to add more of their work to my collection along the way.

        I might add to your commentary on the wide diversity of musical style represented on GA; a couple of my favorite tracks are the haunting slow air "General Wolfe" (we have the original lyrics to that, by the way) and the Funeral Drige, with the thunderous, rolling "Barrel" Bass. Shivers me timbers, that one does!

        A young former Co-Worker had one of those "boom-box" stereo systems in his car; after putting up with his modern, synthetic "bumping" noise for a while, I handed him a couple of my MCV CD's and said "Here; try some REAL Drumming!"   He obligingly cranked them up, and started shaking the windows around town to a whole new beat - which not only got a lot of attention, but both he and his Dad actually LIKED it!    If you're going to disturb the peace, I figure, at least do it with some CLASS!   The MCV are certainly a grand way to do that!

        If you have not already discovered some resources here on the Internet for Fifers and Drummers, click on the links at the bottom of our page for several good ones to get you started.

        One good source for Fife or Fiddle scores (since we both tend to use the keys of "D" or "G" quite a lot) is
The Company of Fifers and Drummers
*.GIF Score Collection:

        Much of this collection is standard repitoire of most Fife & Drum Corps, as well as our more popular "Jam Tunes".   If you have never attended an "Ancient Muster", I would highly reccomend that you and your Fife (as well as Family, if applicable) plan to make at least one next Summer; it is an experience that you'll not soon forget, and you might even have a chance to see, as well as hear, the MCV in action. And they are a sight to behold, beleive me! Not only that, you may well get to meet some of them; they are as fine a bunch of folks as they are Musicians, you will no doubt find.

         If your are not already a Member of a Corps, I would encourage you to find one and at least get aquainted and jam with them whnever you can, as it is a wonderful experience to play along with the drums and other Fifers.

         Much like the Great Heiland Pipes, there is something primal and wild about the Fife and Drum that just reaches right in and grabs you by the Soul, and turns you every which-way but loose!   As you probably know, these are directly related to some of Humankind's most ancient musical instruments, and I think that the sound of them has the ability to strike a mystical resonance deep within our DNA somewhere that takes us waaaaay back there!

        Once you have been on a field with 2 or 3 hundred Fifes in the high register, nearly as many Snares driving out a rudimental, syncopated backbeat and 80 or 90 big Bass Drums making the earth underfoot shudder, you will know what the "Ancients" are all about!

Subject: RE: CD Review: Guardian Angels by MCV
From: Jim Krause
Date: 19 Jan 03 - 11:57 PM

Jaque,
    I am pretty well acquainted with the Co. of Fifers and Drummers; and have been thinking of joining up. I can be found on some of the lists of the COF&D. Frequently I show up on the Monday night chats hosted by Charlie Terzi. I sign my self as Chester, a nicname I'm know by in musical circles in my hometown.
    One of the things I should very much like to do is attend a muster, perhaps DRAM. I think that would be most enjoyable. As to joining a corps, out here on the Great Plains, there isn't much at all in the way of fife and drum music, the nearest I know of is a group in St. Louis/St. Charles, MO over four hours away. And since we're exchanging URLs, here's a webpage under construction that you might be interested in My Fifer's Webpage The tradition seems to have died out with the last of the GAR veteran fifers and drummers. All the sadder, because where I live in Bleeding Kansas, Civil War re-enacting has been all the rage for years and years.

Jim

Subject: RE: CD Review: Guardian Angels by MCV
From: Uncle Jaque
Date: 20 Jan 03 - 01:26 PM

Nice page, Jim; I've bookmarked it and will check back in from time to time.

Somehow from your mentioning of the Virginia area I got the impression that you hailed from that area. I can see where the F&D field might be a little sparse out there in Kansas!

Some of the CW Reenacting Units have a small "Field Music" component, although they might not list them as a "Corps", per se..
Most of those who don't feature Field Music wish they did after they go to a big event and see those of us who do in action.
I don't know if you have any interest in ACW, but much if not most of our Music is the same as was being used from circa. 1812 if not the Rev. War.

If you were to contact a nearby ACW/RE Unit, I have little doubt that they would be delighted to hear from you, and if they had no FM to begin with may well want to recruit you as Fife Major and start one!
A Drummer would be great, but as we all know not every Company had or kept both; often one or the other had to do for cadence and communications for lack of anything better, and any music really enhances a Company's impression as well as Spectator appreciation.

Back when the Third ME was only a Line Infantry Co., we used to get fifty bucks or so for a parade; after Drum Major Roger Beverage got the Field Music up to speed, we commonly bring in $500 honoraium, and at least one out-of State St. Pattie's Day parade netted the Unit $1K.
These funds not only underwrite our insurance and operating expenses in order to keep our dues affordable, but go towards Battle Flag Preservation, Historical Research, and Educational Outreach.

This phenomenon is not lost on the Reenacting Community, and we see renewed interest in Field Music.

Roger has been appointed Chief Musician for the U.S. Volunteers Brigade (National Union Reenacting Consortium)and has been asked to direct the USV Field Music for the massive upcoming Gettysburg 140th Reenactment. They want a lot more Buglers on the field this year as well, and I have been brushing up on my Clairon de' Ordnance.

The Fife does not get a lot of press in "Folk Music" circles, perhaps due to it's martial association. It was for much of the early 19th Century, though, considered a "Poor Man's Fiddle" and was commonly used in many a humble parlor.
In many of the young Protestant Churches, a Fife would have frequently been used in leiu of an organ.

It just doesn't seem to get the respect it deserves as a legitimate "Folk Instrument".