Re: Barrett's

[Matthew Allen Newsome <mnewsome@warren-wilson.edu>]

Poster: Matthew Allen Newsome <mnewsome@warren-wilson.edu>

I agree with what Byrum has said about playing to your audience.  I just 
think it important to add one extra note.  If you perform songs, like 
Barret's Privateers, or "Ramblin' Rover,", it is important to say 
somthing like "This is written by Andy M. Stewart, a few years back," or 
the like.  A lot of people out there are new to this kind of music, and 
may leave with the impression that this is a medieval folk song, or close 
to it.  Entertain, and educate.
And just as a side note, "Ramblin' Rover" is actually set in a more 
period style than a lot of 18th and 19th century Scottish tunes.  I'd 
rather here it at an event any day over Victorian Tartan-schlock songs 
like "Grannie's Heiland Hame," or Victorian Romantic Jacobite songs about 
Cherlie and the like.
Aye,
Eogan

On Wed, 11 Sep 1996, Bards keep wrote:

> 
> Poster: Bards keep <s0jswelc@atlas.vcu.edu>
> 
> Lady,
>      I'll tell you what, at some event in the future i'll start
> singing both and we'll see how many people join in on them.:)
> Your enivroment should always dictaite your performance(that goes
> for you too Alfredo...by the by, if you like singing and wearing
> motley, have I got a group for you :-) ).
> 
> "Back to Barrett's:"
> This Stan Rodgers song( which starts with the words" Oh the year
> was 1778..." gee that would put it out right there.) like other
> popular FOLK(i.e. not by Brian Wilson) songs sung a lot at bardic
> circles in this kingdom, while altho it is by no means period:
> 1. Seems to stay in the general mood of what we do( at circles,
> not competitions or such)
> 2. Is well-known, and LIKED(see above about playing to your
> audience)
> 3.Is a great huddling under a leaking tent, holding on to a pole
> for dear life kinda song...:-)
> 
> And it harmonizies nicely...
> 
> It's just one of those things; a Leslie Fish song about phatom
> spaceships would not fit the mood of a bardic, but perhaps
> something like her setting of Kiepling's "The Quest" would
> .It's a thin line performer's have to walk.When Niall and I
> would go out on our Tactial Bardic Strikes at Pennsic this year,
> we have a rough idea of the songs we wanted to sing together/work
> out bugs in harmony, timing etc. All of these songs were
> documentable before 1650 or songs written in a period style,
> describing peroid events.However, guess what else we sang, songs
> like " Born on the Listfield" or more appriopate to this
> discussion, Andy M. Stewart's "Rambling Rover"-a modern folk
> song.
> 
>    OR: In Ostrgard's encampment(New York City) several of the
> old-timers there knew Niall, thru his father, John Townley of the
> Ex-Seamen, who used to play in town regularly, and those folks
> would ask us each time we came there to perform non-period
> sea-chanties and folk songs. We obliged, of course, as they were
> our patrons, and because we do those songs anyway. Also tho,we
> performed our regular stuff(period,and Real-Close stuff). Which
> they enjoyed as well.But we couldn't really say to them,naw,
> we're gonna do just the stuff we want to hear.It is the Bards job
> to educate and sing period stuff, but it's also the Performer's
> job to be entertanting, and in the SCA, in Atlantia, often that
> includes stuff like Barretts.(which I would like to see people
> sing less simply because i'm tired of it... and I haven't really
> ever bothered to learn the words...someone else will sing it
> anyway, cos' it's usually requested....(see the top of the page
> :)...).
> 
> Bryce de Byram
> (very much smiling and thinking that only Lady Annara would list
> "Somewhere in An Tir" on that first list of songs she gave....)
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