Pot Stick

Another in the "Kidson" series--melodies from Frank Kidson's Old English Country Dances (1890). One more tune of early to mid-18th century origin, according to Kidson, and better known as "Over the Water to Charlie," but with quite a few other names, including "Shambuie," "The Marquis of Granby," "Ligrum Cush," "The Quaker's Wife," and "Wishaw's Delight." The last of these is a strathspey, and the violinistic character of the tune certainly supports that use, while the "pentatonic" cadence gesture suggests that the tune is much older than the 18th century. The second cadence (bars 7-8) mitigates the ^6-^8 gesture with a ^7 that, however, precedes the ^6, The first and third cadences are pure ^5-^6-^8, the older cousin of the ^5-^7-^8 cadence one finds in the later 18th and early 19th century, including in Schubert.

Punch Alive

Another in the "Kidson" series--melodies from Frank Kidson's Old English Country Dances (1890). A curiously heterogeneous tune with a strong ^3-^2-^1 frame in the first phrase, the Romanesca bass in the second (^8-^5-^6-^3), and a simple rising scale in the third. It was published in Playford's edition of 1728, but did not appear in earlier editions. The scale and final cadence suggest an 18th century origin, as an improvising second player would very likely get into trouble playing against the sudden leap to D5 but voice leading through ^7 to ^8.

If All the World were Paper

If All the World were Paper

Another in the "Kidson" series--melodies from Frank Kidson's Old English Country Dances (1890). This is an old melody -- it appeared in John Playford's first edition of the Dancing Master in 1651, and its rhythms and modal shapes suggest that it was very likely at least a half-century or more old by then. With the clarity and simplicity of dance-song, every phrase rises, the first and third subverting the ascent in the last detail but the second and fourth realizing it. In improvised duets, the final phrase is a clichéd invitation to the clausula vera, ^7-^8/^2-^1, exactly what a musician would expect.

The 29th of May

Another in the "Kidson" series--melodies from Frank Kidson's Old English Country Dances (1890). Kidson calls this "an exceedingly fine and marked air of Charles the Second's time." It appears in the 1686 edition of Playford "and is continued through the later editions."

The first phrase has a clearly defined descent pattern, with a marked registral shift in the closing arpeggio (what obviously must be F#5 is actually given as F#4).

In the second section, an single rising line runs through both phrases, but the registral shift is repeated, this time to finish the ascent (B5-C#6-D6 become B4-C#5-D5).

Ge Ho, Dobbin

This is the first in a series of posts on tunes in this collection (available in facsimile on IMSLP):

OLD ENGLISH COUNTRY DANCES GATHERED FROM SCARCE PRINTED COLLECTIONS, AND FROM MANUSCRIPTS, Collected and Edited by FRANK KIDSON. LONDON: WlLI.IAM REEVES, 1890.

According to Kidson's endnotes, "Ge Ho, Dobbin" was a very popular tune, to which many humorous (and probably some bawdy) lyrics were set. It was first published in the mid-18th century. The design is three-part: an A-B binary design, plus a single phrase refrain.

 The emphasis on ^5 and its upper neighbor in the A-section sets the stage for a converging cadence (not marked: from F#5 above and from B4 below). In the B-section, the hint of a sequence that might rise is squelched by a firmly descending line, where the 5/3, 4/2, 3/1 pattern is present but the final ^3 is almost entirely suppressed under the octave Ds.  The refrain, however, takes up the sequence and pushes it up vigorously to ^8, undoubtedly a rousing finish that encouraged laughter among the audience--and maybe a stray "hurrah" or two.