Join us on Friday 20th – Sunday 22nd January 2012 for the The Great Folk-Splicing Experiment at Halsway Manor!

This is a residential weekend for young people aged 17+ to work with Shooting Roots tutors to explore the folk arts and create new work. There will be an emphasis on combining various folk disciplines (for example, dance with song, music with stories/folklore). Use of the extensive folk library at the manor will be encouraged for research. Daytimes will contain workshops, exercises and time for people to experiment and explore ideas. Evenings will include a ceilidhs, sessions and performances. Participants are encouraged to use the Manor and surrounding grounds to find interesting places and ways to stage their performances. Ideas will be further developed at the Shooting Roots residential week at Halsway Manor 22nd-26th October 2012.

Prices: £80 (including bedroom accommodation and all meals). £50 (including indoor camping and all meals)

How to Book and Pay
By phone : 01984 618274 to reserve your place, answer any questions and pay by card.
By post : Write to Bookings, Halsway Manor, Halsway Lane, near Crowcombe, Somerset TA4 4BD giving your name, address, phone number, the event you want to book for, and for residential events, what accommodation you want and whether you have any special dietary needs. Please make cheques payable to Halsway Manor Society Ltd.

This year at Sidmouth Folk week we ran a new workshop strand called “Tunes From…”, where we invited a few expert tutors to share tunes in a particular style with us. It worked really nicely and you can see all the tunes and scores online here…

Matt Norman did tunes from Dartmoor with us…
http://shootingroots.org/2011/09/day-1-for-tunes-from-dartmoor/

Rob Ryan brought us tunes from Ireland:
http://shootingroots.org/2011/08/day-2-for-tunes-from-ireland-2/

Marit Fält and Rona Wilkie brought us tunes from Scandinavia:
http://shootingroots.org/2011/09/day-three-of-tunes-from-scandinavia/

Ruth Ball came with tunes from Northumberland:
http://shootingroots.org/2011/09/day-4-for-tunes-from-northumbria/

Our tutor for the last day of Tunes From was Ruth Ball, fiddler for the Newcastle Kingsman. She brought us three tunes from Northumberland: Dear Tobacco, The Peacock Follows the Hen and the Dunstanburgh Rant.

Dear Tobacco

Click on the score to make it bigger, then right click to save a copy.

The Peacock Followed the Hen

Dunstanburgh Rant

This recording also includes Ruth explaining the different between a reel, a jig and a rant.

Marit Fält and Rona Wilkie joined us to share some Scandinavian tunes. We learnt two polskas, the first is a Slängpolska from Småland. It doesn’t have a name but is often referred to at ‘Nu skall mormor bada’ which translates into ‘Now grandmother shall have a bath’. The second polska is from Leksand in Dalecarlia in tradition of Rolig Pers, so it’s usually called ‘Rolig Pers Polska’.

Nu skall mormor bada (G major)

Here are the dots for Nu skall mormor bada – click to enlarge then right mouse to download and save.

Rolig Pers Polska (A major)

We’ve just completed our first year as the new Shooting Roots team.

We want to say a huge THANK YOU to all our tutors and participants. You’ve all been ace, and this year has gone really well.

It’s been a really exciting year for us as the new team. We’ve got a lot to learn from and hope to make next year even better.

Keep your eyes open for photos and festival reports on our website… send us your stories!

Look forward to seeing you next year!

Cal, Maia & Steph

Mandolin player Matt Norman did us a lovely session on Dartmoor tunes in the Pixie band style.

We worked on a tune called Redwing, an American tune that’s become popular in Dartmoor.

Here Matt’s Dartmoor style version, recorded in the Blackmore Gardens at Sidmouth on his banjo!

Here are the dots to help you along if you prefer. Click on them to make them larger, then right mouse to save a copy.

You might notice there are more notes in Matt’s audio version than in the score. The score is what we started with, then we had fun adding turns, slides and other ornaments. To make it particualrly dancey, if there were any long notes on beats 2 & 4 with split those up (nn dugga nn dugga). Last of all we had a go making a simple bassline and using that “nn dugga nn dugga” rhythm in the accompaniment.

Our fiddler Rob Ryan provided us with recordings and score to back up our workshop today.

Here’s the jig first of all – Hide and Go Seek:

Hide and Go Seek up to speed

Hide and Go Seek at a slow pace

Hide and Go Seek score

And now the reels: first John Stenson’s

John Stenson’s up to speed

John Stenson’s at a slow pace

John Stenson’s score

Lastly The Monaghan Twig:

The Monaghan Twig up to speed

The Monaghan Twig at a slow pace

The Monaghan Twig PDF

Set on the edge of the Quantock hills, Halsway Manor is an independent charity providing a year round programme of events and learning activities in traditional folk music, dance, song, storytelling, folklore and related arts and crafts. This summer they have a folk course running just before Sidmouth:

Young Folk Musicians course
Tuesday 26th – Saturday 30th July, at
Halsway Manor, National Centre for the Folk Arts
01984 618274
www.halswaymanor.org.uk

A five-day youth music residential for 14-20 years olds, culminating in a performance at Sidmouth Folk Week. the course will cover singing, playing, composition, songwriting and dancing. Led by Will Lang (who teaches on the Folk and Traditional Music Degree Course at Newcastle University) tutors include – Claire Bailey, Michelle Broderick, Samuel Brookes, Colin Nicholson and Andy Watt. They will cover a range of singing, playing, dancing, songwriting, composition and dancing techniques. A full-on week of learning, practicing and performance. This is a really exciting opportunity for young people. Full Board and accommodation £90. This event is a collaboration between Halsway Manor, the EFDSS, Super Act and Folk South West.

For the first time, we’re hosting a Shooting Roots ceilidh. Come down and boogie with us!
Music provided by the insurmountable Lupercalia with a mystery performance spot…

Doors 7pm, dancing 7.30pm
Licensed bar
Tickets: £5 / £4 concessions

St. Bonaventure’s Parish Club
Egerton Rd, BS7 8HP
Bristol, United Kingdom

RSVP via facebook here!

The good people at Sounds Fresh and Kent Music Service have commissioned a brand new piece for you to perform. Arranged and directed by Paul Sartin (of Belshazzar’s Feast, Bellowhead and Faustus), the piece is called Changing Landscapes.

To join in come to the free workshop day on 14th May at Charles Dickens School, Broadstairs Road, CT10 2RL.

Bring your instrument and your lunch for a day of fun folk music making between 10am and 4pm.

To reserve your place email workshops@kent-music.com.

Kent Music Service run a folk group throughout the year – you can read more about Sounds Fresh by clicking here.

Click here for the 14th May folk workshop poster