Anybody know the guitar chords to this tune?
Thanks
Giles
I know that it’s mostly Em chords and Am chords… can’t remember the rest right off hand…
I’ve got sheet music that shows the chords. Get it at http://www.blackflute.com/music/tunes/other/mistcov.html.
Susan
I don’t know the chords, but “Giles” is about the coolest name ever. 
The tune is in A dorian- a minor mode. A great many tunes with this scale can potentially be harmonized with two chords. A minor and G. Also, it is often appropriate to use an A or G chord without a third in it- a so-called “modal” chord. In this key sometimes an Em chord can be used. It may be called for by the melody notes or used as a substiture for G. It has also become fashionable to use an F chord sometimes as a substitute for A (minor). I think that can be good if not overused. In a tune like the Mist Covered Mountain, it is pretty obvious where the chord changes occur. The melody of the first two measures seems to repeat itself but with a downward shift in the pitches (two measures of that) then it shifts back up. Just listen to the melody shifts and apply Am and G chords.
Steve
On 2002-10-01 10:07, SteveK wrote:
Also, it is often appropriate to use an A or G chord without a third in it- a so-called “modal” chord.
Very much so, for the A chord anyway, in this tune, because if you play a careful version of the melody, the note C won’t occur at all. So playing a straight A-minor will impose a harmonic feeling on the tune that is foreign to it.
This tune is a composition of the late Junior Crehan and he and other fiddlers often played it in G. Sounds much moodier and broodier on the fiddle in that key. Grab a C whistle to play along.
On 2002-10-01 10:16, StevieJ wrote:
On 2002-10-01 10:07, SteveK wrote:
Also, it is often appropriate to use an A or G chord without a third in it- a so-called “modal” chord.Very much so, for the A chord anyway, in this tune, because if you play a careful version of the melody, the note C won’t occur at all. So playing a straight A-minor will impose a harmonic feeling on the tune that is foreign to it.
Stevie J is right as usual. I had only a sort of fuzzy notion of the tune as I’ve never learned to actally play the melody. I agree with the statement about the A minor chord, at least in principle. However, sometimes it’s fun for the accompanist to give the tune either a major or minor interpretation. If I were accompanining the tune I would usually use the modal (actually amodal) chord but sometimes give it a major or minor third. It’s best not to do that all the time-just occasionally for some variety. Like the F chord.
Steve
Thanks for all the good input.
Susan,
The link for blackflute.com didn’t work.
Thurlowe,
Thanks for the compliment on my name.
SteveK and StevieJ,
Thanks for the technical info. You’ve given me some good ideas to experiment with.
Giles
On 2002-10-01 23:23, Giles wrote:
Thanks for all the good input.Susan,
The link for blackflute.com didn’t work.
Giles
Giles,
Try this.
http://www.blackflute.com/music/tunes/other/mistcov.html
There was a period at the end of the URL that Susan listed. This should work for you.
Kathy
Thanks Kathy, your link works.
Giles
Followed the link and listened to the MIDI that is a nice tune I think it would be perfect for a whistle & fingerstyle guitar duet!
John
The Mist Covered Mountain that I more or less know is a jig. It bears some resemblance to that waltz.
Steve
I was talking about Junior Crehan’s jig, and I suspect SteveK was too.
The link points to the Scots tune on which Junior based his composition. I think the tune in the link is more properly known as “I see the green mountains” (I could be wrong) or by its Gaelic title. The tune was apparently played on highland pipes at JFK’s funeral.
BTW to call it a “waltz” is just plain silly.
What tune were you asking about, Giles?
I was referring to the jig, not the one connected to the link.
Giles
X:15
T:Mist on the Mountain, The
T:Mist Covered Mountains
C:Junior Crehan
R:jig
E:10
I:speed 300
M:6/8
F:http://ceolas.org/pub/tunes/abc.tunes/sessionTunesII.abc 2002-10-02 18:00:30 UT
K:ADor
G|EAA ABd|e2 A AGE|~G3 GAB|dBA GED|
EAA ABd|e2A AGE|efg dBG|BAG A2:|*
a|age a2b|age edB|AGE G2A|BAB GED|
age a2b|age edB|AGE G2A|BAG A3|*
age a2b|age edB|AGE G2A|BAB GED|
EDE G2A|BAG ABd|efg dBG|BAG A2||**
That’s a version I copied from JCs tunefinder. It’s in John Doyle’s Irish guitar video. At least the music is in the book. I haven’t looked at the video in a long time and don’t remember whether they actually play it or not. Probably they do. John Williams plays accordion backed by John D on guitar on the video. The chords in the used by Doyle include Aminor but I’d mostly go with the open A on bouzouki.
Steve
Thanks for the additional info Steve
BTW, would you recommend buying the John Doyle’s Irish guitar video?
John Doyle’s video is pretty good. It’s based on dropped D tuning. It presents a handful of really useful chords unlike some other material which gives you more than you need. However, it’s all based on Doyle’s strumming style so it’s an excellent video if you want to imitate him. He’s pretty hard to imitate though. I didn’t start trying to play backup for this stuff until about the time I retired. So I had a lot of catching up to do. But at that age there’s no way I could do Doyle’s strummng style without practicing night and day-something I wasn’t willing to do. Anyway, I’d say it’s pretty useful if you want to play in dropped D. It’s great to have just the accordion and guitar and be able to watch what he’s doing. He’s very good.
Steve