The title says it all, really. I am learning The Sally Gardens Reel, but am unsure where I could be breathing. Some suggestions would be appreciated, doubly so if accompanied by explanations.
Thanks in advance for any help you can give…
Yep. In the case of Sally Gardens, there’s a possible breath point after the first note of every measure except bars 4, 8 and 16.
Either my ears are totally shot or The mp3 of The Munster Cloak on that page doesn’t match up very well with the music provided. I’m not familiar with the tune, so maybe I’m just missing something. Anyone want to clue me in?
Thanks MTG, that makes sense. Can I ask for some clarifications please?
-
- When you number bars I assume these are full bars, so excluding the lead in notes that I have on my version.
- I am assuming that by ‘after the first note’ you mean breathe instead of the second note.
- Where the first note is a quarter note (as opposed to an eighth note), then I shorten the quarter to an eighth and breath after it?
Sorry to ask for so much detail, but I want to practice all the possible breathing points, so that I can vary them. I want to be sure that I have got them exactly right before practicing it into permanent memory.
In the case of Sally Gardens, there’s a possible breath point after the first note of every measure except bars 4, 8 and 16.
Interesting enough I notice I would not use those spots at any time. Let me think that over for a moment, I may come back with a clip.
What are you thinking is different, JTC111? There’s a leading note (the D below the first G) added at the beginning. Other than that, it seems the same to me …
Hmmm … looks/sounds fine to me. The mp3 matches the notation pretty exactly.
Sure, Mr. G, please do. I can think of other breath points at the half-bars (e.g. in bars 1, 3 etc.) that may be less intrusive. But I was just simplifying for Dr. Phill, along the lines of Bro Steve’s page that you pointed to.
Yes, full bars only, 8 bars per section.
Yep. Counting each measure in 4, the breath occurs on the upbeat of 1. Which means either shortening the first quarter note or substituting the second eighth note.
X:1
T:Sally Gardens
M:4/4
K:G
F|Gz DG BAGB|dz eB dBAB|dz Bd efge|dBAB GEDE|
Gz DG BAGB|dz eB dBAB|dz Bd efge|dBAB G3:|
B|dz gf g2dg|gz bg aged|ez ag a2ea|az bg ageg|
dz gf g2dg|gz bg ageg|dz Bd efge|dBAB G3:|
Thanks again MTG.
I have modified my ABC to substitute the second eighth note of all bars but 4,8 and 16 with a rest. I was surprised at how little this messed up the rhythm. Since I cannot plan breath spots and play at the same time I am now going to try to learn the tune with all the rests in for breathing, and then see if that allows me to breath when needed when I play for real. Hopefully my brain will be able to generalize the practice to other tunes.
(Unless someone has a good reason that I should not do it this way…)
[Edit: Whoops, did we cross or was I blind? You have done the abc for me.]
I think that’s OK as an exercise, Phill. Obviously, the result is hopelessly chopped up if you take all the breath points. 
Interesting, we have different versions of the tune (oh what a surprise 
)
The local session claim to use Paul Hardy’s Song book. That has given me another quandry:
X:19039
T:Sally Gardens Reel (with breathing places)
R:Reel
C:Trad.
O:England
Z:Paul Hardy’s Session Tunebook 2010 (see http://www.paulhardy.net). Creative Commons cc by-nc-sa licenced.
M:4/4
L:1/8
Q:3/8=100
K:G
BA|"G"Gz DG B2 GB|"Em"dz eB dB AB|"G"dz Bd "Em"eg dB|"Am"Ac BA "D7"GE DE|
"G"Gz DG B2 GB|"Em"dz eB dB AB|"G"dz Bd "Em"eg dB|"D7"Ac BA G2:|
|:Bc|"G"dz gf g2 dg|"Em"gz bg ag eg|"Am"ez ag a2 ea|"D7"az bg ag eg|
"G"dz gf g2 dg|"Em"gz bg ag eg|"G"dz Bd "Em"eg dB|"D7"Ac BA "G"G2:|
(Unless someone has a good reason that I should not do it this way…)
As I said, the way I play the tune the breaths would just about never fall in these places. Which isn’t to say you shouldn’t but you may want to at least look at other options and vary things a bit in a way that takes the breaths away from falling after that first note each time.
Oooops, I forgot to thank you for the link above, MrG. Thank you, I have read it and bookmarked it, but it is a little above my grade at present. I need to practice something definitely right, rather than practicing a wrong deduction.
I understand what you say about breathing other places than after the first note. Tell me where, and I will practice. This is as much about me learning the theory as learning to breathe in one particular tune.
I really do appreciate the time that people here put into helping me progress (however slowly ).
Here’s an alternate setting with (fewer) breath points at the half-bars, and completely avoiding the downbeats, which may be more along the lines of Mr. G’s approach.
X:1
T:Sally Gardens
M:4/4
K:G
F|G2DG Bz GB|dBeB dBAB|d2Bd ez ge|dBAB GEDE|
G2DG Bz GB|dBeB dBAB|d2Bd ez ge|dBAB G3:|
B|dggf gz dg|g2bg aged|eaag az ea|a2bg ageg|
dggf gz dg|g2bg ageg|d2Bd ez ge|dBAB G3:|
Thanks MTG, now I have two exercises to learn. It sure beats endless repetitions in a quest for speed.
I am not sure whether to practice what you have given me - which may not be what the local session plays - or transfer the breathing spots to the Paul Hardy version. I suppose that the lessons will be learnt whichever I choose.
Unless I learn both sets of breathings in both versions of the tune. That would be four exercises, and probably overkill.
Well Phill, that Paul Hardy setting is almost identical except for the turnarounds (half-section endings). It’s OK, but I’ve never heard those turnarounds played here. To my ear, the phrase ascending to climax on that high g is part of the character of the tune, and the Hardy version weakens that.
|(d2Bd efg) (e|dBAB G3)| vs. |d2Bd egdB|AcBA G2| ??
I also play a few variations on this, like |d2Bd edge|, |dG (3Bcd eg{a}ge| etc.
The Hardy setting also feels like it wants to “sanitize” the hexatonic melody by using a C-nat in the cadences for a V7 feel. But of course, it’s partly just a matter of what one gets used to.
Added: I notice that Dave Mallinson also uses the “Hardy variant” in his book (100 Essential). So maybe it tends to be an English thing?
I’m an eejit; that’s all it was. I was looking for that low D in the music and couldn’t find it and that’s what was throwing me. If I was familiar with the tune, I’d have figured that out.
I think I’m just having a bad weekend. My mind is mostly wondering what the bill is gonna be when they tell me I need a new AC unit.
Moral: never start at the very beginning. It’s a very bad place to start. 