This week's winner, by overwhelming majority, is The Mason's Apron, which was submitted as an IT (Irish Traditional) tune. I'm not familiar with it, but that's one of my favorite genre! Here is the link to the tune on The Session, which says: Also known as Braes Of Glenorchy, Isla, Lady Carbury, Lowrie Tarrell, Mason Laddie, Mason’s Aprons, Ooh! Matron’s Apron, Parson’s Moan, Toss The Feather, The Wooden Spoon And The Apron. There are 11 settings to the tune on that site. Plus, many more suggestions and links in the extensive comments section! Here's a link to the standard notation on abcnotation.com from John Chambers music book collection. Here are some You Tube videos:
Nice choice. The definitive Mason's Apron is by Fairport Convention from 1970 (in a set with Jenny's Chickens): or in better quality, but audio only: Martin
Here's Sean Macguire, one of many great Irish fiddlers... Dave Hum on 5 string banjo...
Here is my swing at this. I can do better, but apparently not when recording myself! Seems like I'm nothing but thumbs when the video is recording.
That sounds good to me CWB. Most of us get red-light-itus. Supposedly it dwindles as you record more. I still had it whenl my light broke. Haven't replaced it yet. That's a pretty Newell. Gary
Nice playing CWB. I finally was able to get a reasonable take. Almost made it before the new tune was posted. This version is from the Fiddler's Fakebook. Glad I found it, because I like the double stops in the B part.
Awesome job manfred. For some reason yours doesn't show up cwb on my iPad but I'm sure it's well played. here is me really just messing around on a Eastman mandocello on vacation in Maine any way I played a few licks of masons apron. It was fun to play a giant mandolin
Great stuff Cw and Manfred-two very different versions. Obiwan that cello seemed to have a tag on it- did you buy it in the end? I have been trying to play along with the BBC Virtual Session for this piece. I can just about manage once through then I loose it as I did on this video taken at the same pace.
Thanks to everyone who has submitted their version so far, enjoyed listening to them very much. I was aiming for the 5-part version from thesession but forgot to put the third part in, I guess I could have recorded it again but it's the first time in a while that I've managed to record anything this close to the actual week, so not pushing my luck. So here is the rarely heard 4-part version of this reel. Not sure why but this tune seems to invite all sorts of variations on possible ornaments. I believe it is often played in G too, I shall have to try that next...
Here's my rather modest (in comparison to the other postings here) work-up of The Mason's Apron. Trying to play these IT reminds how much a special technical niche they occupy. Good work all.
some really good versions of this tune this week - really impressed by all the versions. I do like the tenor banjo version with the 4 parts. i used a mp3 by a guy called Fiddling Jonny to learn this tune - well to start learning it as i only just got going. here is my effort, lots of woopsies in the second time round when i tried to do something different lol:
I can hardly play this dead horse in sessions and therefore don't play it often (ever after I played it approx. 100 times in an after-hours session in Kilcar, Co. Donegal 30 years ago); I thawed it for this occasion, however, with the only one of its fancy X parts I ever bothered to learn...
An interesting variation there, Bertram. Here is the virtual session with me struggling to keep up.
Ha! Maudlin, here come the cavalry! I totally forgot about the Virtual Session.
I did the apron two ways, first kind of a relaxed OT hornpipe with acoustic guitar and tenor banjo, then in gypsy jazz fashion.
[YOUTUBE]4FTBbFLPUa8][youtube] I think I am three years late with this. John Kelly and I on Mason's Apron.
Better late than never, I love it... Did you play the mandolinpart Ginny? That was excellent!
Thank you Hendrik. yes, I did mandolin, John did guitar. The hardest part were the triplets and i think I even messed one up but it's too hard to go back and do it all over again. The picture of the three mandos on the floor are my own, plus a plug for Larrivee at the end, the mandolin I use 99% of the time. Emory told me to put up a picture of me because everyone was calling me ..dude and guy and buddy. haha.
Sounds really great! I love the sound of your Larrivee, but you probably would make any mandolin sound fine. Nice guitar backup!
