Week #513 ~ The Valiant

  1. Barbara Shultz
    Barbara Shultz
    This weeks winner is The Valiant, which was suggested as an English jig. I’m post in from my phone, and realize I’m already a couple of days late, so I’ll post the winner and hopefully some of you helpful members can post some links to notation or videos!
  2. Martin Jonas
    Martin Jonas
    I think the tune is spelled "The Valiant", and was written by Simon Ritchie in the 1990s. Melodeon.net has a similar monthly tune forum as we have, and they had The Valiant as their tune of the month in August 2018. There is discussion, notation and several recorded example videos (all on melodeon, obviously) in their discussion thread:

    Link

    Notation with chords is in Paul Hardy's session tune book:

    Link

    Lots of squeezebox recordings on Youtube, but here is one with a fiddle (and concertina):



    Martin
  3. Martin Jonas
    Martin Jonas
    Further to my earlier post, I have now made a quick recording of the tune to get an idea of how it sounds. It falls very nicely under the fingers on mandolin, which makes me wonder why all the online versions are on squeezeboxes -- would make a great fiddle or mandolin session tune!

    I've used the chords from Paul Hardy's tune book for my tenor guitar backing.

    1921 Gibson Ajr mandolin
    Vintage Viaten tenor guitar



    Martin
  4. Robert Balch
    Robert Balch
    What a nice jig! Well done Martin. It does sound good on the mandolin. I think I will have to learn this one.
  5. Ginny Aitchison
    Ginny Aitchison
    Nice, Martin. It does sound so nice on the mandolin.
  6. Gelsenbury
    Gelsenbury
    I suggested this tune for exactly the reasons Martin mentioned: nice, easy to play on mandolin, underrepresented on YouTube. I'll add my version to Martin's, which I enjoyed very much. I learnt this from Pete Shaw at Broadstairs Folk Week.



    I think it may work nicely in a set after the Rogue's March and Captain Leno's, which are also in the tune book linked by Martin. Here's an old recording:

  7. crisscross
    crisscross
    Nice jig, nicely performed by Martin and Gelsenbury!
    Maybe I should also learn it to work on my DUD-ability...
  8. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    Two grand versions, guys. Not a well-known tune, I think.
    Martin, thanks for link to the Paul Hardy tunebook - what a great and varied collection. hi
  9. Ginny Aitchison
    Ginny Aitchison
    I wonder of the DUD picking has a great relevance to the outcome...I don't know..just asking. They all sound good at any rate.
  10. David Hansen
    David Hansen
    Nice versions from Martin and Dennis, also thanks to Dennis for suggesting this tune. Here's my try on mandolin, concertina and tenor guitar, although the tenor seems to get lost in the mix, over a background of pics of instruments and my back yard.

  11. Gelsenbury
    Gelsenbury
    Suggest a tune, put it in David Hansen's hands, and watch something great come out - that's why this is such an interesting group! Beautiful as always.

    Ginny, I strongly recommend DUD DUD picking for jigs. Yes, it's possible to get the rhythm right with DUD UDU, but with DUD DUD it's practically automatic. I'd really struggle to make DUD UDU sound jiggy.

    Having said that, it will probably only make a minor difference in "The Valiant" because the tune has quite a lot of longer notes.
  12. Ginny Aitchison
    Ginny Aitchison
    Thanks Dennis..maybe it's not too late to teach this old dog new tricks.....David, I love the depth and sway of your excellent version of this tune..I want to live in your house, btw. ...I think David, with all your pictures you never even had to leave the house. What State do you live in ? Geographically, not metaphysically.
  13. David Hansen
    David Hansen
    Ginny, my house may be picturesque but it is very small, my music room as you can see is squeezed into one tiny corner of the living room. I live in California both geographically and metaphysically.
  14. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    Very good arrangement and performance, David. You make it sound quite majestic and reminiscent of knights jousting and other ceremonial rites.
  15. crisscross
    crisscross
    Fantastic arrangement, very well played!
  16. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Martin, Gelsenbury and David doing us proud, as they say in little old England. All well played!

    David wonderful images and suspenseful Hitchcock-esque editing, I was on the edge of my seat waiting for the archers and the gallant chivalrous horsemen to arrive and then the end was like an artistic French film when... ... ...

    Actually the Redwoods did provide a little counterpoint -US cavalry?
  17. Simon DS
    Simon DS
  18. Gelsenbury
    Gelsenbury
    Nice one Simon, thank you for reviving this thread! I must try to get this one under my fingers again.
  19. Richard Carver
    Richard Carver
    Good tune that I didn't know. Immaculately played, as always, Simon.
  20. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Thanks Dennis and Richard, played straight, my fingers were starting to get sleepy by the time I recorded this one.
  21. John W.
    John W.
    As I commented on your YT channel, Simon, lovely stuff!
  22. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Thanks John, and thanks for the comments on YT, great to be recording again!
    I’ve got a couple of scales exercise shorts and a pretty nice melody coming up soon too, it’s from Bulgaria - in 7/8 (of course).
  23. John W.
    John W.

    Following on from Simon’s revival of the tune/thread.

    I’d like to have done some accompaniment to this one to fill it out…but didn’t have the time on this occasion.

    Vega cylinderback mandolin.
  24. Frithjof
    Frithjof
    Nice new renditions by Simon and John.
    Looks like Simon is going into a Golden Era with his videos.
  25. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Nice flowing foot-tapper John. Very danceable. And I had similar thoughts about accompaniment and also style.
    I played it really slow. A fair number of musicians on Tunesday Tuesdays play it in a concertina-English folk style so I thought something like an Air might be different.
    I have to learn how to smile while playing!

    Thanks Frithjof, I'm just overloaded with golden tunes!!
  26. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    Nice rendition, John. Sometimes no backing can be the best backing!
  27. Richard Carver
    Richard Carver
    A good tune that was new to me, and very nicely done as always, John.
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