I got compliments - Q about 'The Ten Penny Bit'

Jack · Post by **Jack** » Tue Sep 02, 2003 11:37 am

It made me feel good. I suspect it will carry out through the day....

I was in my brother's room playing The Ten Penny Bit over and over as fast as I could on a Susato VSB, and the windows were closed, but these two older people were visiting my dad and were outside, they could hear me and they stayed to listen. Of course I didn't know they were there, or I would have stopped playing.

When I walked outside, the man said, "Was that you playing?", and I said, "Yep." "What were you playing?" and I said "The Ten Penny Bit" and he said, "Like a flute?" and I said, "Oh, a pennywhistle, it's basically a type of flute."

And then the lady said, "How long have you played that?"

"Since Februrary."
"Really? You're really good."

They went on to tell me how good I was and I kept saying I'm not, not out of modesty, but because I'm really not good. LOL. But it made me happy that somebody liked it.

Post by **Nanohedron** » Tue Sep 02, 2003 11:49 am

And there you go.

Celtoid · Post by **Celtoid** » Tue Sep 02, 2003 1:46 pm

Horray for cranberry!!

You must be getting Ten Penny Bit down brotha.

Soon you will be having a little crowd gather under your window, and you can busk without even going out.

It's almost embarassing when you think no one can hear and then it comes up in conversation. My neighbors told me they can tell how stressed out I am by how often I "flute", as in "yesterday must have been a tough day for you because you fluted three times". I apologised for making the noise but they said they had been enjoying it. Now i'm going to be even more self-conscious at least until the winter makes us close our windows.

fancypiper · Post by **fancypiper** » Tue Sep 02, 2003 3:04 pm

I was complemented early in my whistle journey (3 months, maybe) and a few years later, I was informed that they actually enjoyed my playing now, but that previously they were being polite to me.

Now I know when I sound good and when I suck and I get more complements when I suck.

Don't believe everything you hear......

brewerpaul · Post by **brewerpaul** » Wed Sep 03, 2003 4:54 am

People ALWAYS seem surprised and veryhappy to hear impromptu music. I always get a kick out of giving people this little unexpected pleasure. Whenever I go hiking, kayaking, even skiing ( on the lift on mild days), I bring along a whistle and play a tune here and there. Those little mini-audiences are also a terrific way to get used to playing in public. Go for it Cran!

Martin Milner · Post by **Martin Milner** » Wed Sep 03, 2003 9:39 am

I never heard of the Ten Penny Bit (isn't that a dime or somesuch??) before this thread, but I found it in the Champaign Irish Top 100 Tunes collection.

I already had this collection downloaded, but here's the link, as there's loads of other tunebooks free here too, and people are always asking for free tune collections.

http://www.library.yale.edu/~mkoth/webtunes.htm

It gives the title of The Three Little Drummers as well, but that's a totally different tune in another collection on the same site.

DanD · Post by **DanD** » Wed Sep 03, 2003 11:35 am

Way to go Cranberry!! Very cool to get a compliment from an audience you didn't know you had!!

Now if I can sidetrack this thread a bit - does anybody know what a "Ten Penny Bit" is? Or what the title refers to? Our group has been playing it for years and making up stories to explain the title to listners. Any ideas what the real story is?

TIA, Dan

Jack · Post by **Jack** » Wed Sep 03, 2003 11:40 am

Quote @ DanD

Now if I can sidetrack this thread a bit - does anybody know what a "Ten Penny Bit" is? Or what the title refers to? Our group has been playing it for years and making up stories to explain the title to listners. Any ideas what the real story is?

I'll change the title of the post to ask that...I've wondered, too.

It's a nice little tune. I wish it was longer... I've also wondered if it had words.

french · Post by **french** » Wed Sep 03, 2003 11:42 am

also in my first year, my neighbours at a get-together told me they thought it was my wife playing. they were amazed i could produce something that sweet and pretty.

i've switched to mandolin to protect my down-and-dirty reputation...

- tom

RonKiley · Post by **RonKiley** » Wed Sep 03, 2003 12:51 pm

My mother-in-law says she enjoys my whistle playing except for that new whistle. It's a Susato D. Keep whistling!

Ron

Bloomfield · Post by **Bloomfield** » Wed Sep 03, 2003 3:12 pm

Cranberry wrote:Quote @ DanD
Now if I can sidetrack this thread a bit - does anybody know what a "Ten Penny Bit" is? Or what the title refers to? Our group has been playing it for years and making up stories to explain the title to listners. Any ideas what the real story is?
I'll change the title of the post to ask that...I've wondered, too.

It's a nice little tune. I wish it was longer... I've also wondered if it had words.

No words that I am aware of. Dance tunes with words are not all that common. Here is what the fiddler's companion has to say about the tune:

TENPENNY BIT, THE [1]. AKA and see "The Three Little Drummers." Irish, English, New England; Double Jig. A Dorian. Standard. AABB. Similar to "The Three Little Drummers" [1]. Allan's Irish Fiddler, No. 20, pg. 6. Kennedy (Fiddlers Tune Book), Vol. 1, 1951; No. 77, pg. 38. Kerr (Merry Melodies), Vol. 1; No. 1, pg. 36. Miller & Perron (New England Fiddlers Repertory), 1983; No. 10. Raven (English Country Dance Tunes), 1984; pg. 106. Sweet (Fifer's Delight), 1965/1981; pg. 36.
T:Tenpenny Bit, The [1]
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
R: Jig
K:A dor
|:eAA eAA|BAB GBd|eAA eAA|def g2f|eAA eAA|BAB GBd|def gdB|BAG A3:|
|:eaa eaa|bab g2f|eaa eaa|bge g2f|eaa eaa|bab gfe|def gdB|BAG A3:|

TENPENNY BIT, THE [2] ("Cuin/Bonn Deic-Pingine," or "An Píosa Deich bPingine"). AKA and see "The new Tenpenny," "Are You Shot?" "Joe Conway's," "The Ducks and The Oats." Irish, Double Jig. A Dorian. Standard. AABB. Petrie prints the tune under the title "The new Tenpenny." 'B' part nearly the same as version #. "The Ducks and the Oats" title is sometimes heard in the Sliabh Luachra region of Cork/Kerry. A version was recorded by Paddy Killoran in 1934. Sources for notated versions: flutist Peter Horan & fiddler Freddy Finn (Co. Sligo, Ireland) [Breathnach]; Abram S. Beamish (County Cork) [O'Neill]; flute player Colm O'Donnell (b. 1962, Aclare, County Sligo) [Flaherty]. Breathnach (CRE III), 1985; No. 32, pg. 15. Flaherty (Trip to Sligo), 1990; pg. 19 (appears as "Unknown"). O'Neill (1850), 1903/1979; No. 929, pg. 173. O'Neill (1001 Gems), 1907/1986; No. 162, pg. 41. Tubridy (Irish Traditional Music, Vol. 1), 1999; pg. 32. Green Linnet SIF1035, Brian Conway & Tony De Marco - "The Apple in Winter" (1981. Learned from the 1934 Paddy Killoran 78 RPM recording). Mulligan Records, Freddy Finn & Peter Horan. Matt Molloy - "Music at Matt Molloy's."
X:1
T:Tenpenny Bit, The [2]
L:1/8
M:6/8
S:O'Neill - 1001 Gems (162)
K:A Dorian
A/G/|EAA G2A|Bed Bcd|edB G2A|B2A GED|DED G2A|Bed Bcd|ede gdB|BAG A2:|
|:d|e2f gfg|eag fed|e2f gfg|efg a2 a|bgb afa|gfe def|gfe fdB|BAG A2:|
X:2
T:Tenpenny Bit, The [2]
R:Jig
Z:Transcribed by Mike Hogan
M:6/8
L:1/8
K:G
|:edB G2A |Bed Bcd|edB G2A|BAF GFE|
DED G2A|Bed Bcd|ede gdB|BAG A2d:||
|:e2f g2f|eag fed|e2f ~g3|efg ~a3|
bag agf|gfe def|g2e fdB|ABG ABd:||

TENPENNY BIT, THE [3] ("Cuin Deic-Pingine" or "An Piosa Deich bPingne"). AKA and see "The Bridal Jig." Irish, Double Jig. A Dorian. Standard. AABB. Breathnach's source Rowley did not have a name for the tune, although Breathnach recognized it as being a variant of "The Tennpenny Bit" printed by O'Neill. Source for notated version: Chicago fiddler James Kennedy who had the tune from his father, a celebrated local fiddler from Ballinamore, County Leitrim [O'Neill]; fiddler George Rowley/Seoise Ó Roghallaigh (Ireland) [Breathnach]. Breathnach (CRE I), 1963; No. 24, pg. 11. O'Neill (Krassen), 1976; pg. 43. O'Neill (1850), 1903/1979; No. 930, pg. 173.

THREE LITTLE DRUMMERS [1] (Na Tri Drumadoiride Beag). AKA and see "The Aherlow Jig," "Cock in the Heath," "Connie O'Connell's Jig," "The Geese in the Bog," "Humors of Duagh," "Humors of Listivain," "The Jolly Old Wife," "The Money I Want," "The Nuptial Knot," "Quinn's Jig," "Spirits of Whiskey/Whisky," "Tenpenny Bit," "Two and Sixpenny Girl." Irish, Double Jig. Ireland, County Leitrim. A Minor (Stanford/Petrie): A Mixolydian (Cole, Mulvihill): A Dorian (O'Neill, Stanford/Petrie): E Dorian (Moylan). Standard. AB (Stanford/Petrie). AABB (Cole, Moylan, Mulvihill, O'Neill/Krassen): AABBCC (O'Neill/1850, 1001 & 1915). Bayard (1981) identifies this as one more member of the of the myriad "Welcome Home" tune family. See Bayard's (1944) note for "Red Brick House in Georgia Town" for more on this tune family and related tunes. Petrie (1855) identifies the tune as "a county of Leitrim jig." O'Neill (1910) remarked that "Highland pipers seldom play any other Irish jig for dancers but this, and it is to be found in most of their books of bagpipe music." Sources for notated versions: Francis O'Neill remembered hearing two parts of the tune as a boy in County Cork, the third (which is the second strain of the unnamed version in Stanford/Petrie) he learned in Chicago [O'Neill]; accordion player Johnny O'Leary (Sliabh Luachra region of the Cork-Kerry border), recorded at Na Píobairí Uilleann, October, 1984; O'Leary said: "'Tis Din Tarrant played it, Doody's uncle. 'Tis him I heard playing it first above in Knocknagree" [Moylan]; "From P. Carew's MS" (Stanford/Petrie). Bayard (Hill Country Tunes), 1944; No. 46 (appears as "Quadrille"). Cole (1001 Fiddle Tunes), 1940; pg. 67. Kerr (Merry Melodies), Vol. 1; pg. 36. Moylan (Johnny O'Leary), 1994; No. 138, pg. 81. Mulvihill (1st Collection), 1986; No. 26, pg. 124. O'Neill (1915 ed.), 1987; No. 143, pg. 82. O'Neill (Krassen), 1976; pg. 47. O'Neill (1850), 1903/1979; No. 969, pg. 180. O'Neill (1001 Gems), 1907/1986; No. 189, pg. 45. Stanford/Petrie (Complete Collection), 1905; Nos. 110, 953 & 954, pgs. 28 & 243. Flying Fish FF-246, The Red Clay Ramblers - "Hard Times" (1981).
T:Three Little Drummers, The [1]
L:1/8
M:6/8
S:O'Neill - 1001 Gems (189)
K:A Minor
g/f/|eAA eAA|BAB GBd|eAA eAA|de^f gfg|eAA eAA|BAB GBd|de^f gdB|BAA A2:|
|:d|eaa eaa|egg egg|eaa eaa|de^f gdB|eaa eaa|egg egg|de&f gdB|BAA A2:|
|:d|eaa a^ga|bab ged|eaa a^ga|bab g2d|eaa a^ga|bab ged|de^f gdB|BAA A2:|

And perhaps the origin of the title to a different tune, Ten Penny Money, applies to the Tenpenny Bit, too:

EN PENNY MONEY. Irish, Jig. B Minor. Standard. AABBCC. The melody is a variant of "Paddy O'Rafferty." "It was the tune used by street players of charm the biggest tips (Williamson, 1976)." Source for notated version: Michael Goreman (Ireland) [Williamson]. Williamson (English, Welsh, Scottish and Irish Fiddle Tunes), 1976; pg. 86.

Jerry Freeman · Post by **Jerry Freeman** » Wed Sep 03, 2003 3:47 pm

Bloomfield,

Where the hell have you been?

This place has been pleasant enough, but not nearly as much fun without you.

Best wishes,
Jerry

Bloomfield · Post by **Bloomfield** » Wed Sep 03, 2003 4:34 pm

There just hasn't been anything that has made me want to post. And I don't feel like offering reflections on "quantum leaps" achieved by switching to an expensive whistle. I liked your knee-jerk Elmo-bashing line, though.

Best,
Bloomfield

DISCLAIMER:
Bloomfield is an open and affirming whistler/whistle-board poster who welcomes all types of music, including Kwela, Devotional, Baroque, Mesquite, Scottish, Awful, and Raga, and posts about all types of music and posts about what cannot qualify as music. No part of Bloomfield's posts is to be construed as disapproval except where Bloomfield disapproves. Bloomfield would like to remind you to floss daily.

Jerry Freeman · Post by **Jerry Freeman** » Wed Sep 03, 2003 4:58 pm

Bloomfield wrote:There just hasn't been anything that has made me want to post.

Hmmm.... Suspicious.

Do you have photo ID?

Bloomfield · Post by **Bloomfield** » Wed Sep 03, 2003 5:11 pm

First it's photo id, next it's black helicopters, as you know very well.