Jesu, Joy as jig?

[fiddling_tenor]

Has anyone ever transcribed or played "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" as a jig?

It's written in 6/8, and we were messing around with it last night at our sesion. It's not a straight tranposition, thought. I ended adding notes to keep the meter correct at the jig tempo.

Thought I'd take a crack at writing something, but wondered if anyone else had tried this.

[chas]

I've thought about it, and I would think it would work fine. Peter Knight did an arrangement of Bach that he called "Bach goes to Limerick," on Steeleye Span's All Around My Hat. I don't know how literal it was, I suspect a few notes were changed to keep the tempo flowing and put it in the right mode.

[Cathy Wilde]

That's funny! We've messed around with it in sessions on occasion, too. But I can't remember -- is it in 6/8 or 9/8? Then it would be a slip jig .... ?

Actually, you know what would be cool is to write it out as "Jesu" and then transition it into a jiglike object. Could be fun as a recessional in those weddings where people want sort of an Irish theme .....

Also, for inspiration listen to De Danaan's "Arrival of the Queen of Sheba (In Galway)." They take a Handel piece and make it rock -- without having to do much more than add a little swing.

Good luck!

cat.

[fiddling_tenor]

I have no doubt it would work.

Eileen Ivers did a wonderful adaptation of Pachalbel's Canon in D, moving from the classical rendition into a reel.

And I've recently heard some hornpipes played as reels...really kicks 'em up a notch or two.

I posted on the ITM forum about ABC notation so I can get this into a format most people can read. Not everyone in my sesion reads standard music notation ("that's called a quarter note, or 'quaver'").

-Tom

[Cathy Wilde]

Godspeed to ye, sir! Looking forward to what you come up with!
Your hornpipes into reels thing is true -- there are hornpipes that have become reels over time or in various hands. And the converse seems true, too -- lately I've been slowing some reels down in an attempt to add more bounce, and some of them are almost hornpipey. (Is that a word? Better than 'pornhypey' I guess )

[glauber]

It works. This is one of my favourite melodies to doodle around with, and i've played it in every possible way. It does a good Samba too! The only difficulty is the f-natural that shows up in the part where it goes da-da-di-dada-da-dada-di-dadada...

Another nice hymnbook jig is "Lobe den Herren" ("Praise to the Lord, the Almighty the King of Creation")
http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/p/t/pttlta.htm -- careful with the horrible loud MIDI that attacks you when you open the page, keep you finger near the volume control.

g

[Darwin]

Your hornpipes into reels thing is true -- there are hornpipes that have become reels over time or in various hands.

In Bluegrass, all hornpipes become reels.

Is there an Irish version of "Billy in the Lowground"? I learned a version from a Japanese mandolin player that sounds quite nice slowed down and played as a hornpipe. (I play it the standard way at http://www.coastalfog.net/flatpick/tabl ... _main.html )

If you listen to "Fisher's Hornpipe" and "Huckleberry Hornpipe" on the same page, you'll see that they don't sound even remotely like hornpipes. I need to listen to one of Byron Berline's versions of "Huckleberry" again someday to see if he does play it more like a real hornpipe--else why call it one?

[claudine]

I wouldn't do that, it would be a blasphemy. I love Bach and his music has been butchered too often already. And I don't like crossovers at all. Baroque is fine, Irish is nice, but don't mix it, just keep the music pure.

[glauber]

I think old Bach would be pleased.

[morgan]

It is in 9-8 indeed; thus a slip jig. The running eighths in Jesu are so beautifully crafted that they would sound great in any context, classical, trad, or otherwise.

[raindog1970]

I've never heard it played as a jig before, but Mick Woodruff did a beautiful job of arranging and recording it as a quintet.
http://fingertrip.net/clipsnip/jesujoy-mick.mp3

[cowtime]

Is there an Irish version of "Billy in the Lowground"? I learned a version from a Japanese mandolin player that sounds quite nice slowed down and played as a hornpipe. (I play it the standard way at http://www.coastalfog.net/flatpick/tabl ... _main.html )

Billy in the Lowground is one of my ALLTIME favorite old time tunes.(right up there with Red Haired Boy(yeah, a good Irish tune there, and Gotta See Your Momma) I grew up with it played by men who had it handed down to them(none read music) in the traditional way these tunes stay alive. I've gotta say I have to listen real hard to hear the tune I learned in this clip. But, that's real traditional music, always changing with the player.

I do play it on whistle, the way I learned it from the old folks. If I knew how, I'd post a clip. Maybe I can find a clip somewhere on the web that's closer to how I know the tune.

[brewerpaul]

It works out just fine with only minimal tinkering.
Another great one is the Badinerie from Bach's Orchestral Suite #2 for flute and orchestra. If you play the tune "dotted" it becomes a terrific,albeit difficult, hornpipe. Several half fingerings needed. This was recorded as Bach's Rambles by ( I think) De Dannan.
Bach wrote some of the most astoundingly good music ever conceived. It works on just about any instrument or arrangement. Cosmic stuff indeed.

[glauber]

It works out just fine with only minimal tinkering.
Another great one is the Badinerie from Bach's Orchestral Suite #2 for flute and orchestra.

Yowza! I can see it, though. This is one of my favourite flute pieces, but it's very hard to play at the speed it's usually played, even on a modern flute.

Also, remember the Sicillienne from the Eb flute sonata (? i think), that was done very nicely by Jethro Tull.

g

[fiddling_tenor]

I wouldn't do that, it would be a blasphemy. I love Bach and his music has been butchered too often already. And I don't like crossovers at all. Baroque is fine, Irish is nice, but don't mix it, just keep the music pure.

Claudine,

I understand. But most of these composers believed their music should be for all people. If they can use a common tune and put sacred lyrics to it to compose a hymn; why can'e we go the other way?

I certainly would NOT do it too every piece. I agree some things should be left well enough alone.

-Tom