Bonny light horseman

[Belgian_Waffle]

I'm looking for the dots (or ABC) for the "Bonny Light Horseman" (Planxty Version)... Thanks in advance.

[MTGuru]

X:1
T:Bonny Light Horseman, The
S:Planxty: After the Break, Track 09
Z:MTGuru for C&F
M:3/4
K:G
DE|G2 G2 A2|GE D4 GB|d2 de dB|d4 Bd|
e2 ed BA|G2 E2 GG|AB AG E2|1 D4 :|2 E6-|E4|]

Yes, the second measure has an extra beat.

[chas]

Yes, the second measure has an extra beat.

Many years ago, when I was in college, I recovered from complete ostracism due to my love of folk music, by introducing a bunch of people to Steeleye Span/Rick Kemp's Montrose. We couldn't pick up most of the place and people names, so I sent a request to Chrysalis Records for the lyrics. They sent a (sort of) score. The songs really seem to be pretty rhythmic, but I was amazed at the number of time changes -- basically extra beats thrown in (4/4 to 5/4) or taken away (4/4 to 3/4), the occasional extra measure thrown in, etc. A few years ago I got a Cecil Sharp book, and same thing, loads of time changes to accommodate the odd beat here or there. It's an awful lot more difficult to "get" the time changes by reading them than by picking them (blissfully unaware) by ear.

[talasiga]

X:1
T:Bonny Light Horseman, The
S:Planxty: After the Break, Track 09
Z:MTGuru for C&F
M:3/4
K:G
DE|G2 G2 A2|GE D4 GB|d2 de dB|d4 Bd|
e2 ed BA|G2 E2 GG|AB AG E2|1 D4 :|2 E6-|E4|]

Yes, the second measure has an extra beat.

taking E as the tonic/melodic home note this is a typical pentatonic minor melody
common in most folk societies globally. It is the minor complement to G pentatonic major.
I am not saying this to be a pseudo MT smarty pants but to add tothe valuable post by MT Guru by suggesting an inroad into other streams of music which may inform arranging different breaks or interludes that may suuport an expressive exploration of this very beatiful. simple melody.

There are a lot of traditional world melodies that are based on a 1 b3 4 5 b7 scale and indeed this is the anchor or stem for the common blues scale which also adds a sliding #4 and sometimes other passing notes in a a chromatic elaboration of this pentatonic anchor.

[cboody]

Well, I can't disagree with the 1 b3 4 5 b7 description of the pentatonic scale used. That's certainly proper description for most of us theory wonks.

But I would like to point out that in terms of notes the scale used is E G A B D and as such is just another variant of one pentatonic "group" of scales based on those 5 notes. Any note in the group can be used as the "tonic" or "home note" or whatever you choose to call it. The results will be quite different in actual use because the choice of melodic patterns will be different. But for the player things just go up and down the same set of notes. In this simplistic approach there are really only two common sets of notes in most of the Celtic music (or at least that part which is pentatonic or essentially pentatonic):

G A B D E

and

A B D E F#

Again, any note in the pattern might be "home" and that will significantly affect how the melody sounds. But, because the same notes are involved learning the tunes can be easy. A useful thing to know I think.

[talasiga]

Every thing you said is comprehended by my post
except that you missed the part where I said
"taking the E as the tonic/melodic home note" .

That means the home note of the melody being sung (or the instrument playing the song line).
In this case the thing ends on E (and a long one at that) which with this particular song is the home note. (in a series of 5 notes going A B D E G of which any note could be the tonic depending on the song giving rise to one of 5 possible modes here).

Of the 5 possible modes the mode 1 2 3 5 6 and the complementary mode from its 6 which is 1 b3 4 5 b7 are the most important "signatures" for this series from a modern western MT perspective because these are the only two that have harmonic triad for their respective roots the former a major triad, the latter a minor triad. They are respectively referred as major pentatonic scale and minor pentatonic scale. The other three modes either dont have
a third or a fifth and so don't figure readily in an expressly chordal driven tradition OR outlook.

However, the modes 1 2 4 5 6 and 1 2 4 5 b7 are there in Irish and Scottish traditions.

[talasiga]

And my initial post in this topic was about complementing the song with other lines and parts as ludes and the idea is that you can do this, and reatin the SAME MOOD to a large degree, by picking pieces that obtain a 1 b3 4 5 b7 relation.

This is not meant to preclude that one cannot complement a piece with another relative mode in the same key or have a series of shifts through the other 4 of them as imprivised part Bs without good effect. But that is not the type of thing that I like do at present and my contributions here are very much informed by my own experience and preference.

Finally, and now from a pedantic angle (for a change), MT Guru described the thing as "K: G" but that is no more correct than describing the thing as "K: Em". The latter is likely a nose ahead because the piece is a sad, plaintive one and any extra melodic accompaniment would better lean to a minorish chordal focus. This not being jazz or avant garde stuff.

[talasiga]

...
DE|G2 G2 A2|GE D4 GB|d2 de dB|d4 Bd|
e2 ed BA|G2 E2 GG|AB AG E2|1 D4 :|2 E6-|E4|]

Yes, the second measure has an extra beat.

yes thanks.
I often find myself spontaneously playing soemthing like
DE|G2 GA BA|GE D4|Bd e2 ged|Bd3 Bd|
.......

is this a rationalised improvisation in accompaniment or is it a variation I have heard somewhere? Dolores Keane did this on her album (vinyl LP) in 1981. Perhaps its from there - I don't know.
my "ged" is meant to show an embellished e

[Belgian_Waffle]

Thx ya'll !