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Sounds Northumbrian |
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Book Reviews |
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SOUNDS NORTHUMBRIAN BOOK ONE ISBN 0-9540108-0-9 Roy has taken his inspiration for these compositions from the many facets of life in the North East. From the castles and cobles the rivers and streams, the stately homes and humble miner’s cottages, and most of all, the people, who make this country echo to their dialect and music. There are one hundred compositions, conveniently placed for Northumbrian pipers in the keys of G,D and A minor. There is a lilt and a dance feel about many, which suggests the sound of a barn dance or an exultant song. There are fine photographs to show the settings of the melodies and each one has an explanation to the origin of inspiration. The groupings relate mainly to the specific areas of the North East, so one can have a geographical excursion whilst perusing the contents. They vary in intricacy from the measured waltz air ‘Coquet Banks Of Bonny Green’ to the complex ‘Earsdon Hill Hornpipe’ which has all the phrasing of the classic ‘hop-step’ rhythm. With many of the jigs like ’Sharperton Silver’, ’Back Riggs’ and ’Annie Snaith’ there is a natural lift in the notes, the sort of ’built-in leap’, which makes dancers exultant as they tread the floor to the ‘Cottagers’ or the ‘Hooligan’ with added zest. The 2/4 tunes vary from rousing marches such as ‘Dark Lane’ and ‘Castle Square’ to the more rant like style of ‘Carter Bar’ or ‘Sean Page’s Welcome'. With a hundred tunes to examine, its hard to know where to begin, and which one to learn first! I found one of the nicest ways to approach this collection was to muse through the index, find a place, or a person’s name to match the mood, and having got inside that tune, to move a page forward or back, discovering new delights. There’s much to try on various instruments, as I found some melodies work best for the violin or mandolin, whereas others came readily to my fingers on the piano accordion. I particularly like ‘The Old Wooden Dolly’ and ‘The Middle Engine’ which can almost get a ragtime feel (if your not careful). The quality of composition reveals Roy as a man with an ear for the traditional style, yet full of ideas to channel his inspiration which comes from his beloved North East. Let us hope that they will enhance the repertoire of many solo and session musicians, and give Roy some pleasure at the spreading of his tunes. There’s nothing like hearing someone making a job of your tune, and then saying to the listeners, “Now that’s a canny’n!” Johnny Handle.
SOUNDS NORTHUMBRIAN BOOK TWO ISBN 0-9540108-2-5 Roy Hugman is perhaps the most prolific composer of tunes in any British piping tradition. It is one thing to be prolific, but it is quite another to come up with tune after tune that consistently delight, challenge and entertain. In addition, Roy’s tunes expand on the tradition. That is a statement that probably requires explanation if not outright defence, but analysing the structure of Roy's compositions reveals first and foremost the inspiration he gains from and gives back to the tradition. I’ve spent a good deal of time studying Roy’s compositions to understand why some sound as if they were just popped hot and shiny out of the mould of the tradition. The best answer is that Roy is that increasingly rare, modern example of a musician who is so intimate with his native tradition that it seems difficult to tell them apart. He is very much like his great hero and friend, Will Atkinson, in this way. Like Atkinson, Roy plays the ‘mouthie’, or harmonica. Also, like Atkinson, Roy seems to exhale lovely melodies with every breath. There are 103 tunes in this book. The first is a cracker and so is the last. The tunes are organised in suites, as in Roy’s past collections. Playing them one after another is like walking into a room full of watercolours by the same accomplished painter. Each stands alone, but taken together they form a musical narrative. The first suite, called “The Bridges of the Tyne”, is the suite I find myself coming back to all the time. You have to give Roy credit for courage for naming a tune," The High Level Bridge”, which will automatically draw comparison to James Hill’s “The High Level Hornpipe.” Roy’s tune stands very well on its own merits, reaching down to low ‘c’ and ‘b’. The book is graced with many photographs, notes on the tunes, and a very handy index to all three of Roy's collections. The question remains, how can anyone learn all these tunes? Well, it is probably not necessary to or likely anyone will learn all these tunes, but playing through this book or focusing on one suite or another is as rewarding as reading a favourite novel. Perhaps, Northumbrian small piping is most alive in the playing through of tunes out of books by individuals or small groups around the world? John Dally, Burton. WA. USA.
THE St BARTHOLOMEWS SET ISBN 0-9540108-1-7 In this volume of tunes, Roy has again proved his ability to capture the Northumbrian style of melody. He uses the coastal village of Newbiggin as his inspiration, with people and places mentioned in the titles. A particularly intricate hornpipe is the ‘Vicar Of Newbiggin’s Fancy’; played in the church it would certainly produce joyous devotion! The ‘Needle’s Eye’ is about children searching for sea life, and has alternate phrasing, imitating their calls. Not all of the tunes are complex however, ‘The Newbiggin Lifeboat’ is a stately waltz/air which the less able pipes players (like myself) will be able to perform and put a stately dignity to the melody. Nor is the pit missing, for the two tunes ‘Newbiggin Collier Lads’ and a ‘Creeful Of Coals’ remind us that the miners were once an important part of the community, working three miles out under the sea.' Fisher Folk’ and ’The Breakwater’ are two four bar reels which have the repetitive beat of the boats nodding eagerly at anchor. Some of the other pieces have a religious feel about them; perhaps we may see them used as voluntaries for organ? Once again here is a collection of melodies to add to the repertoire of musicians. The quality of production is excellent with good illustrations, explanations of the source of inspiration and chords printed beneath the tunes. Roy has done a valuable service to the tradition in proving that it is a live art form, capable of continuous evolution. Johnny Handle.
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