Ever see a black sparrow hawk Bernie or Rob? I thought they were a bit smaller than the American Kestrel. I see the Kestrels on the powerlines all over the highways it seems. The Black Sparrow Hawk is a bit smaller than a Bluejay. I've seen one in Moline a few years back but not lately. Haven't been in that part of Moline for awhile so they may still be around. Anyway, the Black Sparrow Hawk is who the Sauk warrior Black Hawk was named after. Ma-ka-tai-me-she-kia-kiak is his Saukee name which means Black Sparrow Hawk or Black Hawk. A fierce little hawk they are I hear. Not nearly as colorful as the Kestrel.
Here is my try. I am getting tired of this cheap webcam, the sound quality is terrible. I think it is time for a upgrade.
Rob and Joe that was awesome!
You're doin' REAL well, Kyle! Rob really rocks, doesn't he? Him and Old Sausage! Y'all ROCK!!!! Just gettin' the guts to put yourself up for the world to see, man and woman alive!!!
Rob and Old Sausage blow us all away! They should record their own record.
Yeah, Kyle you're doing GREAT!!! And your mandolin is a beauty, is it a two-point??
Thanks Susi. yes it is a Morris two-point. It sounds a whole lot better than in the recording. I just need to get some good recording equipment.
Kyle, yes, you can see/hear your improvement every video! What are you using to record now? Whatever is making the loud electronic buzz noise is the most distracting.... and it may not even be the recorder?
Kyle and Joe, Thanks for the kind words! Old Sausage is light years ahead of myself though with his large toolbox of licks, technique, and theory knowledge! I just try things on the fly and sometimes they work and sometimes.....wellllll. Kyle, it's really great to hear how you improve and progress with every video! GOOD JOB! The Morris sounds very nice! Kyle, do you have a compact digital camera? If you do you could substitute that for the webcam. Sometimes the video is pretty good quality on those things! I think the Celticdude uses one for his videos and they turn out great. Joe, nice clean playing with great variations to the tune. Looks like you've got the DUD DUD pattern pretty well, also? I might assume that the black sparrow-hawk your asking about, Joe, is a Merlin? There's a very dark race in the Pacific Northwest and they do wander occasionally. Tom Tax it's great to see you back! Really nice clean version! Joe-TN: congrats on the first video. Sounds good!
Rob, Yeah, the black sparrow hawk is in the merlin family. Audubon painted him and called him The Little Corporal. As far as having DUD DUD down, I'm not sure I do, but maybe it fell into place in this tune. If so, that's great as I was trying to DUD DUD!
The Swallowtail. I have no idea whether it's DUDDUDDU or DUDUDDUU, I just kept going til I stopped... Soares 'Y Tenor Guitar - CGDA capo'd 2.
Dang, Joe ... nice version! Actually, I expected you to post first, then I somehow missed you down on page two of this string. I don't think I've heard you play the "Omaha Variation" before. I like it a lot. You get your mandolin neck issues resolved at the wood chiropractor?
Barbara, I use a Logitech webcam. I have used another mic than the built in mic, just a cheap mic, it doesn't sound any better. Rob, I have a digital camera, and it does have a lot better video and sound quality. It is just a little messed up. It shuts off all the time and when you try to record video it shuts off. I think it has had to many fights with the ground! lol
Thanks, Mike. Mando was in the shop since last Wednesday, Mike. It required multi surgeon work; wood chiro, fret doc, saddle sawbones, second opinion, and finally surgical extraction team of two technicians in removing the pickguard...still needs a return to the fret doc for work on the upper extremities somewhere down the road.
Bring it tomorrow, if it has doctor's permission to leave the house.
Joe, I recommend you send it to Sunny California for rest and recuperation. I will personally supervise the therapy sessions...could take years....
Love ya'll's playing of the Swallowtrail. Some people put it with Ten Penny Bit. What are those tunes in the dance video? Wow!
Okay, here's that video I intended to make, Swallowtail Jig very slow, with the camera focused on my DUD picking.... first time through, played as written, 2nd time through, I threw in some triplets. I love watching birds. But, I don't know that MUCH about them, am not an avid bird-watcher as a hobby. I do have a 'backyard bird id book' and binoculars, and try to know which birds are visiting in my yard! I see LOTS of hawks on the powerlines in Central Iowa... but I don't know one hawk from another! Plus, we've got a pretty good population of ring- necked pheasants and some kind of partridges, as well! Sometimes, even a bald eagle! I always love spotting them!
Eddie, there've been days when I would have and might still, but I'd probably have to accompany it as long as there's a floor space to lay my pallet down!
Looks like everyone has had a go at this, so just to be different, I'll stick a Reel on at the end of it, which I reckon is either taken from the Jig, or vice versa! Anyway, see what you think: The Swallowtail Jig / Major Harrison's Fedora
X:1 T:Swallow Tail Jig C:Traditional L:1/8 Q:300 M:6/8 K:G z3 E2F |: "Em"GEE BEE | GEE BAG | "D"FDD ADD | d^cd AGF | "Em"GEE BEE | GEE B2^c | \ "D"d^cd AGF |1 "Em"GEE E2F :|2 GEE EBd |: "Em"e2f e2f | e2f edB | e2f e2f | edB "D"d3 | \ "Em"e2f e2f | e2f edB | "D"d^cd AGF |1 "Em"GEE EBd :|2 GEE E3 | z6 | z6 | z6 | z6 | \ z6 | z6 | z6 | z6 | z6 | z6 | z6 | z6 | z6 | \ W:Created with TablEdit http://www.tabledit.com/
Well here I am just slightly behind the times on this one Just realised that I haven't recorded anything for ages and ages, and nothing at since I finished building my mandola, so here's my version of swallowtail:
That is one beautiful mandola, Tavy, and the tone is wonderful, too; you have a very nice touch. I like the way the light hits on your right hand.
One of my favorite jigs. I really like your style, Tavy ~ it has a lively butterfly feel to it ... like a swallowtail.
Hi! Long time lurker, first time poster. Almost two years of intending to do some videos have ended tonight with two posts! Again, great idea for a social group! -Alex
Welcome to the group, Alex! Nice first video! Tell us about yourself & your mandolin!
The mandolin is a Breedlove Quartz FF. It's much more instrument than I deserve but I absolutely love it. As for me, I'm having my second musical childhood in my mid-thirties. This is severely inconvenienced by being a father to two wonderful young kids, but I'm slowly progressing by practicing once or twice a week after everyone goes to bed. I've tinkered with guitar for several years, but in the last three I've picked up the ukulele and the mandolin as well. Of the three instruments, the mandolin is the one that I really have a desire to master. I've been learning fiddle tunes and some Bach, and taking lessons from Homespun videos and youtube, although I've recently begun to attend some local instructional jams. Thanks for the welcome!
Really nice work, Alex. That's smooth playing with great tone. I think you're moving faster than you think you are. I totally identify with the after-bedtime practice and recording. I didn't play much of anything for about five years when I had babies and toddlers. Thankfully, these days I'm finding a little more free time. Hopefully that will translate into a little more progress.
Very smooth; very fast, very jiggy. Great first post!
Going back to the beginning of time with this one, all the way from SAW Week #12. This is an arrangement for contra dance band by Cafe member harper (Evelyn). Like all her arrangements, this one has a three-part harmony plus guitar chords. I've added a mandocello bass line simply playing the root of the chords on each beat. Makes for a nice foot-tapping dance band arrangement. Mid-Missouri M-0W mandolin Gibson Ajr mandolin Mid-Missouri M-111 octave mandolin Ozark tenor guitar Suzuki MC-815 mandocello [MP3=1]http://www.mandolincafe.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=116669&d=1394666478[/MP3] Martin
The Billyhawks threw this one together for our gig last Saturday to get everyone in the mood for St Patrick's Day. First jig we've ever played.
Looks like a lot of fun Don. The tone of the Heiden really cuts through. Beautiful. I think you found 'the' keeper. Gary
I did have a Schertler on the Heiden running into my $15 thrift store amp turned up to 11.
It's the tone not the volume. It doesn't get lost in that mix. Shines like a diamond.
I noticed this thread reappeared around St. Patrick's day. I just learned this song and really enjoy playing it so, I thought I'd try to record myself (which was a surprisingly stressful endeavor.) After that harrowing experience, I am even more impressed with everyone who posts lovely videos with multiple instruments and backing tracks. Just sitting in front of a normal camera plucking away alone was almost too much for me to handle. Anyways, in an effort to be more than simple a Song-a-Week lurker, I'm posting the results. As I mentioned this is nothing special, just me struggling through the song on my Eastman 504 recorded with a junky digital camera. I used the music provided by the amazingly generous Baron Collins-Hill through Mandolessons.com. Enjoy?
Hey Lex, well done. We all know that feeling of sitting down in front of a camera and trying to record. You can know it cold with the camera off but push that record button and something happens. Nonetheless, you did great. Nice pickin, keep at it and keep posting.
It’s capo time again, here it’s in A dorian. (Meaning A minor is the chord it starts on, and the A note is the second note in the scale, so the key for A dorian would be G major) -not sure, but I think its often in E dorian...
I like this song - you do it very nicely.
Very good jig playing, Simon. I bet Jill McAuley would like this rendition, recovering as she is from a knee op and in lockdown too!
If only I could play like Jill, but I’m on a tight schedule now John. Have to get the tunes out there. It’s got to be at least 1.75 tunes per day till 9 May... and of course I’m leaving the difficult ones till later. (Staten Island up soon)
Nice! I'm curious, where do you have your camera for this shot?
Sorry Barbara, I haven’t got time reply, too many tunes to record!
My guess would be on a stand of some sort and above his head shooting down, Barbara, giving us the impression of lying down. It is a clever positioning of the camera and shows his hands really well.
While I regularly have problems to play a song sitting on a stool in proper position Simon certainly can play it upside down!
That’s it, I filmed the microphone/camera setup on ‘The Silver Spear’, Barbara. It’s an old heavy microphone stand that I found in a skip/dumpster along with the flexible hose from a side lamp. I like that it’s pretty sturdy.
Here is a 'bare-bones' rendition of Swallowtail Jig. Once again I had to slow it down a bit to add the triplets, but I kind of like it with the triplet ornaments. (Simon - sorry, no clouds)
Fine jig playing, BH. You are really getting into this whole video thing!
Thanks, Simon and BH. Swallowtail Jig is one of my favourite Irish tunes, and it's great fun as an ensemble piece. Our mandolin group (currently in lockdown mode) plays it regularly in Evelyn's arrangement as uploaded by me to this thread in 2014 -- those soaring tremolos is Evelyn's second mandolin part work brilliantly in live performance. I'll have to get around to recording a new live video of that arrangement to update my 2014 attempt. Martin
Great version BH, you’ve really got it to sound like a swallow tail too. Well done.
Very good, Habbits*, you've got the rhythm going. As you have noticed, triplets put a limit on speed, and you might have problems when playing in a session (whenever, if ever there will be sessions again), but in the realm of a video they sound just right - isn't that a blessing to rule over one's own musical world? (*) I am hesitant to use the acronym like the others do, since - it used to be my own acronym for decades - it is also the German acronym for "bra" - I like the word creation Habbits, because it reminds me of the Habbits of the Shire in "Lard of the Rings"