Week #524 ~ Dever the Dancer

  1. Barbara Shultz
    Barbara Shultz
    This week's winner is Dever the Dancer, which was submitted as an Irish slip jig. According the The Session, it's also known as Deever The Dancer, Denver The Dancer, Devero The Dancer, Mickey Doherty’s, Paschal’s.

    Here is a link to ten settings of this tune on thesession.org.





  2. Gelsenbury
    Gelsenbury
    Great! I've already started practising!
  3. Mike Romkey
    Mike Romkey
    There's just something mesmerizing about slip jigs.

  4. Gelsenbury
    Gelsenbury
    Nicely played, Mike! And the recording quality is outstanding with that very professional setup you have there. It's as if we were in the room with you.
  5. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Really nice Mike, that chord at the the end too.
    I agree about the slip jigs, I like the hesitation and syncopation. There was a Greek tune I couldn’t stop playing (on the CD player) one time. It was in 7/8 or 5/4 time or something.
  6. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    A fine, relaxed piece of playing there, Mike.
  7. Christian DP
    Christian DP
    Great sounding mandolin, great picking!
  8. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    ...
  9. Gelsenbury
    Gelsenbury
    Nicely done, Simon! I'd put my fingers in knots like that! And it's a lovely setting again. Those ferns are doing well, unlike the ones in our garden.

    Your OM has a very nice, full sound.
  10. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Thanks Dennis, I actually find it really difficult to play a reasonable rhythm outside like that.
    Hottest day of the year so far too -made me wonder if I really like trees that much.
    And the microphone extension cable didn’t work properly again, the microphone itself was on the camera...
  11. Bad Habbits
    Bad Habbits
    Very nicely done Simon and Mike
  12. Ginny Aitchison
    Ginny Aitchison
    Two really nice concerts to listen to tonight. Thanks Mike and Simon.
  13. Jill McAuley
    Jill McAuley
    Great stuff Mike and Simon! Nice to contrast how this tune sits on the mandolin vs. on the OM - both lovely versions!
  14. Christian DP
    Christian DP
    The man with the hat strikes again, fine effort Simon!
  15. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    Good effort again, Simon. I agree with Jill that the contrast between the two instruments is very interesting.
  16. Mike Romkey
    Mike Romkey
    Love your version on the octave, Simon. ... Are you using a shotgun mic on your camera? (I always wonder about the technology.)
  17. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Thank you Gentle folk!
    Yes I find it really difficult to play while sitting on a sloping tree trunk with nowhere to stomp my feet. Another thing to practice...
    The hat is a life saver when living à la nature, I still wear it out of respect!

    Not sure what you mean about the contrast John, though I often wonder if a certain piece would be better on the mandolin, though again I’m not sure why.

    It’s a Boya BY MM1 microphone with a 12 inch extension cable on an iPhone 6 Mike. I did put one of those furry microphone covers onto it when the wind was stronger, and had to wait it out at one stage, the noise from the branches was over powering.

    Well there’s a brief respite from the heat today. 9am and the apartment is lit up with a strange green light, lighting flashes and heavy rolls of thunder.
    Heavy rain forecast... and there it is.
  18. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    Re mandolin v octave, Simon, as you say yourself we are not sure why we might prefer one over the other for a particular tune. I think I generally go to the octave for the many pipe tunes I play as the longer sustain seems to me to suit the pipe tunes better than the sharper attack and faster decay of the mandolin. I will use either instrument for slow airs, often mixing both in my video offerings, and the mandolin for jigs and reels. But again, this can change from tune to tune!
    Thanks too for the mention of the Boya mic. I got one after your recommendation and find it really good with both my Tascam DR-05 and my digital SLR.
  19. Gelsenbury
    Gelsenbury
    Here's my version of this tune, played on my Fylde Touchstone Walnut mandolin. I'm learning this in some online lessons with Marla Fibish at the moment, so it's a nice coincidence to have it as song of the week.



    I found it a little tricky to learn this tune because the A part is similar to The Butterfly, which I've been playing for ages. I had to overcome some memory interference.

    For next time, I must remember that mobile phone recordings are really the wrong format for YouTube!
  20. Simon DS
    Simon DS
    Yay, nice one Dennis! The mobile phone format makes a refreshing change though not sure what all your fingers are doing!
    I really like that slightly extended rhythm, lifting and dreamlike. Well done.
  21. John Kelly
    John Kelly
    Nice one, Dennis. I love that look of total concentration on your face as you play and listen to the backing track and generally keep an eye on all that is going into this tune.
  22. Gelsenbury
    Gelsenbury
    You're right, John, the next step is trying to look more relaxed! I'm also working on a couple more ornaments, which I can't play well enough yet to commit them to video.
  23. Ginny Aitchison
    Ginny Aitchison
    I like this Dennis...it's OK to look at the music !
  24. Gelsenbury
    Gelsenbury
    Oh, I wasn't ... just fully focused on playing from memory and keeping everything in time, as John said.
  25. Frithjof
    Frithjof
    Nice version, Dennis. Yes, it goes well with the Butterfly as well as with Comb Your Hair And Curt It.
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