I'm a bit surprised that we haven't had this tune yet, either as an "official" or "other" tune. This is probably the best-known Scottish Ceilidh dance tune, which I have played in D major in a trio arrangement by Michel Van Der Meiren: http://www.tangosite.com/concertina/...hite-sergeant2 I've adapted it to a trio of mandolin, octave mandolin and guitar. It's pretty no-frills, with emphasis on keeping the dance pulse going and the energy high. 1921 Gibson Ajr mandolin Mid-Missouri M-111 octave mandolin Ozark tenor guitar Apologies for the missing video thumbnail -- for some reason, Youtube has failed to generate thumbnails for this upload. The video does work, however. Martin
i haven't had much time for all things Scottish after their recent no vote but you got me with that one Martin, very enjoyable, thanks.
Huge numbers of us were not "No" voters, G. Think how we feel! Interesting delivery there, Martin. You make it sound quite sedate!
Thanks, John/gortnamona -- It's a fun tune, and actually suits the mandolin pretty well. John: "sedate" is all relative -- it's a pretty fast tune for me and not so easy to cleanly play all the notes in the mandolin and OM parts as well as fitting in all the chords while staying in time and on the beat. This is taken at around 90bpm (at two beats to the bar, i.e. 180bpm as the tune is notated). I could probably have speeded up to about 100bpm, but at the cost of a much sloppier delivery. That said, I realise ceilidh speed for the Dashing White Sergeant is anything from 120bpm upwards... Martin
im sure we were equally disappointed John, no offense intended and my apologizes for straying from your lovely tune Martin
Very nice Martin, I never knew the name of the tune, but had it in my head for ever, must be a distant memory from my youth Now the fiddler's ready, let us all begin So step it out and step it in To the merry music of the violin We'll dance the hours away...............
Martin, it is the trio arrangement rather than the tempo I was interested in when I used "sedate". I liked your tempo a lot and the arrangement you've used was just so different from the way we play it in our band for dancing, where the accordion takes the lead and there are no harmonies. G, no offence taken as I know none was meant, and Francis, you've reminded me of my primary school days when we sang those very words you printed above. Try singing them at a ceilidh dance speed!
I first heard this tune on a vinyl record long ago where it sounded like this version (where they do it at 118, so your estimate is quite accurate, Martin. Once again I wonder at the choreographic conundrum, i.e. how they avoid falling over each other). This version is more pastoral, and couldn't be any other with just a handful of instruments and the lack of approx. a thousand fiddles I can't comment on that "No" topic, but I found it kind of reassuring that voting quotas haven't changed much among Scots over the centuries, except that they vote with the ballot today, not the claidheam mor (and that is a good thing in itself).
Bertram, you continue to delight me with your linguistic offerings! As far as dancing The Dashing White Sergeant, the dance is one of our most popular at ceilidhs and it is indeed something to see the intricate manoeuvres on the floor as the dancers, not in the usual two2 but as 2 threes in a set of six, make their way around the hall, changing groups at the end of eacj set of moves. We manage this without too many casualties though there are often peripheral casualties at the edges of the floor and among the closer spectators as the whirling gets a bit out of hand - this would just NOT happen in the world of Scottish Country Dancing as practised by the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society, where the linking of arms as one whirls one's partner is expressly frowned upon! Remember too that we are the home of Scottish Football, where the proponents regularly get themselves into much more intricate positions while chasing around after a leather sphere!
2 threes in a set of six I noticed that, plus the built-in design flaw that makes 3 people dive through only 2 spaces in between - but then, it's probably not a flaw but an intentional feature for creating happy accidents Royal Scottish Country Dance Society I get the impression there is a Royal Society for everything. intricate positions I'll stick here with that alleged Scottish granny's saying: "Haud yer wheesht!"
