Capercaillie

7/28/2019 Capercaillie

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Folk Music Music of the people

Performed and owned by the lower classes of society,

to express the way they live, used to live or localmythology.

An oral tradition

Played at informal occasions

Not important to be a trained musician to enjoy it Children are encouraged to participate in ensembles

Everyone is encouraged to sing along


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Scottish Ceilidh Band


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Flute and Fiddle Duet


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Folk Ensemble and Irish Dance


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Folk music around the world Found in every region of the world

US Woodie Guthrie, then influencing Bob Dylan

Dylan wrote songs with politically charged lyrics i.eagainst the Vietnam War eg Blowin in the wind

Folk songs with political lyrics = Protest Songs

South Africa = Hugh Masekela i.e Thimlela


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Protest Song by Hugh Masekela


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Folk Instruments


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Instrumentation Electric piano, guitar and bass have been used in folk

music as long as they have been used in popularmusic.

Some believe that it should only be played on acousticinstruments - Purists, as they believe folk music istraditional music, and therefore electric instrumentsare a betrayal of the values.

With the introduction of electric instruments hascome a crossover of styles, known as fusion music.


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Fusion Mingling of two or more styles, traditions and genres. Eg: Bhangra (Indian Classical and Western Pop)

Capercaillie are a band who fuse Celtic folk music withthe instruments and production values of Westernpopular music.


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Waulking Songs Waulking = An ancient process for making tweed more

flexible and windproof

Songs written to make the process a more sociable occasion

and to keep everyone in time. One would lead the lyrics about some aspect of village life

or gossip, then everyone joins in with nonsense syllables(like la la la)

Considered unlucky to repeat a whole verse so songs hadmany verses. One line is repeated, perhaps giving theleader time to think of the next line

Waulking process is still used in some parts of Scotland topreserve the tradition.


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Capercaillie Scottish folk band founded in the 1980s by Donald Shaw and fronted

by Karen Matheson.. The group originates from Oban, Argyll, a regionof Western Scotland and is named after the Western Capercaillie, abird native to Scotland.

Spotted as a recording act at Mull Music Festival in 1983. The band recorded its first album, Cascade, in 1984. Their 1992 EPA

Prince Among Islands was the first Scottish-Gaelic record to reach theUK top 40 singles chart, peaking at number 39. Another of theirsingles, Dark Alan reached number 65. The album Secret People gotnumber 40, and To the Moon got to number 41. They have adaptedtraditional Gaelic songs and music using modern productiontechniques, and often mix musical forms, such as one song whichcombined traditional lyrics with drum and bass

Read Page 130 of the text book for an overview.


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Capercaillie continued... Karen Matheson Vocals Charlie McKerron Fiddle Manus Lunny Guitar and Irish Bouzouki

Donald Shaw Accordian, Piano, Synth Michael Mcgoldrick - Flute, Whistle, Uilleann Pipes Ewan Vernal Acoustic and Electric Bass James MacKintosh Drums and Percussion

Eachvirtuosic on their own instrument and gel well as anensemble.

Line up has changed over the years but this particular lineup has stayed together for quite some time.


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Story and Lyrics Tells the take of Seathan, son of the King of Ireland

Taken from a collection of Gaelic folk songs by AlexanderCarmichael.

Original song was over 200 lines and would have taken overan hour to perform.

Capercaillie only use an extract from the AlexanderCarmichael collection.

Original song is a lament sung bySeathans wife, telling ofhis deeds, character, time spent with him and his demise.

Full title is ChuirMAthairMise Dhan Taigh Charraideach(My Father sent me to a house of sorrow)


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LyricsSeisd 1: Hi ri huraibhi o hoSeisd 2: O hi a bho ro hu o ho

Chuir m'athair mise dha'n taigh charraideach

'N oidhche sin a rinn e bhanais dhomhGur truagh a Righ nach b'e m'fhalairidhM'an do bhrist mo lamh an t-aran dhomhM'an d'rinn mo sgian biadh a ghearradh dhomh

Sheathain chridhe nan sul socairTha do bhata nochd 's na portaibhOch, ma tha, chaneil i sociarO nach roch thu, ghaoil, na toiseach.

Nonsense syllables


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Structure Important Notes

Intro

Verse 1

Break

Verse 2

Verse 3

Verse 4

Verse 5

Verse 6

InstrumentalVerse 7

Verse 8

Outro

Harmonyis less important thanthe melodyand rhythm (4chords in the whole song)

Changes in chord sequence,

though infrequent, arenoticeable, highlighting achange of section or mood.

Melodic lines are played in a folkstyle Players improvise around

the melody simultaneously,creating a heterophonictexture


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Introduction: Bars 1-8 Sustained keyboard chord. Hinting at E minor. Fiddle joins in, for effect, with a tremolo note Drum entry with Keyboard 2 (Tremolo effect) Working in

counterpoint with the Bouzouki to give a sense of movement. Bass plays staccato notes, working with the bass drum so almost

imperceptable. Chord sequence eventually established as Em G Time signature is ambiguous, possible 6/8 or 12/8 but hi-hat and

shaker every 2 beats gives the impression of triple time.


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Verse 1: Bars 9-11

Instruments play the same as the introduction Voice enters with first line of the verse. Uses E minor

pentatonic or G major pentatonic scale throughout

Voice has a characteristic lilting rhythm, working againstwhat the other instruments are playing, making the time

signature ambiguous.


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Break and Verse 2

Break (Bars 12-15) Verse 2 (Bars 16-20)

Backing instrumentscontinue

Fiddle more prominent,though concentrates more oneffects than melody.

Voice establishes itself as themain rhythmic feature,setting the 12/8 timesignature.


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Verse 3 and 4

Verse 3 (Bars 21-24) Verse 4 (Bars 25-28)

Seamless continuation fromV2

Last line is unaccompanied,serving as a link between theopening section and the nextsection.

Accordion joins in with thestrummed accompaniment

on acoustic guitar/bouzouki Backing vocals join in for

nonsense syllables, leavingmain lyrics for lead vocals

Drums clearly in 12/8

Bass part more substantial

Chord sequence changes toC-G-Em-G to add harmonicinterest.


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Verse 5 and 6


As verse 4

Accordion providescountermelodies to vocals

As Verse 5


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Instrumental (Bars 37-43) Uilleann Pipes and fiddle in heterophonic texture Accordion provides accompaniment and occasional

melodic doubling.

Instruments (especially the accordion) emphasise beats 2and 5, adding rhythmic interest.


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Verse 7 and 8


Chords change to Am7-Em-Em-G for one verse only.

Dynamics drop considerably,leaving room for lead vocalsand backing vocals

All instruments drop out for

the last line, adding tocontrast as drums build up tolast verse.

Chord sequence returns toC-G-Em-G

Full band plays


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Outro (Bars 53-End)

Vocals improvise on nonsense syllables

Instruments weave a counterpoint

Chord sequence alternates between C and G Long fade out to end.


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Keywords: Define the following... Oral tradition

Protest Songs

Fusion music

Waulking

Virtuosic

Lament

Heterophonic Sustained

Lilting

Tremolo

Improvise

Counterpoint

Staccato

Pentatonic

Now answer the questionson Page 134


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Section B Question

a) From which Album is this piece taken? (1)

b) Which language is this piece sung in? (1)

c) Discuss the piece under the following headings

The Line up

Lyrics

Harmony Texture (10)

(12 marks total)

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