FTX-326 - BEAN SETTING

WILLIAM KIMBER Anglo concertina

18 Oxfordshire Morris & 2 Country Dances played by Billy Kimber (1872-1961). These were the tunes he played for the traditional Oxford Morris team at Headington Quarry, and he had been playing them, when they were first seen by Cecil Sharp on Boxing Day 1899, an incident which precipitated the English Folk Dance revival. These recordings, made in 1946-8, were produced by Douglas Kennedy for HMV Studios, Abbey Road, London and were intended for dancers following the notations as published in Cecil Sharp's "Morris Book".

1. BEAN SETTING - 1.35

2. THE TWENTY-NINTH OF MAY - 1.33

3. RODNEY - 1.30

4. RIGS O' MARLOW - 1.20

5. GETTING UPSTAIRS - 1.26

6. BLUE-EYED STRANGER - 1.25

7. DOUBLE SET BACK - 1.15

8. HUNTING THE SQUIRREL - 1.11

9. HASTE TO THE WEDDING - 2.00

10.TRUNKLES - 3.20

11. CONSTANT BILLY - 2.05

12. COUNTRY GARDENS - 2.06

13. LAUDNUM BUNCHES - 2.50

14. SHEPHERD'S HEY - 1.55

15. JOCKEY TO THE FAIR - 2.07

16. OLD MOTHER OXFORD - 1.45

17. HEADINGTON MORRIS REEL - 2.32

18. 'BACCA PIPES - 1.12

19. DOUBLE LEAD THROUGH (Country Dance) - 2.33

20. OVER THE HILLS TO GLORY (Country Dance) - 2.17

Recorded & edited by Peter Kennedy & first published on Folktrax cassettes 1980.

A tribute to WILLIAM KIMBER (1872-1961) can be found in The Journal of the English Folk Dance and Song Society, 1959 p.203. Further details about him are given on FTX-083 which is a documentary recording of "music and memories". There are 22 Morris, 9 Country and 9 other types of dance tunes as well as talk by Kimber, interviewed by Dr. Maud Karpeles, mentioning his meetings with Cecil Sharp, Mary Neal and others concerned with the English Folkdance Revival. Kimber gives his views on teaching methods, on women dancing the Morris and describes some of the local customs such as May Day, the Whitsun Lamb Ales and the local Christmas Mummers etc.

The Anglo concertina is "diatonic", each button-key producing two notes on the "blow and suck" principle (similar to the harmonica and melodeon (accordion). There are 3 rows of buttons on each side, two rows providing notes for the keys of C and G, and the third row for accidentals. The higher melody notes are on the right-hand side, while the left hand is used for the accompaniment. Kimber did not read music, but learned and played "by ear". He played a 30-key Anglo- German concertina made by Jeffries.