FTX-382
- BEAN
SETTING
WILLIAM KIMBER
Dance Tunes played on the Anglo-Concertina
42 Traditional Dances as played by Billy Kimber at Headington
Quarry, Oxford. The first set of 20 tracks, supervised by
Douglas Kennedy, were made in the studio in 1946 and 1948,
the next 10 tracks were recorded in Kimber's home in Headington
by Peter in 1956 and the last 12 at Kimber's home in the company
of his aunt, Maud Karpeles, in 1951 faturing Round Dances:
Polkas, Waltzes, Schottiches, Galop and Highland Fling as
well as the 3,4 & 6 hand Reels with interesting talk about
Bacca Pipes and the Step-danced Reels. Billy Kimber played
for the traditional Morris team at Headington Quarry, outside
Oxford, and had been playing for them, when they were seen
by Cecil Sharp on December 1899, an incident which precipitated
his interest in English Folk Dance and subsequently its revival.
Morris Dances rec 31.10.46:-
1. BEAN SETTING - 1'34"
2. THE TWENTY-NINTH OF MAY - 1'36"
3. RODNEY - 1'32"
4. RIGS O' MARLOW - 1'23"
5. GETTING UPSTAIRS - 1'28"
6. BLUE-EYED STRANGER - 1'28"
7. DOUBLE SET BACK - 1'16"
8. HUNTING THE SQUIRREL - 1'16"
9. HASTE TO THE WEDDING - 2'03"
10.TRUNKLES - 3'22"
Further Morris Dances rec 1.6.48:-
11. CONSTANT BILLY - 2'07"
12. COUNTRY GARDENS - 2'09"
13. LAUDNUM BUNCHES - 2'51"
14. SHEPHERD'S HEY - 2'01"
15. JOCKEY TO THE FAIR - 2'08"
16. OLD MOTHER OXFORD - 1'47"
17. HEADINGTON MORRIS REEL - 2'34"
18. 'BACCA PIPES - 1'14"
Two Country Dances rec 31.10.46:-
19. DOUBLE LEAD THROUGH (Country Dance) -
2'35"
20. OVER THE HILLS TO GLORY (Country Dance)
- 2'21"
Further Morris & Country Danceas rec 14.11.
56:-
21. MORRIS ON - 0'43"
22. THE WILLOW TREE - 0'43"
23. OLD WOMAN TOSSED UP IN A BASKET - words/
song/ tune - 1'25"
24. THE FOOL'S DANCE (Manchester Hornpipe)
title after - 0.54"
25. MORRIS OFF - 0'36"
26. BONNETS SO BLUE - 1'25"
27. THE FOUR HAND REEL (Soldier's Joy) -
0'47"
28. THE QUAKER'S WIFE - 0'54"
29. THE RIBBON DANCE - 0'58"
30. THE TRIUMPH or STEP AND FETCH HER - 1'21"
OTHER DANCES rec by PK & Maud Karpeles
4/12/51:-
31. I KNOW A GIRL WITH A BLUE FROCK ON talk
bef & title aft - 1'33"
32. POP GOES THE WEASEL (Country dance) tune/
song/ talk aft - 2'05"
33. THE HIGHLAND FLING/ HEEL AND TOE (Keel
Row & Nae good luck) - 3'31"
34. Jig: FATHER O FLYNN (or The Rollicking
Irishman) - 0'36"
35. THE MOONLIGHT (Plain Schottische) talk
bef & aft - 1'49"
36. KITTY COME (Barn Dance) - 0'44"
37. LITTLE POLLY (Polka) talk bef - 1'34"
38. BONNY DUNDEE (Galop) talk bef & aft -
1'27"
39. THE MAYBLOSSOM WALTZ - 1'33"
40. WHO JERUSALEM (Kafoozalum/ Donkey cock
your tail up) song & talk aft - 0'54"
41. BACCA PIPES (Some say the devil's dead)
talk about dance, song & talk - 0'54"
42. REELS talk/ mouth music/ talk & Lancashire
step tune (The Wonder Hornpipe) - 5'43"
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-C90 which is was intended as a documentary recording
of "music and memories". There are 22 Morris, 9 Country and
9 other types of dance tunes as well as talk from Kimber,
as he is interviewed by Dr.Maud Karpeles and her nephew, 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.
