Folk dance music with improvisations
Smedens 1' skottis (= Tisse-skottis)
(Blacksmith's no 1 Schottische (= Pee Schottische))
|
Niels Mejlhede Jensen, Bøgeløvsvej 4, 2830 Virum, Denmark.
e-mail
(web master) |
Old tune used for folk dancing in Denmark 1999 arranged with improvisations
Link to index to other dances.
CONTENTS: (remember: you can use Ctrl Home in usual browsers
to get to the top of this page, to the links here)
Dance of the week 1999 March 22: Smedens
1' skottis (= Tisse-skottis) (= Skøjteløber-skottis), (Blacksmith's
no 1 Schottische (= Pee Schottische) (= Skaters' Schottische), couple dance
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Dance description, will open on
a new page, in a new window, so that this window with music is kept behind
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Music description (you stay on this page)
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Performing proposals
(new page, in a new window, with this window behind)
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Midi music arrangement for this
dance music (new page, in a new window, with this window behind)
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Music scores for C, A , Bb, Eb, F, and bass
instruments (to text on this page)
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(c1, c2),
(a1,
a2),
(b1, b2),
(e1,
e2),
(f1,
f2),
(bass1, bass2);
(note sheet will open on a new page, help here)
Photo of this week: Schottische danced by Spillemandsdansen (Fiddlers'
Dance) at the Technical University. But this is Swedish schottische, which
is danced much more today in Denmark than the Danish schottische described
this week.
A little story:
In 1853 Copenhagen had an epidemic of cholera, because of bad drinking
water systems and disposal systems. This came to affect my family at far
away Mejlhede in Han Herred in North Jutland. The people of Copenhagen
could not (or would not) take care of the problems themselves with the
many ill and dead people, so they commanded people from the countryside
to do this unpleasant and dangerous work, by enrolling them as soldiers.
Denmark had changed from absolute monarchy to democracy 4 years earlier,
so this was the first taste of democratic freedom at Mejlhede. My great
great grand father, Niels Mejlhede Jensen was conscripted to do service
in the cholera plagued Copenhagen, because there were eventually too few
poor people left in the city to do this work, and the rich did not feel
sure that they could keep control of the cholera haunted mass. Niels had
a wife and 2 small children. They lived in a very small house on the moor
and Niels had to earn for their livings by working for a manor, (where
he was well liked). Niels and another from the district were now forced
to travel the long way to Copenhagen, a trip of several days by ship. Having
the possibility to see the King's city could be the highlight experience
of your life - for those better off. But for Niels it meant going to a
"foreign" culture, coming to a language he could not speak and not so well
understand (this is before the radio), and coming to a place where he was
ridiculed as a stupid peasant. He now had only one person in life to be
comfort with: the other man from his neighbourhood. Niels had to leave
his dear wife and two children to uncertainty, now without his earnings
at the manor, so Niels's wife had to leave her two children and walk around
to the farms and ask if she could help with sewing, what she was good at,
or maybe other types of work. She wanted to sew for money, but money was
very scarce among farmers, so she could only get food in return. But money
was needed to have a letter written and sent to her husband in Copenhagen.
Her two children was a problem. She tried to take the baby along with her
for some time, but the oldest one she had to give up, and he was taken
over by Niels's poor mother who was already burdened by another "left over"
child. In Copenhagen Niels's friend was deadly scared of the cholera gost,
so Niels took over his friends most scaring night jobs. But despite that
it was not Niels but his friend that died of cholera. Now Niels was all
alone, for an uncertain long time, decided by somebody in Copenhagen that
would never himself walk in the cholera slum area. But one day the cholera
came to an end and Niels could return home. The oldest child did never
move back to his mother and father and the second child was ever unrestful.
They both later emigrated to USA. Niels and his children did not continue
the family tradition of playing folk music as they did not get the means
for an instrument.
For me it is natural when having an interest for folk dances and music
then also to have an interest for genealogy, so I have written 4 booklets
of my children's ancestors, of their roots as long back as I have found
them in the archives and in the family papers.
Dance of the week, 1999, March 22:
Smedens 1' skottis (= Tisse-skottis) (=Skøjterløber-skottis).
(English: "Blacksmith's no 1 Schottische (= Pee Schottische) (= Skaters'
Schottische").
Couple dance.
Music and dance from Denmark
The melody can be heard in midi on computer piano in my tempo (if you
have a sound card). (The melody will loop here until you stop it. In the
table below it will play once). (I have not played the tunes here with
the "drive" I want for dance music).
Music description:
The music notes are written as a score of 12 staves on one A3 page = two
A4 pages side by side (= an open A4 book).
Place the two note sheets side by side. Then staff 1 (= melody) on
the left page continues as staff 1 on the right page.
The 12 staves:
Try also to listen to: Midi music
arrangement for this dance music (new page, in a new window, with this
window behind)
(The midi music is not repeated, except for 1' and 2' voltas).
Use also octave, up and down.
Where wanted, notes can be changed according to the principles (use
a colour pencil), e.g. to improve the B part with some notes from
A.
The music is aimed at dancing, so part of the orchestra can be the
underlying "motor" when another instrument group is playing its "solo"
part (improvisation) as one of the many repetitions.
The double bass may play its usual notes, because of its low pitch.
It is better to choose a more simple part and play it well.
Accordion: beats per bar: 2+2. Beat 1 is most marked. Beat 2
is light short and marked.
The melody here is in 4/4; most schottisches are written in 2/4, but
still with 1 full schottische step per bar.
It is important to play schottische as schottische, and not as slow
polka or anything else. The old tune here is much schottische like for
this dance. But in an attempt to facilitate this important "second beat",
the "after-beat" (= beat 2 and beat 4) I have made the ns part, the possible
"motor voice" with dotted quaver + semiquaver on beat 2 and beat 4.
Music scores:
Each score consists of 2 pages: page left and page right. They are given
on separate pages with links on the top of this page (use Ctrl Home to
go to the top). The links are repeated here:
(c1, c2),
(a1,
a2),
(b1, b2),
(e1,
e2),
(f1,
f2),
(bass1, bass2)
When you click a link the music note sheet will (should) open as a
new page on top of this main page, so that you can easily return to this
main page. And you can easily open 2 windows of note pages to have both
the left and right page in smaller windows, the right below the left.
(Help coming back from that note
sheet: CLICK the note sheet to come back to this page, or just close
the note window.
Remember: the note sheet opens in a new separate window, and that may
cover the whole screen. The back button in the tools bar does probably
not work because the window is new, with no history. All you see on the
page are notes because I have placed no link back here for not disturbing
easy submitting to the printer. Close the note window with a click at the
top or with Alt F4, or minimize or reduce the window, or ..., and you are
back to the main page that was there behind all the time).
Bottom of this page.