A. Don't think of them as ornaments. They're articulations--of timing and pulse, and also of the the note.
B. In theory, you can articulate any note. But in practice, in this music, it's all about the pulse. So the articulations mostly happen on the beats, and in particular on the strong beats. You'll go far if you quit thinking about which *notes* to articulate, and focus more on which *beats* to articulate.
C. The strong beats are always on the 1s and 3s. In a reel or hornpipe, you'll articulate the 1s and 3s of any 1-2-3-4 quad of notes (two of those per bar). In a jig or slip jig, it's mostly the 1s (1-2-3 1-2-3), but the 3s sometimes take a cut or smear.
D. If you emphasize the 2s or 4s, you'll end up playing reggae....
No worries. Your advice is sound--that's exactly what I did: listened to a lot of really good players and sorted out where the emphasis always falls and that this is also where all the articulation happens. At first, I just felt it. But then, to help others understand it, I figured out where in the count the beats land, for every tune form.
Part of the beauty of this music is that the pulse is steady even as it moves around. Not just always a downbeat or always a backbeat (as in some genres), but moving from downbeat to backbeat and back again, and sometimes all of the above. So the pulse is fluid, not static. Yet there is a form to it--always on the 1s and 3s, never the 2s and (in 4/4 tunes) 4s.
You might hear a 2 or a 4 swell in a 1-2-3-4 phrase, but that's only leading onto the next 3 or 4 beat, where the emphasis actually lands.
It may be worth pointing out that, on some instruments, gracing is a necessity rather than a choice. On an open ended pipe chanter, for example, if you play two notes of the same pitch alongside each other, there is no way of separating them other than by gracing (articulating, ornamenting, whatever you want to call it). Highland pipe music, in particular, has a highly developed system of gracing - and although it isn't necessary to grace the notes when playing a pipe tune on some other instruments, part of the idiom is in the gracing.
Much written music of the past is guilty of "ironing out" the grace notes, and, as has been recommended already, listening to good traditional players cannot be overstated as a means to learning where to grace the tune.
The best piece of (musical) advice I was ever given applies here: "If it sounds right, it is right".
From time to time a couple of notes in a tune will suddenly 'click' while I am playing around with it. It feels as though I've pulled out a splinter I was only vaguely aware of.
Any note can be ornamented. You develope your own creativity of ornamenting as you get better at playing. There's no exact notes which can be ornamented. It depends on you. Just keep getting better and better and eventually you'll naturally know which notes to ornament (That is if you have the natural ability).
i agree with everyone above, but if you are looking at sheet music, here is a couple of suggestions:
1. any two of the same notes occurring on either side of a beat can be cut. for example, in out on the ocean, you can cut between the 2nd and 3rd B in: DBB BAG.
2. any note that is long can be rolled. if you have the kesh jig, G3 GAB | A3... you can roll both the long G and A
3. take a simple pattern and turn it into a long note (which is thus rolled). if your version of the kesh jig goes G3 GAB | ABA .... you can put a roll on ABA, as if it was just A3. this is especially true for when a sequence of notes consists of the same note twice with a note higher or lower between, like ABAG or GFGA, can be A3G and G3A, which can thus be rolled.
4. any time that you have the following sort of pattern, DEE2, you can either roll the second E, put a triplet there, cut between the two E's, or even do a long roll on E.
there are of course many, many other ways to put ornamentation in, but these are the 4 basic things that i would recommend to get started with. over time, your ear can tell you the rest!
How do you know which note(s) to ornament?
How do you know which note(s) to ornament?
Plenty of discussions defining cuts, taps, strikes, rolls, cranns....
Are there guidelines, customs, rules, anything on which notes get the ornaments?
Thanks.
# Posted on April 2nd 2011 by ceciltguitar
Are there guidelines, customs, rules, anything on which notes get the ornaments?
I don't think so.
# Posted on April 2nd 2011 by fidkid
Re: How do you know which note(s) to ornament?
A. Don't think of them as ornaments. They're articulations--of timing and pulse, and also of the the note.
B. In theory, you can articulate any note. But in practice, in this music, it's all about the pulse. So the articulations mostly happen on the beats, and in particular on the strong beats. You'll go far if you quit thinking about which *notes* to articulate, and focus more on which *beats* to articulate.
C. The strong beats are always on the 1s and 3s. In a reel or hornpipe, you'll articulate the 1s and 3s of any 1-2-3-4 quad of notes (two of those per bar). In a jig or slip jig, it's mostly the 1s (1-2-3 1-2-3), but the 3s sometimes take a cut or smear.
D. If you emphasize the 2s or 4s, you'll end up playing reggae....
# Posted on April 2nd 2011 by Will Harmon
Are there guidelines, customs, rules, anything on which notes get the ornaments??
You just listen to a lot of good Irish style players and try to do what they do.
# Posted on April 2nd 2011 by fidkid
Re: How do you know which note(s) to ornament?
Sorry, cross post, Will. Shoulda known you'd be able to clearly articulate a methodology.
# Posted on April 2nd 2011 by fidkid
Re: How do you know which note(s) to ornament?
Part of the beauty of this music is that the pulse is steady even as it moves around. Not just always a downbeat or always a backbeat (as in some genres), but moving from downbeat to backbeat and back again, and sometimes all of the above. So the pulse is fluid, not static. Yet there is a form to it--always on the 1s and 3s, never the 2s and (in 4/4 tunes) 4s.
You might hear a 2 or a 4 swell in a 1-2-3-4 phrase, but that's only leading onto the next 3 or 4 beat, where the emphasis actually lands.
# Posted on April 2nd 2011 by Will Harmon
Re: How do you know which note(s) to ornament?
It may be worth pointing out that, on some instruments, gracing is a necessity rather than a choice. On an open ended pipe chanter, for example, if you play two notes of the same pitch alongside each other, there is no way of separating them other than by gracing (articulating, ornamenting, whatever you want to call it). Highland pipe music, in particular, has a highly developed system of gracing - and although it isn't necessary to grace the notes when playing a pipe tune on some other instruments, part of the idiom is in the gracing.
Much written music of the past is guilty of "ironing out" the grace notes, and, as has been recommended already, listening to good traditional players cannot be overstated as a means to learning where to grace the tune.
# Posted on April 2nd 2011 by Weejie
Re: How do you know which note(s) to ornament?
The best piece of (musical) advice I was ever given applies here: "If it sounds right, it is right".
From time to time a couple of notes in a tune will suddenly 'click' while I am playing around with it. It feels as though I've pulled out a splinter I was only vaguely aware of.
# Posted on April 2nd 2011 by gam
Re: How do you know which note(s) to ornament?
Ornaments have a function, several functions actually. When you realise what they are supposed to do you know where to place them properly.
# Posted on April 2nd 2011 by Prof. Prlwytzkofski
Re: How do you know which note(s) to ornament?
'When in doubt, leave it out' -- advice that works well in this
situation and many others
# Posted on April 2nd 2011 by Hup
Re: How do you know which note(s) to ornament?
Any note can be ornamented. You develope your own creativity of ornamenting as you get better at playing. There's no exact notes which can be ornamented. It depends on you. Just keep getting better and better and eventually you'll naturally know which notes to ornament (That is if you have the natural ability).
# Posted on April 3rd 2011 by Patrick Murray
Re: How do you know which note(s) to ornament?
Thank you all for your suggestions.
# Posted on April 3rd 2011 by ceciltguitar
Re: How do you know which note(s) to ornament?
i agree with everyone above, but if you are looking at sheet music, here is a couple of suggestions:
1. any two of the same notes occurring on either side of a beat can be cut. for example, in out on the ocean, you can cut between the 2nd and 3rd B in: DBB BAG.
2. any note that is long can be rolled. if you have the kesh jig, G3 GAB | A3... you can roll both the long G and A
3. take a simple pattern and turn it into a long note (which is thus rolled). if your version of the kesh jig goes G3 GAB | ABA .... you can put a roll on ABA, as if it was just A3. this is especially true for when a sequence of notes consists of the same note twice with a note higher or lower between, like ABAG or GFGA, can be A3G and G3A, which can thus be rolled.
4. any time that you have the following sort of pattern, DEE2, you can either roll the second E, put a triplet there, cut between the two E's, or even do a long roll on E.
there are of course many, many other ways to put ornamentation in, but these are the 4 basic things that i would recommend to get started with. over time, your ear can tell you the rest!
# Posted on April 3rd 2011 by daiv