Shields Fair

hornpipe

Key signature: Gmajor

Submitted on February 14th 2005 by bellows boy.

This tune has been added to 10 tunebooks.

Also known as Shields Fair.

Details ABC Sheetmusic Comments

Details ABC Sheetmusic Comments

This is a recent composition by Chris Ormston, a fantastic Northumbrian smallpiper. He posted it to the NSP news group after teaching it by ear to a group of students in Cumbria.

# Posted on February 14th 2005 by bellows boy

Sheilds Fair

The structure of this tune seems more like a hornpipe.

# Posted on February 14th 2005 by radriano

Shields Fair

Not composed by Chris - and he wouldn't pretend it was either. I believe the setting, c. 160 years old, is from Robert Bewick's manuscript via my edition. Let's have a bit of accuracy please!

# Posted on February 14th 2005 by Matt Seattle

Mea culpa. I'll try to be more accurate in the future, Headmaster.

Not that it matters: after writing those comments I remembered this tune, so I looked the tune up in my database and rewrote my comments. But for some unexplained reason my original comments showed up here.

Those comments are null now. However, the connection this tune has with James Hill should be noted. The tunes associated with Hill have a characteristic bounciness to them, which is particularly well set off--imho--in the setting Chris posted on another public forum, and which I copied here.

# Posted on February 16th 2005 by bellows boy

James Hill

I ain't no headmaster John, and I'm not wearing that other hat you suggested elsewhere! No hard feelings of course, it's just my nitpicky character that I prefer correct facts to incorrect onesn if they're available. But they're only facts.

There's a connection with James Hill in that this tune has been attributed to him, and is similar in style to some of his, but the attribution is doubtful as there are other ms versions which predate his composing period - I don't have that info to hand, so you are most welcome to prove me wrong if you find otherwise. Another Hill tune which isn't really one is Blaydon Flats, actually composed by Abraham MacKintosh, and there are others.

Of course it's great when a tune you wrote becomes traditional, no argument there at all.

Cheers
Matt (hoping for an invite to WA)

# Posted on February 16th 2005 by Matt Seattle

Matt, you crack me up.

# Posted on February 16th 2005 by bellows boy

LOL @ headmaster. I'm even worse - it bothered me that John didn't obey the "i before e except after c" rule when the tune was originally submitted. Now it's been changed and I still haven't managed to clean the red biro ink off my computer screen.

# Posted on February 18th 2005 by Dow

This is all so funny, I've got the hiccups.
I will write a hundred times,"I will never post another tune late at night."
The next tune I post will be "Dunse Dings All". ;-)

# Posted on February 18th 2005 by bellows boy

It also seems to be related to another, older, tune, a triple hornpipe in D which I found here

http://www.leeds.ac.uk/music/Info/RRTuneBk/Greeny/Greeny.name.html

..and their relation explained in the Fiddler's Companion:

BLACK MARY(‘S) HORNPIPE [2]. AKA and see "The Shields Hornpipe." English, “Old” Hornpipe (3/2 time). D Major. Standard. AABB. This melody, republished in Offord’s John of the Greeny Cheshire Way and The Plain Brown Wrapper Tune Book, is a variant of "Shields Hornpipe," which appears in William Vickers' 18th century Northumbrian dance tune collection. The original appears in Walsh’s Third Collection of Lancashire Jiggs, Hornpipes, Joaks etc. (c. 1740). Plain Brown Tune Book, 1997; pg. 4.

http://www.ibiblio.org/fiddlers/BLACK.htm

These things certainly do get around, which shouldn't be surprising given their association with musicians and all...

And now I'd like my report card, please. :D

# Posted on March 12th 2007 by gravelwalks