Key signature: Dmajor
Submitted on September 19th 2005 by Zina Lee.
This tune has been added to 26 tunebooks.
Also known as Jane Yolen's.
X: 1
T: Winter Queen, The
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
R: reel
K: Dmaj
|:Adfa g/g/g fg|efed cAAF|~G3F GBdB|A~c3 ecBA|
dfaf g/g/g fg|efed cAAF|GFEF GBdB|1 Aceg fddB:|2 Aceg fdde||
|:f~B3 F~B3|FBdB cAEF|~G3F GBdB|Acef gfeg|
fdeg f~B3|FBdB cAEF|GFEF GBdB|1 Aceg fdde:|2 Aceg fddB||
"Variations A"
|:Adfa gfed|efed cAAF|~G3F GBdB|ABcd ecBA|
Adfa gfed|efed cAAF|GFEF GBdB|1 Aceg fddB:|2 Aceg fdde||
"Variations B"
|:fBAB FBAB|FBdB cAEF|~G3F GBdB|Acef gece|
fdeg F~B3|FBdB cAEF|GFEF GBdB|1 Aceg fdde:|2 Aceg fddB||
|:~f3e f~d3|gfef d~B3|AEAB cAcd|eAcd efge|
fdeg f~B3|FBdB cAEF|GFEF GBdB|1 Aceg fdde:|2 Aceg fddB||
|:~f3e f~B3|fdeg f~B3|AEAB ~c3d|efdf ecdc|
fdeg f~B3|FBdB cAEF|GFEF GBdB|1 Aceg fdde:|2 Aceg fddB||
Composed by Will Harmon
I received a request from Cat Eldridge, publisher and editor of The Green Man Review, for a new reel to honor one of their Winter Queens, Jane Yolen (author of countless awardwinning books for both adults and children), and Will obliged.
He says everyone is welcome to pick at it.
The variations were either things that I played by mistake while learning the damn thing, or ones that Will had considered for the tune proper.
While Will was here this weekend, we actually recorded us playing the thing, so look for it at the Mighty Craic Online, whenever Jim gets round to putting the thing up.
# Posted on September 19th 2005 by Zina Lee
I love this tune even though I am sitting at work just humming to myself - hope no-one can hear me.
Look forward to finally hearing the much long awaited recording when Jim gets a chance to post it in the Craic.
The criteria I have for a good tune is when I hear it (even my humming) and it gives me the feeling that I either should know this one, or it feels like I already knew it even though I know I never did hear it before.
BTW what the ... is a winter queen? Is it a summer queen that's just past its best?
# Posted on September 20th 2005 by Donough
LOL -- the Winter Queen is an authoress who has been asked to be a featured author by GM that winter. That's about it.
It's a lovely little tune, and it tends to stick in your head whether you consciously decide to learn it or not...
# Posted on September 20th 2005 by Zina Lee
Well, Jim says the thing's up on the Mighty Craic Online, though I haven't been able to pull it up yet. So if you want to hear Will struggling to play the tune even though I'm laboring away on it, try http://worldfiddlemusic.co.uk/mightycraiconline/
# Posted on September 20th 2005 by Zina Lee
What a great tune! Good job, Will. And some nice playing from all of you. You're right Zina, it's already playing in my head and I've only listened to it a couple of times
# Posted on September 21st 2005 by soft black stars
Glad to hear other people are enjoying it. It's certainly a sticky melody, the only one of my own tunes that I can play from memory (although I don't play all the variations Zina posted here). The A part just popped right out, literally within 2 minutes of getting Zina's email request for a fresh tune. I remember having a burst of inspiration that I wanted to hang on the G in measure 3 because it vaguely reminded me of the chord progression of an Alison Krauss song. How weird is that?
The B part was more of a struggle. I like tunes that go from major to minor, so the Bm noise at the beginning of the B part wasn't too hard, but I resisted re-using the phrases from the A part...until they kept coming out under my fingers as I tried to imagine what to play.
Pete and Zina then conspired to record us playing it unbeknownst to me, except that Pete kept reminding Zina that she hadn't "rehearsed" Winter Queen yet, and she kept asking him whether the "device" was turned on or not.
# Posted on September 21st 2005 by Will CPT
Well Will - Duh!
What sort of device did you think they were referring to? The oven?
"she kept asking him whether the "device" was turned on or not. "
Anyway a great tune - well done.
# Posted on September 22nd 2005 by Donough
Oooo, I like this tune a lot! I've put it in my queue of things to work out for fingerstyle guitar. Well done, Will. And well played guys.
# Posted on September 22nd 2005 by Bob himself
Donough, I had it sussed right away, even though "device" in Zina and Pete's house could mean any of 3 zillion different digital gizmos (their household inventory makes Circuit City look understocked). I just thought it was funny that they even tried to be sneaky about it....
# Posted on September 22nd 2005 by Will CPT
"sneaky" nothing -- you'll note that the second time I asked Pete if the Zen was on, it was off, and I also knew that if he kept making arch comments about recording Will, sooner or later there'd be a kneejerk response that there would be NO recording... *snort*
# Posted on September 25th 2005 by Zina Lee
The Winter Queen
I heard this tune played in Tokyo, by one of my friends. I need to ask where she got it.
# Posted on November 5th 2005 by slainte
And another of Will's tunes shows up where we least expect it...!
# Posted on November 14th 2005 by Zina Lee
Nice tune, Will, it has a sort of East Clare sound to my ears. The first part has a very welcoming sound as it comes around each time.
# Posted on November 15th 2005 by Phantom Button
Thanks, Jack. That turn back into the A part is the sweet spot for me too. Leaves me all the more convinced that we don't compose tunes so much as discover them waiting there for us.
Hiroyuki, I'll be curious to hear if it's really this tune that reared its head in Tokyo, and if so, how it got there.
Geesh...another tune I have to polish up so I don't end up the only one at a session not able to join in....
# Posted on November 15th 2005 by Will CPT
After playing it for a while along with the mp3 I've settled on this setting on the flute more or less.
X:1
T:Winter Queen, The
C:Will Harmon
M:4/4
L:1/8
R:reel
K:Dmaj
|:Adfa ~g2 fg|efed cAAF|~G3F GBdB|Ac~c2 ecAc|
dfaf ~g2 fg|efed cAAF|GFEF GBdB|1 Aceg fddB:|2 Aceg fdde||
|:fB~B2 FB~B2|FBdB cAEF|~G3F GBdB|Acef gfeg|
~f2eg fB~B2|FBdB cAEF|~G3F GBdB|1 Aceg fdde:|2 Aceg fddB||
# Posted on November 15th 2005 by Phantom Button
Oh, and in the second bar of the B part I like to play the F an ocave higher, but only in that bar. It works great on the flute.
# Posted on November 15th 2005 by Phantom Button
Nice tune
Hey... just found this today... what a lovely tune! Thanks.
# Posted on October 19th 2006 by drone