Revisiting “An Thou Were My Ain Thing”: Thoughts on Ornamentation and Interpretation - by Matt Seattle
- theborderpiper
- 6 days ago
- 1 min read
I was recently in correspondence with a piper from the U.S.A. who was interested in one of William Dixon’s tunes: An Thou Were My Ain Thing, which translates roughly as If You Were Mine.
It’s a slow (or listening) tune rather than a dance tune – in contrast to the other 39 tunes in Mr Dixon’s book – and my correspondent was asking for tips on how it might be played. There are of course many ways to play any tune, regarding tempo, articulation, pulse and ornamentation.
William’s version is a rather plain rendition, but my recording (DGM9907 - click here to listen on Soundcloud) has counterpoint and additional instruments to flesh out the arrangement.
The subject of the present article is ornamentation, and it is how I would choose to decorate the melody several years later than my earlier attempt; others will of course have their own way with the tune!
My CD with my version of the tune is available here:
My book "The Master Piper - Nine notes that shook the world" celebrating William Dixon's work is available here:
You can listen to both versions below and read the sheet music for each:
"An Thou Were My Ain Thing" - William Dixon - Plain version - 78.00 BPM
"An Thou Were My Ain Thing" - William Dixon - Ornamented
If you'd like to be informed of when I publish new any showcases like this one, please subscribe to my site and I'll email you each time there's something new!
Comments