The Development of an Archive of Explicit Stylistic
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CHAPTER NINE ORNAMENTS While ornamentation has long been regarded as an important means of expression for the traditional musician, it is important to note that this term generally involves the discussion of two aspects, namely ‘ornaments’ which are stylised embellishments where the length of the ornamented note is made smaller by the addition of extra notes,1 and ‘ornamentation’, which is the practice of using embellishment. While the terms are often used synonymously within the tradition, this chapter will deal solely with ornaments and this distinction will be observed throughout this chapter.2 While definitions of both ornaments and ornamentation abound in the traditional music literature they are not always consistent.3 Kenneth Kreitner’s article on ‘ornaments’ for Grove Music Online provides both a thorough and concise definition, in addition to a description of ornaments. Furthermore, he identifies two distinct types and states that: On the one hand, the technique of applying improvised or semi-improvised running figuration patterns to a given melody, so-called divisions or passaggi, creates melodic variation. Graces, on the other hand, are conventional melodic ornaments applied to single notes [...]4 This definition will be used as the basis for identifying ornaments from literary and audio sources throughout this study. 1 See: Keegan, Niall: ‘The Parameters of Style in Irish Traditional Music’, Inbhear Volume 1, Issue 1, (2010), 67, from where this definition is taken. 2 Except when quoting or paraphrasing the work of other authors. 3 Compare: Vallely, Fintan; Doherty, Liz: ‘Ornamentation’, The Companion to Irish Traditional Music ed. Fintan Vallely, 2nd ed., (Cork: Cork University Press, 2011), 532. Also see Breathnach, Breandán: Folk Music and Dances of Ireland, Revised Ed. 1977, (Dublin; Cork: Mercier Press, 1993), 98. Larson considers ornamentation and articulation to be often synonymous: See: http://www.greylarsen.com/services/tunebank/notationsystem.pdf (Accessed 6 June 2012). Also see: Keegan: ‘The Parameters of Style in Irish Traditional Music’, 67-74. 4 Kreitner, Kenneth; et al.: ‘Ornaments’, Grove Music Online, http://0- www.oxfordmusiconline.com.ditlib.dit.ie/subscriber/article/grove/music/49928 (Accessed 22 June 2012). 404 9.1 Historiography Since the subject of ornaments, and to a lesser extent ornamentation, is one of the most written-about topics in Irish traditional music, a thorough historiography would be beyond the scope of this chapter. Instead, a basic overview of the key literary sources is given with a more in-depth study being left to the discussion of specific ornaments in Section 9.3. The first ornamented transcriptions in Irish traditional music can be found in what is considered to be the earliest collection, Neal’s The Most Celebrated Irish Tunes (1724). In a 2010 edition of the collection, Nicholas Carolan observes that ‘decoration is sparse’ and ‘mostly but not always found on the longer notes’.5 He continues by saying that the ornaments used appear to be ‘single and double grace notes, and trills (t)’.6 Other unusual symbols are understood to indicate ‘half shakes or mordents’ of which he specifically mentions the upper mordent and references a symbol, which he notes may indicate ‘an ascending slide’.7 The earliest literary reference to ornaments can be found in Walker’s Historical Memoirs of the Irish Bards (1786) from where the following quotations have been taken: Such of them as were men of abilities, attempted to adorn them with graces and variations...8 […] the Irish [style] was soft, lively, and melodious, their fingers moving rapidly over the strings of the harp, preserving a true musical proportion, not in any part injuring the art among the shakes of the notes, and a multiplicity of intricate musical sounds; ….9 It should be mentioned that the term ‘graces’ is an archaic word meaning ornaments.10 Therefore, the statement ‘gracing a melody’ can imply the use of any ornaments and 5 Neal, John; Neal, William: A Collection of the most Celebrated Irish Tunes, ed. Nicholas Carolan, 2nd ed., (Dublin: Irish Traditional Music Archive, 2010), 33. 6 Ibid. 7 Ibid. 8 Cooper Walker, Joseph: Historical Memoirs of the Irish Bards, (Dublin: Luke White, 1786), 157. 9 Ibid., ‘Appendix’, 35. 10 See: Ed. Sadie, Stanley: ‘Grace’, Grove Music Online, http://0- www.oxfordmusiconline.com.ditlib.dit.ie/subscriber/article/grove/music/53118 (Accessed 2 June 2013). 405 does not specifically denote grace notes.11 The term shake on the other hand is an older term for the trill. Incidentally, the first known mention of the cran appears in a letter dated 18 August 1792 to Joseph Cooper Walker from Sir Gore Ouselely who was originally from Co. Limerick but living in India. Speaking of an Indian bagpipe, Ouselely wrote that ‘the music bears a very strong similitude to that of our bagpipe in respect to crans, shakes &c; […]’.12 The first publication that sets out to purposely describe ornaments using staff notation and specific terms is O’Farrell’s Collection of National Irish Music for the Union Pipes, which was published in 1804.13 This document details the trill or shake, and grace notes including the appoggiatura, tipping or popping the notes, double tipping, and other examples of tipping such as curls.14 Although writing exclusively in relation to harp music, in The Ancient Music of Ireland (1840), Edward Bunting gives a systematic table of fourteen ‘graces’, not all of which are either easy to understand out of context, or necessarily relevant to the playing style of today.15 Five ‘double notes or chords’ follow this and are variations on a quick descending arpeggiated chord, only the first four of which might be properly understood as ornaments.16 They are also unusual in that they are set in the bass clef. Since uilleann pipers are often highly regarded for their use of difficult ornaments, it is worth mentioning the piping tutor The Master’s Touch: a tutor for the uilleann pipes. Written by the renowned collector and uilleann piper Séamus Ennis in the 1960s and published posthumously in 1998, its introduction gives examples of many more obscure piping ornaments such as the ‘shiver’ and ‘pop’, in addition to detailed transcriptions 11 Seletsky, Robert E: ‘Grace notes’, Grove Music Online, http://0- www.oxfordmusiconline.com.ditlib.dit.ie/subscriber/article/grove/music/11566 (Accessed 30 Jan 2012). 12 See: Donnelly, Seán: ‘Irish Cranngal ‘Cran’ – A Piper’s Technical Term’, Celtica, Vol. 20, (Dublin: Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, 1988), 134. http://www.dias.ie/images/stories/celtics/pubs/celtica/c20/c20-132-140.pdf (Accessed 30 Jan 2012). 13 O’Farrell, Patrick[?]: Collection of National Irish Music for the Union Pipes, (London: John Gow 1804). 14 Ibid., 327-330. 15 Bunting, Edward: The Ancient Music of Ireland, (Dublin: Hodges and Smith, 1840), 24-26. 16 Ibid., 27. 406 that display his style of ornamentation.17 The only known text, devoted to the discussion of a single ornament is Seán Donnelly’s article ‘Irish Cranngal ‘Cran’ – A Piper’s Technical Term’. In his study, Donnelly describes the history and possible etymology of the term cran and much of the discourse surrounding it.18 Grey Larson’s The Essential Guide to Irish Flute and Tin Whistle was published in 2003.19 While his notation system, essentially a series of symbols, is unnecessary and only adds confusion to what is already a complex topic, he does draw attention to the similarities between articulation and ornamentation and argues that some ornaments such as the cut should be regarded as articulations rather than ornaments.20 In fact, an ornament such as the cut functions as an articulation and indeed this could be argued in respect of other ornaments such as the pat.21 Niall Keegan’s article ‘The Parameters of Style in Irish Traditional Music’ (2010) contains seven examples of traditional ornaments and one example of a new innovative type. It is the only known consideration, however brief, of the introduction of new ornaments into the genre and the ensuing difficulty with terminology.22 With regard to this he states that: For this sort of newer and more innovative ornament there is no standard terminology but such terminology does flourish, even if is not standardised. For example in my teaching I would call the above a ‘tapped-cran-roll’ whereas Grey Larson in his encyclopaedic The Essential Guide to Irish Flute and Tin Whistle (2003) would refer to it as a variation of a ‘double cut roll’.23 David Flynn’s doctoral thesis Traditional Irish Music: a path to new music (2011) contains a lengthy list of ornaments but also includes timbral effects from the piping 17 Ennis, Séamus: The Master’s Touch: a tutor for the uilleann pipes, eds. Wilbert Garvin, Robbie Hannan, (Dublin: Na Píobairí Uilleann, 1998), xv. This collection is based upon two manuscripts: the first was written sometime in the early 1960s whilst the second is known to have been revised by Ennis after 1968. 18 See: Donnelly: ‘Irish Cranngal ‘Cran’ – A Piper’s Technical Term’, 134. 19 Also see his online article, ‘A Guide to Grey Larsen’s Notation System for Irish Ornamentation’, (2003) which can be found at: See: http://www.greylarsen.com/services/tunebank/notationsystem.pdf (Accessed 6 June 2012). 20 Larson, Grey: The Essential Guide to Irish Flute and Tin Whistle, (Pacific Mo, MelBay, 2003), 113. 21 See: Section 9.3.4, 412. 22 Keegan, Niall: ‘The Parameters of Style in Irish Traditional Music’, 67-74. Also see: http://www.greylarsen.com/services/tunebank/notationsystem.pdf (Accessed 2 June 2013). 23 Ibid., 71. 407 tradition which do not conform to the definition of ornaments as presented above.24 9.2 Methodology As can be seen here, the subject of ornaments is extremely complex and requires a clear definition in order to proceed.