|
A friend of mine once asked me "How did you ever get interested in fife and drum music?"
The answer was easy, if somewhat long. Basically, I've always loved soul stirring music, and fife and drum corps sure do stir the soul. The other avenue was more academic. I've always been interested in folk music. Another friend traded me a copy of Samuel Bayard's Dance to the Fiddle, March to the Fife: Instrumental Folk Tunes in Pennsylvania. Being a fiddler for many years, I was glad to acquire the book. Upon reading through it, and playing through some of the tunes, I noticed that Bayard had often collected variants of the same tune from both fiddlers and fifers. Reflecting further, it began to make sense. For any tune that serves as a dance tune, can certainly function admirably as a march. I had to get a fife.
It didn't take long to think about forming a fife and drum corps, because it would be more fun to play this music with other people. And some one would have to be the director, and a director should know enough about the music and traditions of such groups to be able to effectively manage the group musically. So that I could understand how a fife and drum corps worked, and so that I could understand the language of drumming, I began taking drum lessons.
The drum that will be pictured at left was built by Ron Peeler, of the Peeler Fife Co. It is a copy of the drums played by the Moodus Drum and Fife Corps of Moodus, CT. The originals were built by Brown family members, some of which are dated at before the Civil War. It has calfskin heads, gut snares, and the shell measures 18" by 18".
Brown reproduction drum by Ron Peeler. Photo coming soon.
Further exploring the roots and history of traditional fife and drum music, I began to find photocopies of early fife tune books, both British and American. Eventually, I found a copy of A New, Useful, and Complete System of Drum Beating by former Drum Major Charles Stewart Ashworth of the US Marine Corps. The book was first published in 1812. I set to work learning the fife tunes that were appended to the back of the book. Then began to wonder how to interpret Ashworth's drum notation. I quickly discovered that the most recent 20th century edition was long out of print. I decided to bring out my own edition. I finished it in the Spring of 2007.
It's all folk music to me.
 |
|
||||||||||||
The Old Sod Shanty Home Page | Jim's Home Page | Jim's Biography | Jim's Booking Information and Tour Schedule | Purchase Jim's CD | Jim's Fifer's Web Page | Jim's Fife Tune Arrangements | Links