Frankie Roddy's Hornpipe (FREE DOWNLOAD)
Some background to the tune: in 2023 I was awarded funding from the Instep Research Team to research some dances from the repertoire of Frankie Roddy, champion dancer, teacher, adjudicator from Derry; to teach these online, create a home study package including notation. I chose two dances; a series of 5 hornpipe steps, as well as a set dance in jig time called The Three Sea Captains.
I am also a member of an online group of percussive dancers, and when we decided to record a video of the hornpipes together there lay the question of a track, so I decided to write a hornpipe to suit the steps (quite an insane idea as I had never written a tune before – ha!). There are 5 parts to the tune.
Here is a link to view the video, obviously the rhythm of the steps informed my composition, I can’t imagine it will catch on in regular sessions as I wrote it on the piano and it’s quite chromatic, and filled to the brim with triplets. Having said that, there’s already one chap in Nova Scotia playing it on his fiddle at his local session!
The piano arrangement used in the recording will also remain a free resource, alongside a series of home-study videos to learn the steps.
Let me know what you think!
You can read more about this project in my ongoing blog, click here.
Summary - you will receive an PDF file of the Hornpipe, two A4 pages of manuscript, if this page size doesn't work for you, drop me a line.
For those of you who are interested in learning this Old Style repertoire, come and join me in dance. Drop me a line to voice your interest and I will add you to my distribution list for further information, beginners welcome.
Reviews:
From Joe McGuiggan who taught me the steps:
“What a beautiful tribute to Frankie Roddy, not just the learning and sharing some of his repertoire far and wide, but Annette’s newly composed delightful hornpipe “Frankie Roddy’s" which complements his steps perfectly.”
From Siobhan Butler:
"Annette composed a wonderful tune to accompany 5 hornpipe steps from Frankie Roddy. Not only is it unique to see music informed by a dance (as it is typically the other way around) but it’s also a wonderful learning tool. It essentially serves as an aural reminder of the dance."
