Key signature: Gmajor
Submitted on April 27th 2007 by lazyhound.
This tune has been added to 11 tunebooks.
Also known as Black Joke, Black Joker, Sprig Of Shillelagh.
Recordings of a tune by this name:
X: 1
T: Black Joak
M: 6/8
L: 1/8
R: jig
K: Gmaj
D2G GFG | ABA A2G | G2d dcB| AcB AGF|
GAB E2E | DEF G3 :|
|: d2c BAG | Bcd e2e |\
M:3/8
d3 |
M:6/8
G2G Bcd | e2e d3 | c2c B2B | A2A A2G |
G2 d dcB | AcB AGF | GAB E2 E | DEF G3 :|
Black Joak
This version of a very old tune was transcribed in the early part of the twentieth century by Cecil Sharp from the playing of John Mason of Stow-on-the-Wold. Cecil Sharp, along with others such as Vaughan Williams and Percy Grainger, was responsible for rescuing a large amount of folk music from oblivion.
This tune exists in several versions, a common feature of other versions being that the last-but-one bar in both parts is played as | G3 E3 |.
Unusually, this version (known as the "Bledington" version) has an extra half bar in the B-part. It is customary when the tune is played for a particular dance that the B-part starts half-way through the first bar, and continues through in 6/8.
There is yet another version of this tune in Pete Cooper's "English Fiddle Tunes". Mr Cooper's detailed on-line notes (http://www.petecooper.com/eftnotes.htm#19) to his CD give a lot of information about Black Joak. I refer the reader to that link, but I'll summarise by saying that the tune appears to have been that of a bawdy song, possibly of Irish origin, dating back to the early days (at least) of the 18th century. Extracts from this song appear in Mr Cooper's notes, from which it is not too difficult to deduce the meaning of "joak".
The tune is variously also known as "Black Joke" or "Black Joker"
# Posted on April 27th 2007 by lazyhound
Set Dance
The structure is unusual. Would it be classified as a set dance as opposed to a jig?
# Posted on April 28th 2007 by PaddyCmusic
Black Joak
Possibly, but not on this forum since there is no provision for "set dance" in the tunes database. "Jig" is the only realistic classification for this tune here because it is in 6/8.
The Miles Krassen edition of O'Neill has a specific section for set dances. Most of them are notated in 2/2 time, and only a small handful in 6/8.
The term "jig" had a broader definition centuries ago: it could be used for almost any dance that involved jumping or leaping movements ("jigging about"), and was not restricted to 6/8, 9/8, or 12/8 as it is today. In fact, on the database there is a very old tune called the Radstock “Jig” (tune #2926) – although “jig” is not permitted in the title here – and it is in 4/4, so it’s either a reel or a hornpipe.
# Posted on April 28th 2007 by lazyhound
Black Joak
There is another version of this tune on the database called "Sprig of Shillelagh" (tune #2302), and some more discussion about "joak" tunes on discussion #13496 (date 28/4/2007).
# Posted on April 28th 2007 by lazyhound
"The Sprig Of Shillelah" ~ jig
Key signature: G Major
Submitted on August 29th 2003 by dafydd.
http://www.thesession.org/tunes/display/2302
Discussion: "4/4 & so much more"
# Posted on April 25th 2007 by TheMuse
http://www.thesession.org/discussions/display/13496
# Posted on April 28th 2007 by ceolachan