Lighthouse Keeper’s waltz

Just want to add I transcribed this tune from the CD of music from the movie “Scotland’s Lighthouses” written by Cal Scott and as played by Eddie (Skip) Parente.
A truly beautiful waltz played by a master.
jd

C: Cal Scott
M: 3/4
L: 1/4
R: waltz
K: A Major
|: cd |
e2- ec e2 | d2 c2 B2 | A2- Ac e2 | f2- fg a2 |e2- ec A2 | f2- fe d2 | dc- c2 A2 | B4 c/d/ |
e2- ec e2 | dc- c2 B2 | A2- Ac e2 | f2- fg a2 | ec- c2 A2 |1 d2 c2 B2 | A6- | A4 :|
2 dB- B2 G2 | A6- | A4 ag ||
f2- fe d2 | ce- e2 c2 | B2- Bc d2 | c2 a2 g2 | f2- fe d2 | ca- a2 gf | e2- ec A2 | B6 ||
|: f2- fg a2 | e2- eg a2 | fe- e2 d2 | ce- e2 E2 | F2- Fd c2 | B2- BA G2 |1 A6- |1 A4 ag :|
2 A4 ||

This is without changing your notes or repeats, accepting your transcription is AABCC, or by the number of measures in 3/4 time = 16 - 16 / 8 / 8 - 8 ~ ?! I have notated any 3 count (3/8ths) notes, crossing the beats, as for 3/4, or with a ‘-’, such as ~ | f2- fe d2 | dc- c2 A2 | ~ …

The reason ~ Because you’ve written your ABC’s, and the ‘sheetmusic’ shows this, as if the time signature were 6/8…but that may have been your intention? In that form, it would not be a waltz and the pulses called for in the barring of the music that way would mean it wouldn’t be played as a waltz either…

& ~ it definitely makes for a lovely waltz…and not such a good 6/8 tune… 😏

I did a wee edit on your ABC because Ceolachan is right but his/her version didn’t sound quite right to my ears (but I’m no expert and apologise if I’ve offended you, Ceolachan!).

X: 1
T: Lighthouse Keeper’s
M: 3/4
L: 1/4
R: waltz
K: Amaj
|:zcd |e>ce |dc~B | A>ce |f>ga |e>cA| ~f>ed | d<cA| ~B2 c/d/|
e>ce |d<cB | A>ce |f>ga | e<cA|1 dcB | A3 :|2 d<BG |A3 ||
zag | f>ed |c<ec | B>cd |cag | ~f>ed |c<a g/f/ | e>cA B3 |
|: f>ga |e>ga | ~f<ed |c<eE | F<dc| B>AG | A3 |1 zag :|2z3

I kept all your notes and the AABCC structure but simply changed the time to 1/4 and added extra bars in on alternate bars. The ending of the C part is a bit crude but works just to tidy up those last two notes for the last time through.

It is a very prety tune and I hope neither you nor Ceolachan mind my contribution.

No offence taken Mando, I’d done it in L: 1/8, but in my cut and paste I forgot to correct that. Maybe that way you’ll realize ’there’s no difference? ~ at least from Jane’s take on it…or yours, though you’ve added a peculiar second ending for the last bit ~ :|2 z3 ~ which makes a 7/8 bar, and besides which it is rare to cut off the primary beat in a 3/4 measure that way…Jane hadn’t…

I don’t have the recording so only had ‘janeatwork’s transcription. Also, whenever I do something like this I never add my own sense to it, I try to preserve the original contributor’s notes as is, but making the notation corrections as given above, though minus the ’zzzz’s’, as I suspect this was likely due to the way it was originally notated…

Ah, I see where you were going - had I been smarter I would have changed the L value in yours.

Adding the bars just brought the tune into line with the meaning of 3/4 (assuming L:1/4 and not 1/8!) and therefore the pulse of a waltz.

I know the ending of the C part was odd as I admitted. It was a quick fix to stop those last two notes being repeated when the song had finished. Though now I look again, your solution was infinitely more elegant - that’s what I meant!

When notating a 3/4 or 3/8 tune, a ‘treble’ tune, it is one practice to notate it in a way that preserves the structural and visual identity of the three beats in each measure. That isn’t and wasn’t haphazard. Instead of a dotted quarter note, or N3, or N> (‘N’ = a generic note), in the transcription above, the length is represented so ~ N2- N, which ties those two notes together and is the same value as the other two ways. This can be used whenever the length of a note extends across beats, as I’ve notated it, in this case across two of the three internal beats, or across beats between two measures/bars, for example ~ | N2- NN N2- | N6 || With equal values, where the length of a note is two or three full beats, then N4 and N6 still preserves the treble identity of the measure.

That isn’t the only reason for doing it that way, it is also about ‘choices’… First, a short example, but I’d better get my ‘letters’ right this time:

M: 3/4
L: “1/8” ~ !!! 😉
R: waltz
K: A Major

e2- ec e2 | d2 c2 B2 | A2- Ac e2 | f2- fg a2 |e2- ec A2 | f2- fe d2 | dc- c2 A2 |
B4 c/d/ | ~ another mistake! ~ I was using her notes and forgot to stash the slashes here…

e2 ec e2 | d2 c2 B2 | A2 Ac e2 | f2 fg a2 | e2 ec A2 | f2 fe d2 | dc c2 A2 |
B2 B2 cd | ~ corrected, the slashes removed…

These tunes aren’t in straight jackets, even the composed ones. By notating it the way I’d done you can see some of the possibilities. They don’t always have to be played
(reverting to L: 1/4)
| NNN | or | N>NN | or | N<NN | of | N2N | ~ etc…

On notating it this way, or L: 1/4, you have another problem in what is suggested, and that is that this is more like a 3/8 tune, bunching the notes up in groups of 3 instead of in seperate beats, in other words, rather than | NNN | ~ | N N N | or even better, L: 1/8 ~ | NN NN NN | or | N2 N2 N2 |, which more clearly lays it out visually as a 3/4 waltz… But, what the hell, if you like your beets jullienne‘, c’est la vie… 😏

Damn, it sounds really dreadful with L: 1/4 above, especially as that would only fit if it were M: 3/2 ~ you can imagine the probably tempo… Thump ~ thump ~ thump… 🙂

Hi, all -
yes, it IS a waltz. I noticed after uploading that though I had specified 3/4 it showed up as 4/4. Didn’t realize I could edit it here. I used ABCNavigator2 to build this and print the sheetmusic at home, and it did fine.
I’m dismayed at the sheetmusic version showing here, because now it’s looking like a jig.
The last 4 measures repeat, by the way, only once at the end of the tune, but I couldn’t figure out how to get that point across in ABC.
I may have to change the ABC code again to fix it…
still reading everybody’s notes…
jd

X:1
T:Lighthouse Keeper’s Waltz
M:3/4
L:1/4
C:Cal Scott
N:as played by Eddie Parente in music from Scotland’s Lighthouses
K:A
z1cd | e>ce | dc~B | A>ce | f>ga |
e>cA | ~f>ed | d<cA | ~B2 c/2 d/2 |
e>ce | d<cB | A>ce |
f>ga | e<cA |[1 dcB | A3 :|[2 d<BG |A3 ||
z1ag | f>ed | c<ec | B>cd |
cag | ~f>ed | c<a g/2 f/2 | e>cA | B3 |
|:z1ag | f>ga | e>ga | ~f<ed |
c<eE | F<dc | B>AG | A3 :|

The “dotting” is from my ear. As a waltz I’m not sure it would have originally been written that way. It may be Eddie’s embellishment. The tilde’s indicate where he’s thrown in a grace note or a roll - mostly grace notes.
Again, I’m the ABC novice. I used the online tutor docs to piece this together.
I appreciate your help!
jane

A good introduction to ABCs ( the ‘programs’ tend to have their peculiarities, so it is always good to have a hand on doing it longhand ):

http://www.lesession.co.uk/abc/abc_notation.htm

The tilde, or ‘~’, is a specific ornament group, rolls in their various guises. For grace notes they tend to be filed between { and } … For ‘basic’ notation most tend to notate without ornamentations, leaving that up to the interpretation of anyone missing, however, if one has the ear and the patience and the accuracy to notate the ornaments of a particular player, including themselves, and some of us are particularly fond of the latter, it is much appreciated. If you haven’t the understanding, skill or patience, then it is best to just leave things ‘basic’, plain…

It was good that you attempted to notate his swing to the tune, waltzes can be taken a number of ways. The notation I gave allows for that but also supports the basic structure for a waltz, and the freedom to interpret it either way, or the choice to do it sometimes and someplaces and not others. Such is the one of the integral joys of this music, variation…

Best of luck on future contributions. This is a nice tune…

Cal Scott, the composer ~ http://www.calscottmusic.com/

I’d forgotten links don’t work in the heading. Since this is a copyrighted tune, I hope Mr. Scott doesn’t mind it being placed here…

I tried editing it back to waltz vs jig format, but it won’t let me get to the header fields.
Because the last 4 measures are simply repeated at the very end, I took the repeats out.
Since I can’t get ABC Navigator to automate the input, this ABC was written long hand first, yes. ABC Navigator does allow me to listen to the result, and it’s very close to the CD.
Maybe I’ll upload it again with the corrected header and see how that turns out.
I hope Mr. Scott considers this posting to be the compliment that it is. I’ve been addicted to this tune and obsessed with getting it down for days!
jd

N: I don’t have the original recording, so I’ve only taken from the sense given here. I’ve been playing this in G Major and as 32 bars so that it could be used to accompany any 32 bar specific dance, couple or formation…

C: Cal Scott
M: 3/4
L: 1/8
R: waltz
K: G Major
A Bc |
d2 (3BcB G2 | c3 B A2 | G2 B2 d2 | e2 ef g2 |
(3ded B2 G2 | (3efe d3 c | B c3 G2 | A2 AB ce |
d3 B d2 | c2 (3BcB A2 | G2 B2 d2 | e3 f g2 |
d B3 G2 | c A3 F2 | G2 GF GA | G3 ||
d gf |
e3 d c2 | B d3 B2 | A2 B2 c2 | B g3 gf |
e3 d c2 | B2 g2 G2 | d3 B G2 | A3 d gf |
e3 f g2 | d3 f g2 | e3 d c2 | B d3 D2 |
E3 c B2 | A2 AG F2 | G4 =F2 | G3 ||

Kevin Burke and Cal Scott Play this in G on the album Across the Black River.

Does anyone have a guitar chord arrangement for this song? I figured out a very simple one but its not what Cal Scott plays.

A lovely tune, I prefer to let it speak for itself and go through it without too much ornamentation. The long held notes are particularly nice, and the tune really brings out a smooth waltz swing -- none of the hard O’Carolan tunes that feel like every beat is a punch in the face.
It was mentioned that this would well with Westering Home, and I agree completely.

Here is this waltz played by 5 years old Haley Richardson, Kevin Burke and Cal Scott. They play it in G.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWd75XUfz8U

play video