I guess I disagree with the majority here.  I think there is absolutely nothing wrong with that jig, and it's perfectly well-phrased and suitable to contra dancing.

I think there are a lot of well-phrased jigs out there that we can make sound like they're not by putting an amorphous beat behind them and perhaps tying some notes over that would normally be repeated.  This is one such jig.  I played through it myself this morning on whistle, and I don't even think it's a particular smooth jig when you just play it normally (repeating the first note in the first bar rather than tying it over, playing the pickup triplet to the B part so that it sounds more like a pickup, and playing it at 120bpm).

I have no recommendations for how a band should use this jig other than how I think a band should play every jig-- start with four clear potatoes, use a strong beat (at least the first few times through), play so that it's phrased clearly and notes don't cross over the phrase.

To the musicians who think this jig is not well-phrased, I encourage you to play it for yourselves at 120bpm.  As long as you are clear on the phrasing, the dancers will be, too.  I've heard plenty of bands play jigs with a lot less clear phrasing in the melody (such as the Roaring Barmaid or Myra's) for contra dances with no problems.

-Dave

On Thu, Jul 30, 2015 at 12:37 PM, Thomas Verdot via Musicians <musicians@lists.sharedweight.net> wrote:

As was mentioned by Susan, my first thought was that it was a slip jig.  It is a fine tune for listening but one that I would not use for a dance.  If you really like it well enough to play it for a dance you probably want to have a stronger rhythm than the band in the video. I don't mean louder, just less amorphous.  That also doesn't mean dead on regular - it could just be punctuated to maintain a sense of form.

I think it is good to always keep in mind that we are there to serve the dancers & at times some of our favorite tunes just don't quite meet the purpose.  I have sadly rejected several favorites.

Regards, Tom

On 7/29/2015 9:48 PM, Emily Addison via Musicians wrote:

Hello fellow musicians!

I've had the following two tunes suggested for our contra band.  The
reel at the end seems straight forward (with some doubling up) but the
jig seems to have really weird phrasing (especially in the A) that would
make it hard for dancers to follow.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2DkJQ9xNGuU

I'm curious what you guys think!

Emily in Ottawa

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David Casserly
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