"Assuming you are referring to the graphic at the top of the Discussion : in Photoshop I combined the original piano score cover art, a scanned and then "ovaled" photo of Alex, and added some text in a colour matching the deep green border…"
Classic-Banjo
A Site Dedicated to all enthusiasts of Classic Style Banjo
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Shawn McSweeny
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- Toronto, ON
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Shawn McSweeny's Discussions
Alex Magee Plays `Canadian Capers`
31 Replies
To help celebrate Canada's 158th birthday today, Alex Magee plays his…Continue
Started this discussion. Last reply by Shawn McSweeny Jul 12.
Sid Turner Plays 'Chansonade'
4 Replies
'Chansonade?' Well, not really. That's the title his old friend Tarant…Continue
Started this discussion. Last reply by thereallyniceman Jun 23.
Ossman`s 'Ragtime Medley' Transcribed
11 Replies
The Clifford Essex score for 'Ragtime Medley' doesn't represent Ossman's…Continue
Started this discussion. Last reply by Shawn McSweeny Jun 16.
Van Eps Plays "Hot Foot Sue"
6 Replies
Fred Van Eps never recorded "Hot Foot Sue" . . . . or did he?Late in…Continue
Started this discussion. Last reply by thereallyniceman Jun 7.
Shawn McSweeny's Page
Latest Activity
"Happy 249th Independence Day (a day late), Chris ! Let's hope the U.S. has many more.
Thanks very much for sharing your much clearer version of Magee's performance. The Arden & Ohman duet was a treat."
"Ning strikes again. My reply has vanished. And so has my second attempt. Here comes the third I hope. The Magee recording is playing nearly a half step sharper than the piano recording. The pianos are playing at C on the duet recording.…"
"Hello Chris!. I'd love to hear the recording. It does not seem to be attached or linked to your post.
-jody"
"And, herewith the actual files!"
"Greetings to all,
Happy Canada Day, three days late, in the spirit of our two nations' longtime friendship and trust, despite our current US administration's appalling efforts to the contrary.
Anyway, the original recording of Magee is not…"
"Back in the middle half of the 20th century there were some rough-hewn country people who made good music with their voices and instruments that was beautiful and compelling in spite of a rough timbre... not because of the scratches,…"
"What program did you use for this beautiful engraving?"
"Regarding me and the fiddle, I hate to make broad generalizations about tone but when I hear a fiddle player there tends to be a certain goal that my hearing finds unpleasant.
However, I love the sound of a "violin" played by a…"
"De Jarlis' tune was published in a tunebook by him in 1957. It is available in notation here: https://tunearch.org/wiki/Annotation:Whiskey_before_Breakfast
My point was not to complain about pedantry. It has its place, and in my areas of…"
"In the near future I will post tidied-up scores, tab, and sound files for banjo arrangements of the two versions of WBB we've been discussing.
For the purpose of illuminating and furthering this ongoing discussion today I have attached…"
"Definitely don't listen to the sound files I posted then as both players have somewhat "edgy" tone.
I'll post the banjo arrangement of the Andy De Jarlis version soon so you can read it and hear it on the banjo. It may not be the…"
"I only asked because I am not in the old time world. While it could be age related changes to my hearing, I find the sound of the “fiddle” extremely unpleasant (and I really can’t remember a time that I liked it, and I even…"
"An afterthought: I'm remembering the older generation of Cape Breton fiddlers and pianists I met long ago. They were obsessed with playing what they called the "correct" version of each tune. It was odd because they swore…"
"I don't agree that nobody cared, Marc.
The composers of these tunes, some of whom are still alive or recently passed away care(d) very much that their melodies be played as composed. Differences in expression and style are just…"
"The folk process at work. Learn the tune 5th or 6th hand and then make it yours. Nobody cared how close they could play to the original until pedants could look it up.
I've backed WBB on guitar so much, I could fall asleep and not lose a beat.…"
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Comment Wall (2 comments)
- At 2:50pm on February 19, 2014, thereallyniceman gave Shawn McSweeny a gift…
- I would like to send Shawn all my thanks for the "LOAD" of work he has done and information and photos he has provided for the recent site upgrade. So everyone, let's give a BIG THANK YOU to Shawn!
- At 4:39 on January 21, 2016,
Peter LaBau said…
Hi Shawn- sorry to be slow to respond, I only check in here once in a while, all the while knowing I need to do it more frequently! Thanks so much for your note, and it's so nice to know that something I did affected you in a such a positive way. In answer to your question- yes, I have the banjo Doug did for me all those years ago- in fact, he did the banjo twice for me. Th original inlay patterns he did on the fingerboard had to be thrown away- the fret scale was off, and it never played in tune. As beautiful as it was, I had to replace the fingerboard, and in so doing I went from a flat board to a radiused one, which is what I have on all my instruments now. The flat inlays couldn't be moved over, so for the longest time, I had just the pear bars that descended from the nut, and the rest of the board was just blank. Two years ago, I sent the banjo neck back to Doug to have him add bars up at the top of the board, and add in some position markers in between. Here's what it looks like now:
The pot is a 1910's Tubaphone- 11-1/2" diameter, and the neck is a 28" scale. I have another pot like this that I'm having Kevin Enoch make a new neck for- I'll use that one for raised "D" bass- I use two banjos when I perform- I find that retuning just one instrument never works out real well- the bass string keeps changing after changing pitches. You're Canandian, right? Toronto? It would be fun to meet up one day- I'll hope that might happen. All the best to you- Peter
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