TOW#7: Jenny Lind Polka

[nigelgatherer]

Sorry I'm a bit late for the latest Tune of the Week, but I think it's a good one. I firsy learned the Jenny Lind Polka from Alastair Anderson's wonderful album Concertina Workshop (1972). The tune was very popular at one time, and was named after a famous Swedish opera singer, who was also known as The Swedish Nightingale.

• Standard Notation with Chords
• Standard Notation with Mandolin Tablature
• MP3 Soundfile
  

[Tosh Marshall]

[quote='nigelgatherer' pid='2340' dateline='1282770113']
Sorry I'm a bit late for the latest Tune of the Week, but I think it's a good one. I firsy learned the Jenny Lind Polka from Alastair Anderson's wonderful album Concertina Workshop (1972). The tune was very popular at one time, and was named after a famous Swedish opera singer, also known as The Swedish Nightingale.

Never too late Nigel, here's my take on it.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J87bMgcPJ9g

[John Kelly]

Nice wee tune, Nigel. Off now to learn it. Thanks again for selecting and posting amid a busy schedule.

[John Kelly]

Here is my version of Jenny Lind. A great wee tune and one I had never heard before you posted it here, Nigel.
Recorded on my JK mandolin and a Lowden acoustic guitar, using Reaper software on my laptop.

Jenny Lind Polka

[nigelgatherer]

Excellent, John - and your mandolin is sounding good too.

[Trish Santer]

Still a very popular tune in English sessions, or even for Morris dancing!
Some more info about Jenny Lind here: http://www.nnuh.nhs.uk/Dept.asp?ID=400

[Jack Campin]

That one was played a lot in the English sessions at Whitby over the last week. Another version here:

http://www.campin.me.uk/Music/MalcolmDouglas.abc

The original version of it in the 1840s had something like 8 or 12 sections.

[John Kelly]

(28-08-2010 11:28 PM)Trish Santer Wrote:  Some more info about Jenny Lind here: http://www.nnuh.nhs.uk/Dept.asp?ID=400

Very interesting background to the Jenny Lind story, Trish. Isn't it great how many threads can arise from a piece of music and the information always adds to the tune in some way - I like to use it in moderation when telling audiences about particular tunes.

Other ones recently which threw up fascinating histories were "Hector The Hero", whose monument stands near the town of Dingwall, and the Irish tune "Chief O'Neill's Favourite" which I had always erroneously associated with some obscure Irish tribal chief and not with the man who became Chicago's Chief of Police at the start of the last century!

[John Kelly]

We have just finished putting together our version of Jenny Lind Polka along with Nancy Clough, that well-known Northumbrian tune. The concertina is being played by my fellow Old Bore John Thomson and I am playing my JK bouzouki. The link is to our YouTube video clip.

Jenny Lind/Nancy Clough

[Trish Santer]

Nice one! We tend to play JL preceded by "Speed the Plough" in G. Never quite sure if JL finishes on the B (or key of G) tune, or goes back to the A (or key of D) tune. Thoughts anyone?