Special Instructions

Notes for selected "Cakes And  Ale" Concert Songs

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Duan Nollaig roadmap

line 1: everyone sings the refrain in unison

line 2: we sing the refrain ('Heire bannag' etc) in 3 parts. The tenors and basses are in unison. 

note: NO SOPRANO DESCANT UNTIL WE GET TO PAGE TWO. The sopranos all sing the regular sop part (which starts on a B flat)

line 3: we sing the verse 1 lyrics in 3 parts ('Mac na niula' etc)

Back to line 2 -- we sing the refrain in 3 parts again.

line 3 again: sing the verse 2 lyrics in 3 parts ('Mac na dile' etc)

Back to line 2 one more time! still in 3 parts.

WE GO ON TO PAGE 2

line 1 of page 2: everyone in unison

line 2: we sing refrain in 3 parts (STILL NO DESCANT!). But this time the 3 parts are STB -- i.e. the sopranos and altos are in unison on the soprano line (starts on B flat). Tenors and basses are now split.

line 3: we sing the verse 3 lyrics ('Mac na lasa' etc. NOTE: it should be 'Mac na' not 'Mac nan' for verse 3. 'Mac nan' is a typo). Sopranos FINALLY get to sing the descant! Altos sing the next line down (starts on F).

Back to line 2. Sopranos keep singing the descant to the end.

line 3 again: we sing the verse 4 lyrics ('Mac nan dula, Mac nan neamha, Mac na gile, Man na greine' exactly as printed. They are correct for verse 4).

Then back to line 2 one last time. We sing this twice at the end.

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Gloucestershire Wassail

Verse 1: everyone on melody in unison, switching to harmony at 'With the wassail bowl'.

Verses 2 & 3: SATB harmonies throughout

Verse 4: SA by themselves, TB rejoin at 'With the wassail bowl'

Verse 5: TB in unison on melody, SA rejoin at 'With the wassail bowl'

Verse 6: SATB harmony

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Serving Girl's Holiday

We have two different versions of the music; we are going to go with the later version.

1) If you have a copy with 'jubilant', 'joyful', and 'wonderful', please alter the text to 'glorious' and 'O joy' throughout.

eg. If your text reads:

On this jubilant holiday

   Spindle. bobbin, and spool away

   O joyful, wonderful holiday.

change it to:

On this glorious holiday

        Spindle, bobbin. and spool away

       O joy, this glorious holiday.

Btw 'spool away' should be 'spool, away' as in 'away with my spool! it's a holiday'

2) Tenors and basses: 

If your score has 'rum pum' in bars 1-12, change it throughout to 'spin spin.' NOTE: the rum pums on page 3 DO NOT CHANGE to 'spin'

3) Sopranos and altos: 

In bar 65, you should have an eighth note on the word 'track', followed by two eighth rests (rather than a dotted quarter). And in bar 67, you should have an eighth note on 'Jack', followed by an eighth rest. The newer copies already have those rhythms.