England: history of the pipe and tabor
Cotswold morris dance
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1844 Whitesunale at Woodstock Banbury Guardian - Thursday 29 May 1884
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1845Northampton Mercury - Saturday 11 January 1845 | ||||||||||||||||||
Weekly Chronicle (London) - |
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1846 newspaper report “The Whitsuntide Festivities”Cheltenham Journal and Gloucestershire Fashionable Weekly Gazette. - Monday 08 June 1846 |
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1847 Lytell Geste of Robin Hode, Gutch," 1847, note, p. 365. in Rush Bearing, Alfred Burton, 1891 |
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In 1853 the order at the front of the procession was: Derby Mercury - Wednesday 25 May 1853 |
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1851 WOOTTON, William ('Old Piper') 1768 - 1851 "An inquest was held on the 14th inst., at the Locomotive Inn, in this place, by R. Weston, Esq., Coroner, on view of the body of William Wootton, mason, aged 81 years. The deceased was well known in the neighbouring villages, as the "Old Piper." It appears he retired to bed at 7 o'clock in the evening as usual, and about 6 o'clock next morning he spoke to a boy, who left his room about that time, and at half past 8 was found dead in his bed. Verdict - "Visitation of God." |
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Mid 19th century - John Potter of Sutton, Oxfordshire At Ilmington, Warwickshire, for most of the nineteenth century the local morris was danced to a pipe and tabor: three generations of the same family, from the founder George Arthur (1769-1836) from Snowshill, Warwickshire, through his son Tom (1802-1890), a mason and grandson James (1828-1906), a carpenter. The pipe and taborer Nelson, got so drunk once that he had to be tied upright to a tree so he could continue playing. He performed with several sides in north Oxfordshire. Good musicians were much in demand and sometimes played on a strictly commercial basis for a sum of money agreed before-hand. 1860's the quoted fees for a pair of pipe and tabor players at Finstock were 5s. and 7s. per day |
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Sharp MSS, Folk Dance Notes, vol. 2, ff. 42-43 James Simpson, alias McDonald, aka 'Jim the Laddie', of Sherborne, Gloucestershire James Simpson was widely known by the nickname 'Jim the Laddie,' which is easily explained once his Scottish origin is considered. At what age he learned to play the three-holed pipe and tabor drum is unrecorded, but his reputation as a player was widespread across an extensive area of east Gloucestershire and west Oxfordshire. He accompanied the Sherborne Morris set, but in addition probably also went out with the side from Northleach (Glos), and possibly that based at Great Rissington (Glos). ... |
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1856 poem 'The Death of the Old Year':Maidstone Journal and Kentish Advertiser - Tuesday 30 December 1856 | for more on Jesters and the coxcomb hood and asses ears see here | |||||||||||||||||
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1863 play “ But this is a day of enjoyment; away with business, and let the time be spent in pleasure. [Pipe and tabor without.] LADY AUDLEY'S SECRET first produced at the Royal Victoria Theatre, London, 25 May 1863 |
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"Finstock Morris danced to tunes played by Stephen Dore and Thomas Langford on the Pipe and Tabor and that they were in demand with other sides including Ascott-underWychwood in 1864 and even played for Bampton." |
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1901 Oxford University Antiquarian Society annual meetingOxford Times - Saturday 22 June 1901 |
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1882, 13 May "the minstrelsy of tuneful tabor, pipe, and horn the motley morrice dancers merrily mingling the throng! " |
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1884 An exhibition of antique artefacts was shown at the Newbury Art and Industrial Exhibition:Newbury Weekly News and General Advertiser - Thursday 25 September 1884 | ||||||||||||||||||
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1886 ‘Revival of the Morris Dance at Bidford’. The “first performance for many years, in this district, of the ancient Morris Dance.” | ||||||||||||||||||
1886 Bidford Shakesperian Morris DancersBristol Times and Mirror - Wednesday 03 March 1886 | ||||||||||||||||||
1886 Bidford Morris Men contributed towards a “Carefully arranged and extremely picturesque May Revels” performed at the Agricultural Halls in Islington, London. Morning Post - Monday 10 May 1886 | ||||||||||||||||||
1886 A talk and demonstration of morris dance was given by Mr D’arcy Ferris in Cheltenham Assembly Room with a 100 year-old tabor. He also showed an old pipe which was unserviceable.Cheltenham Examiner - Wednesday 10 March 1886 | ||||||||||||||||||
1886 Talk and demonstration at the Victoria Rooms, CliftonWestern Daily Press - Monday 08 March 1886 | ||||||||||||||||||
1886 ‘The May Queen at Islington, London’ Morning Post - Monday 10 May 1886 | ||||||||||||||||||
1886 Ilmington morris Oxfordshire Weekly News - Wednesday 09 June 1886 | ||||||||||||||||||
1886 Ilmington morris newspaper advertisement: Alcester Chronicle - Saturday 19 June 1886 |
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1886 Rose Show at Malvern: Worcestershire Chronicle - Saturday 03 July 1886 | ||||||||||||||||||
1887 ‘The Flute – Interesting Lecture at Alderley Edge’Alderley & Wilmslow Advertiser - Friday 28 October 1887 | ||||||||||||||||||
1888 ‘The King’s Head, Walworth Road’, Lambeth, LondonSouth London Chronicle - Saturday 16 June 1888 | ||||||||||||||||||
1888 A newspaper correspondent remembered his childhood: John Bull - Saturday 25 August 1888 |
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1888 Christmas Entertainment at Olympia: Daily News (London) - Monday 24 December 1888 | ||||||||||||||||||
1890 May Revel,extracts from letter to the editor: Gloucestershire Echo - Friday 02 May 1890 | ||||||||||||||||||
1890Bridport News - Friday 23 May 1890 | ||||||||||||||||||
1891 -
as reported in the Monmouthshire Beacon - Saturday 09 May 1891. As part of the May Day Revels the procession included 'Taborer Mr J Cumbley' followed by named morris dancers. |
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1892 "In every parish they raised a May-pole hung with garlands and ribbons;.... And there was morris-dancing, with Robin Hood, Friar Tuck, Little John, Tom the Piper, and Tom the Fool, with hobby-horses, pipe and tabor, mummers and devils, and I know not what;" London by Walter Besant |
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1894 during the Festival of Village Choirs at Eaton Hall ‘The Merry Men of Sherwood Forest’ a pastoral operetta was performed, with words and music by W H Birch. The cast performed a ‘lively morris dance to the pipe and tabor’ Crewe Chronicle - Saturday 31 March 1894 |
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1896 Cork Examiner - Friday 11 December 1896 [Republic of Ireland] | ||||||||||||||||||
1897 Arthur Sullivan's ballet ‘Victoria & Merrie England’ : "Morrice Dancers and 6 lady morris dancers arrive and perform to a very attractive jaunty 6/8 theme in which The Era again The Era - Saturday 29 May 1897 |
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1898 ‘The Corporation Concerts at Wister Gardens by the Royal Marines Band. Leslie Stuart's march ‘The Dandy Fifth’ Cheltenham Examiner - Wednesday 12 October 1898 |
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1899 In a newspaper review entitled
‘Exhibition of morris dancing – an interesting revival’ at the Corn Exchange in Oxford,
Oxford Journal - Saturday 18 March 1899 |
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By1900 the practice of Morris dancing in a traditional context was almost defunct in the south Midlands region of England, after more than three centuries during which it had been a widespread element in working class cultural activity | ||||||||||||||||||
for other types of dance see : |
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