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Notation For Ballad Melodies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 December 2020

William J. Entwistle
William J. Entwistle*
Affiliation:
Exeter College, Oxford
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Extract

Some time ago, in a comparative study of European balladries, the problem of the melodies halted me till Professor César Barja told me that my problem had already been solved by Professor Sigurd B. Hustvedt, who sent me a short time later his valuable pamphlet, A Melodic Index of Child's Ballad Tunes (Univ. of California Press, 1936). I have made an extensive use of his system, having introduced a few modifications, and venture to think that my experiments may serve as (so to say) laboratory confirmation. His business has been with English and Scottish ballads; mine has been international.

Type
Research Article
Information
PMLA , Volume 55 , Issue 1 , March 1940 , pp. 61 - 72
Copyright
Copyright © Modern Language Association of America, 1940

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References

1 Thus—(1) It may be used for a card-index; in fact, most ballad tunes can be transcribed within two square inches by Professor Hustvedt's method. (2) The cards may be ordered according to some convenient plan, and shuffled and compared. One cannot shuffle and compare the huge tomes which carry staff notation. (3) A system of letters and numbers is comprehensible to anyone who can read or count. One will be able to say what one means in a way that is wholly convincing. (4) The cards may be handled by a literary student with considerable confidence, and so the melodies may be brought into the closest contact with his texts.

2 To illustrate, I should fill up the card for “God save the King” or “My Country'tis of Thee” thus:

2C12

God save the King

(reference to book)

1 sharp 32 U2

gga/f(.g)a/

bbc/b(.a)g/

agf/g../

ddd/d(.c)b/

ccc/c(.b)a/

b(cbag)/b(.c)d/

(ec)ba/g../

I prefer to indicate the form of the verse, since my purpose is literary. A gap may be left between hemistichs. “God save the King” is a comparatively sophisticated piece, yet it has been transcribed readily within two square inches of type. Ballad tunes are usually much more compact, e.g.:

B21ABB

Rosa fresca

68 U8

ee/d.ef.e/d.c

ee/d.ef.e/d.