Capercaillie: Sky Waulking Song

Learning Objectives:

To annotate and analyse the score of Capercaillie’s ‘Skye Waulking Song’

To consolidate your understanding in the main features of Melody, Harmony, Tonality

and Structure of Capercaillie’s ‘Skye Waulking Song’

Starter Activity (10mins)

You are going to listen to Capercaillie’s ‘Sky Waulking Song’.

Answer the questions on the worksheet in as much detail as you can. It is out of 12 marks!

DO NOT leave any blanks.

Recap: Background to ‘Skye Waulking Song’

Capercaullie’s ‘Sky Waulking Song’ was released in September 2000 on their album Nadurra.

Line up: Donald Shaw: Accordion, Piano, SynthMichael McGoldrick: Flutes, Whistle, Uileann PipesKaren Matheson: VocalsEwen Vernal: Acoustic and Electric BassCharles McKerron: FiddleManus LunnyL Bouzouki, Guitar, Bodhran, VocalsJames MacKintosh: Drums, Percussion

Capercaillie• This group of musicians formed in Oban High School, in the West

Highlands of Scotland, in the early 1980s by Donald Shaw (accordion and keyboards) and several of his friends on other instruments.

• The name is taken from a Scottish grouse (a native bird) that was at one point nearing extinction, but has since undergone a successful preservation campaign.

Skye Waulking Song• Skye Waulking Song is a waulking song telling the tale of

Seathan, son of the king of Ireland, from a collection of Gaelic folk songs by Alexander Carmichael.

• The original song was nearly 200 lines long and would have taken over an hour to perform, but the Capercaillie version uses just an extract from the Alexander Carmichael collection.

• The original song was a lament sung by Seathan’s wife, telling of his deeds, his character, her recollections of times spent with him and his demise.

Lyrics......

Hi ri huraihhi o hoChuir m’athair mise dha’n taigh charraideachO hi a hho ro hu o hoHi ro hoChuir m’athair mise dha’n taigh charraideach

Hi ri huraihhi o ho‘N oidhche sin a rinn e bhanais dhomhO hi a hho ro hu o ho‘N oidhche sin a rinn e bhanais dhomhEtc.

AnalysisSection Bar numbers and

timingsDescription

Intro 1-80:00-0:33

• Begins with a sustained keyboard chord- E minor• The fiddle joins in, more for effect than anything else, with a tremolo note (rapid repetition of a note to create a ‘trembling’ effect)• After a few bars the drum part comes in along with a second keyboard sound (electric piano with a tremolo effect) working in counterpoint with the bouzouki to give a sense of movement.• The bass plays staccato, almost inaudible notes working almost as one instrument with the bass drum.• By the end of this section, the chord sequence has been established as Em-G.•The time signature is ambiguous- it feels like it might be 6/8 or 12/8, but the shaker and hi-hat are playing every two beats, giving more of a triple time feel.

AnalysisSection Bar numbers and

timingsDescription

Verse 1 9-110:33-0:51

• The instruments continue in the same way as for the introduction, but the voice enters to sing the first line of the verse (‘My father sent me to a house of sorrow’)•The voice sings the characteristic lilting rhythm, but this is working against what the other instruments are playing, so the time signature is still a little ambiguous.

Break 12-150:51-1:03

• The backing instruments continue with their atmospheric background sound, while the fiddle becomes a little more prominent, but still concentrates more on effects than on melody as such.

AnalysisSection Bar numbers and

timingsDescription

Verse 2 16-201:03-1:24

• The voice begins to establish itself as the main rhythmic feature, setting the 12/8 time signature.

Verse 3 21-241:24-1:41

• Continues seamlessly from verse 2.• The last line is sung unaccompanied, serving as a link between the opening section and the next section.

Verse 4 25-281:41-1:58

• The accordion joins in along with strummed accompaniment on acoustic guitar/bouzouki.• Backing vocals join in for the nonsense syllables, leaving the main lyrics for the lead vocal.• The drum part is now clearly setting the 12/8 feel along with the rest of the band.• The bass part has much more substance than the previous section.• The chord sequence changes here to C-G-Em-G, adding some harmonic interest.

Analysis

Section Bar numbers and timings

Description

Verse 5 29-321:58-2:14

• The same for verse 5.• The accordion provides countermelodies to the vocal.

Verse 6 33-362:14-2:31

• The same for verse 6.

Instrumental 37-432:31-3:01

• The uilleann pipes solo along with the fiddle in a heterophonic texture while the accordion provides accompaniment and occasional melodic doubling.•The instruments (particularly the accordion) emphasise the second and fifth beats, adding some extra rhythmic interest.

AnalysisSection Bar numbers and

timingsDescription

Verse 7 44-483:01-3:21

• The chord sequence changes to Am7-Em-Em-G for one verse only.• The dynamics drop considerably, with all the instruments leaving room for the intimate vocal sound (with backing vocals on nonsense syllables).• All instruments drop out for the last line, adding to the contrast as the drums build up to the last verse.

Verse 8 49-523:21-3:38

• Chord sequence returns to C-G-Em-G.• Full band plays.

Outro 53-end3:38-4:38

• Vocals improvise to the nonsense syllables as the instruments weave a counterpoint with each other.• The chord sequence alternates between C and G for the remainder of the song.• A long fade out brings the song to an end.

Important points to note• Harmony in this style of music is less important than melody and

rhythm. The harmony is very simple throughout the song (there are only four chords in the whole song), but the changes in chord sequence, while infrequent, are very noticeable when they happen, highlighting a change of section and mood.

• The melodic lines are played in the folk style- the instruments improvise around the melody simultaneously, sometimes playing a very similar melody in slightly different ways (creating a heterophonic texture) and sometimes weaving a complex, improvised counterpoint around the melody and scale (G major).

• The vocal part is sung using the scale of E minor pentatonic (or G major pentatonic) throughout.

Plenary

Answer these questions!

1) What musical technique is used by the fiddle in the beginning of the piece?

2) How many chords is the song based on? Name Them!3) What is the texture between the uileann pipes and fiddle?4) How is the melody utilised in a folk style?5) Which scale is the vocal line based on?