The Morris Book Part 3

Mallow is in County Cork and was a fas.h.i.+onable watering-place in the eighteenth century, when it was known as the "Irish Bath." Croker says that the young men of that fas.h.i.+onable water-drinking town were proverbially called "the rakes of Mallow," and he adds: "A set of pretty pickles they were, if the song descriptive of their mode of life, here recorded after the most delicate oral testimony, is not very much over-coloured."

Neither the Oxfords.h.i.+re nor the Gloucesters.h.i.+re Morris-men, from both of whom we recovered this tune, had probably heard of "Mallow"; it was natural enough, therefore, to subst.i.tute "Marlow," which, of course, they know very well.

"COUNTRY GARDENS."

This is the prototype of "The Vicar of Bray," and Mr. Kidson tells us that he has it in an old book of airs under the more ancient t.i.tle. It is also called "The Country Garden" in Playford's "Dancing Master," and in Chappell's "National English Airs," Nos. 25 and 26. Chappell gives it in 3-4 time, and remarks that it then becomes "a plaintive love ditty instead of a st.u.r.dy and bold air."

"SHEPHERD'S HEY."

This air bears some resemblance to "The Faithful Shepherd" in Thompson's "Complete Collection of Country Dances" (_circa_ 1775), which is reprinted in Mr. Kidson's "Old English Country Dances," p. 10.

"CONSTANT BILLY."

This is a variant of the "Constant Billy" printed in Playford's "Dancing Master" (1726), p. 170, and also in one of Walsh's dancing books. It is also in Gay's "Beggars' Opera," where it is set to the words, "Cease your funning." Mr. Kidson tells us that the air is known in old books as "Over hills and lofty mountains" or "Lofty mountains."

The well-known Welsh air "The Ash Grove" is but another version of the same tune; but whether the Welsh derived the air from England or _vice versa_ is a moot point. The matter is discussed, at some length, in Chappell's "Popular Music of the Olden Time," p. 665, to which the reader is referred.

The air that we print is as the Headington Morris-men played it; but we also recovered a variant of it from the Bidford dancers. The "Constant Billy" of the Bampton men, already mentioned, is yet another variant, but in the aeolian mode.

The words of the first verse of the Headington version were as follows:

O Constant Billy, Shall I go with 'ee?

O when shall I see My Billy again?

The Bampton words were different:

O my Billy, my constant Billy, When shall I see my Billy again?

When the fishes flies over the mountains Then you will see your Billy again.

"BLUE-EYED STRANGER."

Mr. Kidson tells us that this is a variant of "The Mill, Mill, O" in "Orpheus Caledonius," I., p. 40 (1725). It has also some points in common with "Just as the tide was a-flowing" in "Folk-Songs from Somerset," II., No. 37 (and note).

"BLUFF KING HAL."

This is a version in the major mode of "The Staines Morris Tune,"

published in the first edition of Playford's "Dancing Master," and reprinted in Chappell's "Popular Music of the Olden Time," I., p. 126.

How it has come to be christened "Bluff King Hal" we do not know unless, as Mr. Kidson suggests, the Bidford Morris men have taken the name from some modern collection of old English dances.

"MORRIS OFF."

As has already been stated, this tune, which was given us by the Bidford Morris dancers, is printed in Thoinot Arbeau's "Orchesographie," p. 94. A Dutch version of the same air is included in a collection of dance-tunes by Tielman Susato (Antwerp, 1551); and is reprinted in Carl Engel's "Literature of National Music," p. 56. See also Grove's "Dictionary of Music" (old ed.) II., 369.

THE DANCE.

The Morris Dance is essentially a manifestation of vigour rather than of grace. This is probably true of all country dances: it is pre-eminently true of the Morris dance. It is, in spirit, the organized, traditional expression of virility, sound health and animal spirits. It smacks of cudgel-play, of quarter-staff, of wrestling, of honest fisticuffs. There is nothing sinuous in it, nothing dreamy; nothing whatever is left to the imagination. It is a formula based upon and arising out of the life of man, as it is lived by men who hold much speculation upon the mystery of our whence and whither to be unprofitable; by men of meagre fancy, but of great kindness to the weak: by men who fight their quarrels on the spot with naked hands, drink together when the fight is done, and forget it, or, if they remember, then the memory is a friendly one. It is the dance of folk who are slow to anger, but of great obstinacy--forthright of act and speech: to watch it in its thumping st.u.r.diness is to hold such things as poinards and stilettos, the swordsman with the domino, the man who stabs in the back--as unimaginable things.

The Morris dance, in short, is a perfect expression in rhythm and movement of the English character.

THE MORRIS STEP.

As we have told already, the Morris dance is a bodily manifestation of vigour and rude health, and not at all of sinuous grace or dreaminess.

This will be obvious at a glance to anyone who watches the traditional Morris dancer at his evolutions. The first step, therefore, towards acquiring the true art of the Morris-man is to put away all thought and remembrance of the ballroom manner--really to unlearn, so far as possible, the lessons of the dancing-master and all his exhortations upon and exhibitions of glide, pirouette, _cha.s.sez_; the pointed toe, the gently swaying body, the elegant waving and posturing such as become the finished performer of round and square dances in the drawing-room. To say, put away for a while these methods is to put no slight upon them, or to offer a word of criticism: it is requisite and necessary, even as one should advise a change of clothing to somebody about to quit the ballroom for some rough-and-tumble pastime in the open fields.

Firstly, as to the manner of the steps. The Morris-men wear bells strapped to their s.h.i.+ns; the bells are there that they may ring their music--and a fine wholesome music it is, too: to ring, they must be well shaken; to be shaken, the leg they are strapped to must be kicked and stamped. Get that principle into your head, and that practice into your legs, and you make the first long stride towards acquisition of the art of Morris dancing. Strap a set of bells to your s.h.i.+ns, get out upon a gra.s.s-plot or the King's highway; never mind elegance or the criticism of the emasculate modern: kick and stamp upon the earth in such a manner as to make your bells ring their loudest, and ring all together. You will see pretty soon that, to do so, you must, when you jump, let the heels come solidly to earth, immediately following the toes--no man, even an old-time Morris-man, may jump and alight upon his heels alone, with the spine held rigidly above them (_see_ p. 33). You will find also that, in stepping it, whether to advance or retire, or to step rhythmically in one place, to make your bells ring the true _fortissimo_ you must _kick_, and kick hard.

Half an hour's experiment of this kind will do more to instil into the would-be dancer the spirit that presides at Morris revels than chapters of exhortation. It is a robust and friendly spirit, and will set the learner's steps--given that he be of English blood, or even of Anglo-Saxon sympathy--a-thumping to its solid downrightness.

Once possessed of the spirit, the form of the Morris step needs little explanation and description, for the steps are few and simple. With an eye upon the foregoing notes and, it is hoped, a personal memory of the experiment as recommended, the learner will readily grasp the description that follows here.

Roughly, the Morris step is alike throughout all the dances; it varies only in force, length (i.e., the length of the stride varies more or less), and height (i.e., the foot is lifted more or less).

The foot, when lifted, is never drawn back, but always thrust forward.

The toe is never pointed in line with the leg, but held at a right-angle to it, as in the standing position. The foot, therefore, the forward or stepping foot, is lifted as in walking, as if to step forward, then the leg is vigorously straightened to a kick, so as to make the bells ring.

At the same instant that the forward leg is straightened, a hop is made on the rear foot; the dancer alights upon the toe, but lets the heel follow immediately and firmly, so that he stands upon the flat foot. A good snap-shot photograph of one in the act of walking, when the forward foot has made about three-fourths of its stride, gives a perfect ill.u.s.tration of the Morris dancer's step.

As with the step, so also with the jump, which in so many cases begins and ends a measure; the dancer jumps, roughly, as high as his own foot, holding when in air legs and body straight, alighting upon the toes, but only so as to break the shock sufficiently for comfort, then letting the heels come firmly down. In alighting from the jump, the knees are bent just enough to save the dancer from injurious shock, and are straightened immediately.

Such are the Morris step and jump; the jump never varies; the step does vary as to height, length and vigour of stride, as will presently be noted. It must, however, constantly be borne in mind that, high or low, there is always st.u.r.diness in the Morris step; to Morris-men the languorous and the lackadaisical are for ever unknown.

For the purposes of compiling a notation, we have cla.s.sified the steps necessary to the dances described into two, as follows:--

In the step most commonly used the raised foot is thrust forward only so far that, when the leg is straightened to the kick, the forward heel is roughly the length of the dancer's foot in advance of the toe of the rear or supporting foot. This step, it must be remembered, will be used always, except when specific instructions are given to make it higher or lower.

In the high step, used chiefly in the figures called "Capers" (_see_ p.

50), the dancer must, if his activity will allow of it, raise the forward foot until its toe is as high as the knee of the rear or supporting leg.

It is an exercise not to be attempted all at once in its completeness, because it is one well calculated to send the inexperienced enthusiast sprawling on his back. Its study should be approached gently, by way of familiarity with the simpler movement, which, once it is mastered, may easily be extended to the harder one. The latter must be approached with caution--that is all. And the novice is to bear constantly in mind that, in the matter of vigour, he simply cannot put too much of it into his Capers. There will be little trouble about his remembering that, however; the Morris Caper-music will not let him forget it for a moment.

This step is called in the Notation--High.

It has always to be remembered that in Morris dancing, unless definite instructions be given to the contrary, every movement or part of a movement is begun by stepping out with the right foot.

DIAGRAMS OF MORRIS STEPS.