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[Betsy]

About this Item

Title

  • [Betsy]

Names

  • Jabbour, Alan (Transcriber)
  • Jabbour, Alan (Collector)
  • Reed, Henry, 1884-1968 (Performer)

Created / Published

  • Reed family home, Glen Lyn, Giles County, Virginia, May 6, 1967

Headings

  • -  Instrumental music
  • -  Fiddle tunes
  • -  Folk music--Appalachian Region
  • -  Breakdowns
  • -  Reels
  • -  Ethnography
  • -  Music
  • -  Field recordings
  • -  United States -- Virginia -- Giles County -- Glen Lyn

Genre

  • Ethnography
  • Music
  • Field recordings

Notes

  • -  Meter: 4/4
  • -  Key: A
  • -  Strains: 2 (low-high, 4-4)
  • -  Rendition: 1r-2r-1
  • -  Compass: 9
  • -  Phrase Structure: ABAC QRQC (abcd abef qrst qref)
  • -  Related Tune(s): Frosty Morning
  • -  Title change: The title appeared in the fieldnotes as "Unnamed."
  • -  Performed by Henry Reed, fiddle.
  • -  Henry Reed on one occasion said that this tune's title was something about Betsy. The Hollow Rock String Band took that as a cue and assigned it the simple title "Betsy," which is used here. He played it on three occasions, suggesting that it occupied an important place in his repertory, and his comments suggested that it was a good dance tune. But no variant of it has been identified. It is one of a number of tunes unique to Henry Reed's repertory that are in A and have melodies with a distinctly minor cast, using a scale with lowered third (C) and seventh (G) degrees. The high strain, oscillating between a phrase centered on A and another centered on G, has a flow and phrasing somewhat similar to the high strain of Henry Reed's "Frosty Morning." On one occasion (AFS 13037a10) he introduced a major alteration to the high strain, leaping to a high C-sharp instead of B on the E-string.
  • -  Duration: 40 seconds
  • -  Stylistic features: Henry Reed's two other versions of this tune contain distinctive variations. On this one, the high strain does not jump to high C#.
  • -  Recording chronology: 103

Medium

  • Audio tape

Call Number/Physical Location

  • AFC 1969/008: AFS 13703B03

Source Collection

  • Alan Jabbour duplication project, part 2

Repository

  • American Folklife Center

Digital Id

Online Format

  • audio

Rights & Access

The Library of Congress is not aware of any U.S. copyright protection (see Title 17, U.S.C.) or any other restrictions in the material in this collection, except as noted below. Users should keep in mind that the Library of Congress is providing access to these materials strictly for educational and research purposes. The written permission of the copyright owners and/or other holders of rights (such as publicity and/or privacy rights) is required for distribution, reproduction, or other use of protected items beyond that allowed by fair use or other statutory exemptions. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item and securing any necessary permissions ultimately rests with persons desiring to use the item. See our Legal Notices for additional information and restrictions.

The Center asks that researchers approach the materials in this collection with respect for the culture and sensibilities of the people whose lives, ideas, and creativity are documented here. Researchers are also reminded that privacy and publicity rights may pertain to certain uses of this material.

Photographs in this collection produced by Carl Fleischhauer, Karen Singer Jabbour, and Kit Olson are reproduced here with their permission. Mr. Fleischhauer does not object to additional use of the photos he created provided he is credited as the photographer. Persons contemplating other kinds of uses or use of the other photographers' work should contact the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress.

Credit line

Please cite the source collection title, collection number, and repository, for example:

Alan Jabbour duplication project, part 1 (AFC 1967/007), American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Alan Jabbour duplication project, part 2 (AFC 1969/008), American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Fiddle tunes of the old frontier: the Henry Reed collection online presentation (AFC 1999/016), American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Jabbour, Alan, Alan Jabbour, and Henry Reed. Betsy. Reed family home, Glen Lyn, Giles County, Virginia, May 6, 1967. Audio. https://www.loc.gov/item/afcreed000172/.

APA citation style:

Jabbour, A., Jabbour, A. & Reed, H. (1967) Betsy. Reed family home, Glen Lyn, Giles County, Virginia, May 6. [Audio] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afcreed000172/.

MLA citation style:

Jabbour, Alan, Alan Jabbour, and Henry Reed. Betsy. Reed family home, Glen Lyn, Giles County, Virginia, May 6, 1967. Audio. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afcreed000172/>.