Red Haired Boy

Listen to this great tune. Look at your part carefully. The rhythm is easy but you have to be good at getting from one string to another!

Practice it slowly first, and when you think you can play it, try with the slow practice backing

When you are really confident you could try with the fast version.

If you are feeling very confident you could try playing the tune. Remember that the quavers are swung, so they have to sound unequal. Listen to it carefully before trying it. Don’t try to play it fast and learn a little bit at a time!!

There is a slower backing track to play with as you are learning the piece, then a faster one!

Violin 1

Violin 2

Violin 3

Red Haired Boy slow practice version.mp3

Slower backing track

red haired boy fast.mp3

Faster backing track

Folk Music

There are lots of different ways to play these tunes. All folk music is passed down by playing rather than writing, and notes and rhythms change all the time. All folk tunes can be played in different ways…..

Here is a clip of a family band playing together. You will hear the violin and the guitar "trading choruses" - taking turns to play the melody in their own way. Improvising around the melody happens a lot in folk music and in jazz music too. Lots of pop and rock musicians also do improvised solos on their instruments as part of a piece.