Annotation:Behind the Bush in the Garden (7)
X:241 T:Behind the Bush in the Garden [7]. Roose.0241 T:Fourpence Ha'penny Farthing,aka. Roose.0241 T:Perriwig Maker of Derby. Roose.0241 B:J.Roose MS, Manchester 1850 Z:Village Music Project 2019 Quinton Cumbes N:Behind the bush, behind the bush, N:behind the bush in the garden, N:The maiden lost her maidenhead N:For fourpence halfpenny farthing. N:First appears in Playford 1686 M:6/8 L:1/8 Q:3/8=110 K:D A|d2e f2e|g2e f2d|d2f e2d|c3e3| d2e f2d|g2e f2d|faf gec|d3 D2:| |:g|fed c2A|B2G G2g|fed c2A|B3 g3| fed c2A|B2B g2g|faf gec|d3 D2:|
BEHIND THE BUSH IN THE GARDEN [7]. AKA and see "Behind the Bush," "Fourpence Ha'penny Farthing," "Perriwig Maker of Derby," "Wild Irishman (4) (The)." Irish, Reel (cut time). D Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AB. "Behind the Bush in the Garden [7]" is contained in the music manuscript collection of curate and fiddler biography:Rev. Luke Donnellan (1878-1952), Oriel region, south Ulster[1]. The first strain is cognate with (but not identical to) "Behind the Bush" in a American War of Independence era music manuscript, but the second strains differ. The second strain of Donnellan's reel also corresponds to the first strain of "Wild Irishman (2)," and, while there are similarities between the other parts of the tunes, they also have some significant harmonic and melodic differences. Considerably more closely related to "Behind the Bush in the Garden (7)" is "Wild Irishman (4) (The)," in both strains.
Donnellan's tune is also set in duple time. There is evidence in his collection that he was challenged in transcribing tunes in 6/8 time, often trying to shoehorn them into duple meter. His "Behind the Bush" version may be an instance of a lapse in notation. Curious also is whether he was aware of the mildly risque ditty sung to the tune:
Behind the bush, behind the bush,
Behind the bush in the garden;
The maiden lost her maidenhead,
For fourpence halfpenny farthing.
The tune is transcribed in 6/8 time in Manchester, England, musician biography:John Roose's large mid-19th century music manuscript collection.
- ↑ Donnellan researcher Gerry O'Connor came to believe the ms. is not the work of the curate but rather was originally compiled by an unknown but able fiddler over the course of a playing lifetime, probably in the late 19th century. The ms. later came into the possession of Donnellan, who was also a fiddler.