Annotation:Leeds Polka (The)

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LEEDS POLKA, THE. English, Polka. England, Yorkshire. G Major ('A' and 'C' part)s & D Major ('B' part). Standard tuning (fiddle). AABBCC. An 18th century tune that appears in a manuscript from a collection that predates the (Joshua) Jackson (1763-1839, Harrogate, N. Yorkshire) collection, from the Vaughn Williams Library, marked 1752. It is curious in that the polka is a dance form thought not to be invented until the early 19th century. Ashton & Dyson remark in their forward: "This collection of tunes are, to the best of my knowledge traditional tunes played in the Yorkshire area in the 1800s. The origin of the tunes is unknown, but they formed part of a tune book of a fiddler who lived and played in the area....the tunes in this book have been adapted from a collection dated 1752..."

Source for notated version:

Printed sources: Ashton & Dyson (A First Collection of Yorkshire Dance Music), 1985. Callaghan (Hardcore English), 2007; p. 67. Davenport (South Riding {Yorkshire} Tunebook, vol. 2), 1997.

Recorded sources:




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