Annotation:Rocky Mountain Hornpipe (2)
X:1 % T:Rocky Mountain Hornpipe [2] M:2/4 L:1/8 R:Reel S:Emery Martin (Fayette County, Pa., 1943) B:Bayard – Hill Country Tunes (1944, No. 3) K:D (A,2-|A,2) DE FEDE|F2 [D2A2][D2A2]A2|BABc dBAF|F2 [A,2E2][A,2E2]FE| D2 DE FE D2|F2 [D2A2][D2A2]A2-|BABc dBAA|F2 D2D2:| |:(3ABc|d2 (3efg fedd|c2 dd B2A2|BABc dedd|B2 A2A2 (3ABc| d2 (3efg fedd|c2 dd B2A2|BABc dBAG|F2D2D2:|]
ROCKY MOUNTAIN HORNPIPE [2]. Old-Time, Breakdown. D Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB. Samuel Bayard (1944) remarks that the apparent "inspiration" of his source's (Emery Martin) tune is a common Pennsylvania melody called "Sweet Ellum." Bayard notes that such adaptations are not at all uncommon in traditional music, that similar re-combinings and re-workings of strains of music may be one of the important factors in American folk fiddle repertories.
No doubt some such re-combinations have been further modified and ended up as entirely new melodies; others, like this one, bear with them the traces of their development. However, another explanation of this tune, and one not at all outside the bounds of probability, might be advanced. 'Sweet Ellen' is not a rare tune in south western Pennsylvania. It is quite possible that a form of its first half was running through Mr. Martin's head, but the second half was unknown to him, or had been forgotten. In order to have a well-rounded and complete tune, therefore, he composed (adapted?) the present second half of No. 3; and came quite naturally to the belief that the entire melody was original with him. Although worn-down versions of many folk song tunes--reduced to their first or second halves--meet us everywhere in our traditional music, the cases in which an instrumental tune remains current in such an abbreviated form are quite rare. It would seem that our folk instrumentalists cannot be content to play a half-tune, but feel the need of completing a dance air which they may have learned in an imperfect state. The simplest and most obvious ways to do this are either to compose a new strain, or to press into service an old, familiar one in order to fill the gap. No doubt both methods have often been resorted to in the past [Bayard, 1944].