Annotation:Kitty Sharpe's Champion
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KITTY SHARPE'S CHAMPION (JIG). American, 'Sand' Dance (cut time). G Major ('A' & 'B' parts), C Major ('C' part) & E Minor or G Major ('D' part). Standard tuning (fiddle). AABBCCDDEE (Cole): AA'BB'CC'DE. The first part is similar to the "Inimitable Reel" in Ryan's. In the book, it is labeled a 'jig,' referring to a type of syncopated old time banjo and fiddle tune in 2/4 or 2/2 time rather than the more familiar Irish 6/8, 9/8 or 12/8 jigs. Kitty Sharpe, aka Sharp (1855-1945) was a singer and dancer born in New York City. She began her career in 1863 with her sister Dolly as one of the "flying angels" in the popular musical production The Black Crook at Niblo's Garden, and was active in the circus and on the variety stage until 1896. She performed for years with her husband, the English-born clown and acrobat Edwin "Eddie" Fritz (whose real name was Smith), and his partner James Cassim. Sharpe and Fritz continued their career with Barnum & Bailey, for whom Fritz was principal clown. In 1883 they established a residence in Saratoga Springs, where Kitty raised a daughter and three sons, one of whom, Eddie Smith, became a prominent music hall performer in his own right. Sharpe was particularly noted for her variety hall performances of the "sand jig," danced as a series of slides and shuffles on a sand-strewn stage. The tune named for her bears a distinct stylistic resemblance to "Kitty O'Neil's Champion," which was named for a more famous sand jigger, and which also first appeared in Ryan's collection. Both tunes may well have been composed by the same anonymous hand.
Source for notated version:
Printed sources: Cole (1000 Fiddle Tunes), 1940; p. 84. Kerr (Merry Melodies, vol. 2), c. 1880's; no. 426, p. 48. Ryan's Mammoth Collection, 1883; p. 84.
Recorded sources: