Annotation:Reel St-Jean
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REEL ST-JEAN. AKA - "Reel Saint-Jean." AKA and see "Reel de la Catalogne (1)." French-Canadian, Reel. A Minor ('A' part) & C Major ('B' part) {Joyal}: B Minor (‘A’ part) & D Major (‘B’ part) {Hart & Sandell). Standard tuning (fiddle). AA'BB'. Fiddler Joseph Bouchard recorded this reel for Bluebird as "Reel de la Catalogne" while his long-time playing partner, diatonic accordionist Théodore Duguay (1904-1950) recorded it under the above title. Both musicians were in the seminal and influential band "Montagnards Laurentiens" (Laurentian Mountaineers) which played traditional French-Canadian dance music for Montreal audiences in the mid-20th century (Joyal). In addition to the accordion, Duguay played piano, harmonica and left-handed fiddle, and was also an excellent step dancer. He recorded the reel in June, 1945, accompanied by a guitar.
The second strain of "Reel St-Jean" can be played low or high.
Source for notated version: Martin Racine & Yves Lambert of the group La Bottine souriante [Hart & Sandell].
Printed sources: Hart & Sandell (Dance ce Soir), 2001; No. 46, p. 80. Joyal (Danses d'ici: Musique Traditionnelle du Québec), 1994; pp. 45 & 100. Songer with Clyde Curley (Portland Collection, vol. 2), 2005; p. 175.
Recorded sources: Folkways RBF 114, Théodore Duguay - "Masters of French-Canadian Music 4" (1982). Standard Vox A-103 (78 RPM), Théodore Duguay (1945). La Bottine souriante – “La traversée de l’atlantique” (1986). Richard Forest & Yvon Cuillerier – “Québec pure laine” (1992).
See also listing at:
Hear Théodore Duguay's 1945 recording on youtube.com [1]