Episode Two – John Keats - Bright Star

The Thunder Mutters

In Episode Two of The Thunder Mutters Adam and Becky present a selection of John Keats’ poetry, interwoven with tunes from 18th and 19th century fiddlers' manuscripts.

The performance of the poems and tunes is presented as a seamless flow, from music to poetry and back, so the titles of poems and tunes, and the histories of the tunes, are given beforehand. We have also listed them in the text below, along with Becky’s sources, for your ease and listening comfort.

Tune: Morning Star / Butchers of Bristol

Poem: The Human Seasons

Tune: Camberwell

Poem: La Belle Dame Sans Merci: A Ballad

Tune: Poor Soldier

Poem: Modern Love

Tune: Maid of the Mill

Poem: Ode on a Grecian Urn

Tune: The Rising Sun

Poem: To Sleep

Tune: The Good Old Way

Poem: Bright Star

Tune: Childgrove (Such a Wife as Willy Had)

The Thunder Mutters’ theme tune is: Gardengate

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Barlow, Jeremy, The Complete Country Dance Tunes from Playford’s Dancing Master (1651-ca.1728) (London: Faber Music Limited, 1985)

Deacon, George, John Clare and the Folk Tradition (London: Frances Boutle Publishers, 2002)

Hampton, Thomas, Music Manuscript Book (Dances for Violin) (Dellow Personal Collection, c1870)

Kuntz, Andrew, and Valerio Pelliccioni, Traditional Tune Archive (2017) <http://tunearch.org> [Accessed 24 April 2020]

Menteith, Charles, and Paul Burgess, The Coleford Jig Traditional Tunes from Gloucestershire, 4th edn (Cheltenham, Gloucestershire: 2014)

Offord, John, John of the Green The Cheshire Way (Green Man Music, 2017)

Seattle, Matt, The Great Northern Tune Book : William Vickers' Collection of Dance Tunes Ad 1770 (London: English Folk Dance & Song Society, 2008)