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September 2012
Free Flatpicking Lesson
from
Flatpicking
Guitar Magazine
"Hangman's Reel"
Arranged for FGM by Mickey Abraham
Hello and welcome once again to
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine’s free lesson potion of our monthly
newsletter. I’d like to thank those of you who have taken the time to
e-mail me positive feedback on my FGM e-lesson tabs. It’s great to know
that you guys are finding these arrangements playable and useful. For
this month’s lesson I’d like to share with you an intriguing four part
fiddle tune called “Hangman’s Reel.” “Hangman’s Reel” is a tune that
stems from the old-time fiddling tradition and has enjoyed a recent
resurgence in popularity, largely due to flatpicking legend Bryan Sutton
recording it on his 2003 album Bluegrass Guitar.
The
form of Hangman’s Reel is AABBCDD. Some of the sections are eight
measures long while others are only four measures long. “Hangman’s”
unique form separates it from many other traditional fiddle tunes. It
has a well thought out form that seems to build momentum as it goes
along. The A section begins with a cool fiddle-esque theme that is
reminiscent of standard tunes like “Big Sciota.” The B section then
enters into a shorter 4 measure section that is based on the call and
response nature of the I and V chords. Next, the C section introduces a
lot of tension as it goes to the V chord. The V chord is held
throughout the C section, building tension until it is all resolved to
the I chord when the tune surges into the final D section. This last
section has a lot of quick I, IV, V chord changes that function as the
tune’s grand finale. Click on the lesson mp3 to hear the tune’s melody
and form in action.
This
lesson arrangement is perfect for both the intermediate player who
wants to learn the tune’s basic melody and the beginner who is looking
for a worthy challenge. My goal with this arrangement was to really
bring out the tune’s melody while staying true to the flatpicking
tradition. If you listen close and pay attention to the lines you will
notice where I have inserted bluegrass fills, classic G runs, and
‘floating licks’ in place of original fiddle melody -- I mean, this is flatpicking guitar magazine, right!
I
hope you enjoy adding “Hangman’s Reel” to your list of flatpicking
tunes. Should you have any questions or comments on this e-lesson or
any hip ideas for tunes you’d like to see featured hear in the future
just drop me a line at [email protected]..
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