For this issue of The Broadside., we've transcribed a couple of tunes by mandolin wizard Dave Panting. Dave is a former member of the influential bands Figgy Duff and Rawlin's Cross, and has been a fixture on the traditional music scene in Newfoundland for decades. Dave is well known as a wonderful composer of tunes, having composed dozens of different types including jigs, reels and waltzes. The two reels below (The Gypsy and The Barrens) were written by Dave some time ago. While we have not commonly heard The Barrens at sessions, The Gypsy is definitely well played by many musicians, both locally and internationally. In fact, Stan Pickett found it recorded on a CD by Eileen Ivers and John Whelan, credited to "the great Newfoundland musician, Dave Panting."
We did have a third tune for the article this month supplied by Dan Rubin at the Folk Festival in August past; however, we seem to have misplaced it among the many bits of paper in the house! We'll turn the place upside down to have it ready for the next issue of the newsletter. Sorry Dan!
In the meantime, we hope you enjoy Dave's tunes. If you have suggestions for future tunes or songs for this column, please let us know!
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