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    Clara Delfina spearheaded this project to look back into the music that came from past generations of families and communities in early America, including her own. What started as a simple love of the melodies and tunes in traditional music, grew into a much larger project. Mayday became something aimed at celebrating the diversity and culturally rich traditions of the past- that were so important in building resilience across communities. Mayday is a symbol of hope and community, in a time when so many people feel separated from their neighbours and forests.

    Clara Delfina- Fiddle, Vocals, Guitar
    Jake Blount- Banjo, Fiddle
    Haakon Oyen- Guitar, Harmony Vocals
    Landon George- Bass

    Notes on the Tracks:

    Road To Westfield (Gary Harrison)
    One of my favourite tunes from a favourite fiddler!! This tune is named after the road into Westfield, Indiana. This tune sort of dropped into my life, and was a love-at-first-listen. Jake and I double fiddle this one, and we were having so much fun, we almost forgot to stop playing.

    Fine Times at Our House (Edden Hammonds)
    I learnt this version of Fine Times from Claire Milner, in Colorado. I’ve always loved the ornaments in the B part in this version, and it lent itself perfectly to a stripped down banjo and fiddle tune. (While we were hard at work in the studio Haakon and Landon were dancing around outside with a broom and a jug.)

    Hop Skip Squirrel (Gene Goforth)
    This tune comes from Gene Goforth, who hailed from Eminence, Missouri. He played hop-skip squirrel, not far from where my own great-great-grandfather would have been playing fiddle in Donafin, Missouri. It’s fun to imagine old James Richmond playing this very tune all those years ago, although there is no record of his specific fiddle tunes, outside of family lore.

    In the Chicken Shed (Original with Ben McManus)
    I wrote this tune in 2017 with welsh old-time musician, Ben Mcmanus , while we were supposed to be in a last-minute rehearsal for our first gig. The tune went through a variety of names until the end of our tour when we found an amazing chicken shed- good for playing tunes in… the rest is history.

    Jawbone (Gene Goforth)
    Another lovely tune from Missouri Fiddler, Gene Goforth, this tune has seen many versions, but this one felt like a dark stormy night, which is my favourite sort of night.

    9th of January (Bob Holt)
    I learned this tune from some good Colorado friends! It was called 8th of January by Charlie Deckard but when Bob Holt picked it up, he called it the 9th of January, supposedly because the other name was too confusing. That being said, they’re similar enough that playing the 8th into the 9th is not recommended.

    Molly Bond (The New Mules)
    Like many old ballads, this is based on a true story of a man who accidentally shot his sweetheart. The song has traveled from England to all parts of the United States, having seen many different melodies and variations in lyrics. This version came from one that landed in the hands of the New Mules in Illinois.

    Young Emma (Theda York Garcia)
    This is tune is an old english tune, also known as “Lowlands Low,” “Young Emily” or “Young Edmund.” This is another tune that traveled through my family and that I heard first from my father. Although there are many versions of this song, these lyrics are slightly different than any other I’ve heard, including others that also made their way from Missouri, like this one.

    Rickett’s Hornpipe (Benton Flippen)
    This tune comes from Mt. Airy, NC fiddler, Benton Flippen. A super wonderful lively tune that made it’s way to me by the good old-fashioned internet.

    Barbara Allen (Theda York Garcia)
    There are so many versions of this old song, that has traveled around the British isles and landed all over North America. This version is one my Grandmother learnt from her mother, and a story that I always found really touching growing up. I remember, as an eight year old, getting so frustrated with Barbara Allen, when she only took any notice of Sweet William after he was dead.

    Babes in the Wood (Theda York Garcia)
    My father always used to sing me to sleep with this song, that his own mother sang to him and his sisters. Once I was old enough to realise it wasn’t just a pretty tune, but a tragic story of neglect and cruelty, I was already hooked, and somehow continued to welcome the tragic tear-jerking beauty of this little song. This ballad traveled from Missouri, to New York, and from there to South Texas, as the past few generations of my family moved across the country. My Aunts remember being small themselves and begging their mother to sing that beautiful melody… although halfway through the first verse they’d all start sobbing, and beg her to stop.

    May day (Traditional/Original)
    This song comes from a traditional English song, celebrating the first of may called “Welcome in the May.” I’ve always loved May day, superficially because it marks the return of warm weather and green trees, but also because with this new growth comes hope for a prosperous season. It’s a symbol of hope for a new beginning, in this unusually adverse time.


    Hidden: Ways of This World (3 Fiddles and One Big Bowed Fiddle)
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Jawbone 03:09
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Molly Bond 03:07
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Young Emma 04:16

about

Some tearjerking ballads and toe-tapping fiddle tunes. Between the traditional and original tracks, this celebration of community and hope is a nod to the past and a hi-five with the future.

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credits

released May 1, 2018

Clara Delfina: Fiddle, Vocals, Guitar
Haakon Oyen: Guitar, Harmony Vocals, Fiddle
Jake Blount: Banjo, Fiddle
Landon George: Bass

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Clara Delfina Fort Collins, Colorado

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