Mally’s Cotswold Morris Book Volume 1

Core Cotswold Morris Tunes for Melodeon and Folk Musicians

Mally’s Cotswold Morris Book Volume 1, edited by Dave Mallinson, contains 52 core Cotswold Morris tunes with chords, presented in keys favoured by today’s players. Designed as a practical working collection for real Morris musicians, the book focuses on the popular Cotswold traditions most commonly heard across the current Morris scene.

The tunes are clearly written in large note music in a simple but accurate form, making the collection approachable for developing players while remaining highly useful for experienced Morris musicians.

Quick Overview

This 32-page collection provides practical Cotswold Morris repertoire for musicians playing for Morris sides, folk festivals and English sessions. Particular care has been taken to indicate the rhythm and tempo changes that are so important to authentic Morris performance.

Available Formats

• Book
• Companion CD - useful for understanding Morris rhythm and tempo changes
• Why not order one of each?

What Makes This Book Different?

Very few Morris tune books are widely available, and many are difficult for newer players to approach. Dave Mallinson’s Morris collections were created to help address this problem by presenting core Morris repertoire in a clear, practical and highly playable format.

Although not specifically aimed at beginners, the books are especially useful for developing players wanting to understand how Morris tunes are actually structured and performed.

Understanding Cotswold Morris Music

Cotswold Morris music sits at the heart of English traditional dance culture and remains widely played by Morris sides, folk festival musicians and traditional dance bands throughout the UK.

Cotswold Morris music is often more complex than it first appears. Many tunes contain rhythm and tempo changes, including the distinctive “slows” sections where part of the melody is played with a different rhythmic feel or tempo.

To help musicians understand these important variations, additional terms and signs are used alongside conventional notation. When used together with the companion soundtrack, players unfamiliar with the unique character of Cotswold Morris music can quickly begin to understand how the tunes function in real dance settings.

Particularly Useful for D/G Melodeon Players

The tunes are presented in keys favoured by modern Morris musicians and sit especially well on D/G melodeon. Chord arrangements are included throughout and work effectively for both melodeon and piano accordion.

The strong rhythmic lift and pulse of Morris music makes this repertoire especially satisfying for bellows-driven instruments.

Ideal For

• D/G melodeon players
• Morris musicians
• Accordion players exploring English repertoire
• English folk session musicians
• Ceilidh and barn dance players
• Traditional dance musicians
• Players building English traditional repertoire

Book Details

• Title: Mally’s Cotswold Morris Book Volume 1
• Editor: Dave Mallinson
• Format: Book or Companion CD
• Publisher: Dave Mallinson Publications
• Pages: 32
• Contents: 52 Cotswold Morris tunes with chords
• ISBN: 978 1 899512 02 7

Contents

Building Your Morris Repertoire

Players looking to expand their English dance music repertoire may also find Mally’s Cotswold Morris Book Volume 2 useful, which continues the exploration of traditional Cotswold Morris music.

For musicians interested in other English Morris traditions, see Mally’s Northwest Morris Book, covering repertoire associated with Northwest Morris dance styles.

Explore More English Folk Music

Browse our full range of English Folk Music Books & Tune Collections for more traditional English repertoire.

You can also explore our wider collection of accordion, melodeon and folk music books here.

Why Buy from Squeezebox Marketplace?

At Squeezebox Marketplace, we specialise in melodeons, accordions and traditional folk instruments, with a strong focus on real-world traditional music. We carefully select tune books and learning resources that are genuinely useful for players involved in Morris dancing, folk festivals and traditional music performance.