Bonaparte's Retreat

I have been playing around with cross-tuning my fiddle to different alternate tunings.

I like the way Bonaparte's Retreat sounds in GDGD tuning. I have gathered pieces of this tune and inspiration from the W.H. Stepp (Alan Lomax) recording of Bonaparte's Retreat, Jay Ungar's Harvest Home recording, as well as the bow work of Jean Carignan and Clark Kessinger.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• clark
• kessinger
• oldtime
• fiddle
• jean
• carignan
• stepp
• lomax
• crosstune
• vi
• wickam
• jay
• ungar
• traditional

[fiddler1861]

Bonaparte's March is the proper name, the Retreat is a similar but different tune.

[vithefiddler]

@fiddler1861 W.H. Stepp called it Bonaparte's Retreat in his 1937 (Allan Lomax) recording in the library congress. Do you have an earlier recording or transcription that calls it Bonaparte's March?

[ivanrorick]

Really nice version man! I love how everyone plays Bonaparte's Retreat totally different.

[vithefiddler]

@ivanrorick Thanks Ivan. I did this version when I played it in GDGD tuning, but now I usually play it DDAD.

[pommelafleche]

Question: I really love this tune, practicing it on clawhammer banjo. However there are other clips with the same title but the melody is - to my ears - completely different ... are there several tunes with this title or are there just extreme variations of the same ?

[vithefiddler]

@pommelafleche Variations of the same tune. There is a 3rd verse that is added in the country variant of this song.

[NancyMbWpg]

Very good fiddling --enjoyed this !

[JupiterIV]

@vithefiddler Two questions:

I. Did you ever make the connection between this little number, and Copland's Rodeo?

II. Would you happen to know where I can get a PDF of the sheet music?

[sinrboy]

@vithefiddler I agree this is Bonaparte's Retreat 100%, and any true fiddler would know that!

[ivanrorick]

@vithefiddler Actually I've heard that too - that this version is "March", and the others are "Retreat". Stepp did call it "Retreat" as you pointed out. It's obviously the same melody though, just played a bit differently. "Bonaparte's March" is also an alternate title for "Bonaparte Crossing the Rhine".

Confusing!

[MrApples6]

very nice playing.