Old-Time TOTW
Old-Time TOTW #325 is Flying Indian found in Virginia Reels by George P. Knauff, published in 1839.
George Phillip Knauff (28 September 1800—13 August 1855) was born in Marburg, Hessen-Nassau, Germany. He was the son of Johann Friedrich Knauf (1746-1826) and Anna Martha Zecher (1760-1845). Knauff came to Baltimore, MD, in 1819. He married Anna Salinda Crawford Bondurant (1812-1836) on 21 November 1832 in Farmville, Prince Edward County, VA. (source: Ancestry and public documents)
Knauff incorporated his business, The Farmville Music and Fancy Store,” into his home. An 1834 ad mentions he was selling instruments, music, strings, as well as furniture and home furnishings. Knauff also gave piano lessons at the going rate of 75 cents per lesson. He promised to deliver any piano bought from him, free of charge, within a distance of 40 miles, and warranted to keep them in tune for a year after purchase. The success of his business didn’t last long. In 1835 financial hardships caused him to auction off his inventory. Then his house/business was ruined by fire. In 1837, Knauff advertised that he was building pianos. This, also, did not last long, and he began teaching at the Buckingham Female Collegiate Institute by 1839. He was one of five faculty members in this school. The school ended up closing, but Knauff kept a rapport with his students. He made his arrangements of Virginia reels when he taught there. More arrangements and additions were to come in the early 1850s (see the cover page of the 1851 edition at the end of this video), many of which were popularized through minstrel shows. He continued to tune pianos. Knauff appears to have left Prince Edward County around 1847 and might have moved to Dinwiddle County, VA. (above information source: Virginia Reels and the History of American Fiddling by Chris Goertzen, 2017).
The tune “Flying Indian” was likely in existence prior to the Knauff arranging it for piano. It appears in Virginia Reels in the key of A major. Chris Wig played the tune, but transposed it to D. I find the B part a bit awkward in D, but I find that part has a particularly nice groove played on the middle plane in open cross tuning (ie: cross A, cross G, cross F, cross E). I am in cross G (G,DGd) tuning in this video (the middle screen, after the introduction, is in error)
Joining me is friend Mark McNulty on guitar (Oberlin, OH).
Paul Kirk has been playing bowed string instruments since 1980 and has been teaching them privately, in classroom settings, and in workshop formats since 1988. He studied music theory, composition, music education, music history, and musicology at Cleveland State University. While at CSU, Paul played violas da gamba, krummhorns, and recorders in early music ensembles. He was a founding member of Good Company: A Vocal Ensemble and has founded many of his own bands over the years including A Hundred Thousand Welcomes Celtic Ensemble, Knives and Forks English Country Dance Ensemble, and Down the Road Old-Time String Band. He has composed over 500 folk tunes in a variety of styles.
Paul has closely studied the music from Appalachia, the history of American old-time fiddling, source fiddlers, as well as the social aspects of the music. Since July 1, 2018, he has been creating and sharing videos each Sunday through his Old-Time Tune of the Week series on YouTube. Paul puts a great focus on fiddle bowing patterns and techniques and has devised practical methods for teaching with excellent results. One of his specialties is teaching old-time fiddle to crossover students, especially those coming from a background in classical violin and other musical traditions.
Subscribe to Paul's Patreon: www.patreon.com/paulkirk
Join the Old-Time TOTW group on Facebook: / 33100. .
In 2022, Paul was designated as a master old-time fiddler and received a Traditional Arts grant from the Ohio Arts Council to work with an apprentice of his choice.
Paul taught viola, choir, music history, and assisted with drama and art for ten consecutive summers at orchestra and fine arts camps for The Music Settlement when it was known as Cleveland Music School Settlement.