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Balance the Straw

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Alternative title: Balancy Straw

Source: R. Kenworthy Schofield, (1934) JEFDSS Vol 1 (3) p150 "Morris Dances from Bledington". C. Sharp's and RK Schofield's mss. at VWML
Place Collected: Bould
Date collected: 1909, 1923, 1937
Other Numbers: CJS 2427

Cecil Sharp noted the resemblance of the tune to Lads a Bunchum from Adderbury. I would add The 29th of May from Headington.

Charles Benfield was the main informant for the Bledington tunes, most of which were noted by Cecil Sharp at Benfield’s house at Bould (Oxon), a hamlet about a mile from Bledington (Glos).

In 1923 R. Kenworthy-Schofield visited Bledington with the Travelling Morrice and noted more tunes from Charles Benfield. Some of them were published in JEFDSS Vol 1, no. 3 p 147-151, Dec 1934. RKS further collected tunes from George Hathaway in Aug. 1937. These tunes, plus some collected earlier, mainly from C Benfield can be examined at the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library, KWS/2/5 Bledington and Vol1/2.

CJ Sharp wrote, 2 September 1909
“Ch. Benfield was fiddler to the Bledington Morris till it lapsed about 15-20 years ago. He afterwards taught some younger men but could not induce them to continue. He is an agricultural labourer and a keen morris dancer. His fiddle was bridge-less and bow-less so he half hummed and half whistled this & following 2 tunes.” However, when the Travelling Morrice visited him in the 1920’s, he played his fiddle.