Music of Northumbria
Northumbrian music is characterised by considerable influence from other regions (and vice versa), particularly southern Scotland and other parts of the north of England, as well as Irish immigrants.
For instance a simple Irish tune, 'The Chorus Jig', with three strains, appears in the Northumbrian tradition as 'Holey Ha'penny', an ornate five-strain variation set.
A Scottish strathspey, 'Struan Robertson's Rant' appears, stripped of the Scotch snap, as a smallpipe tune, 'Cuckold come out of the Amrey', a long variation set.
[7] It appears to have been replaced in the region by the eighteenth century by a variety of pipes, ranging from the conical bore, open-ended border pipes, to the cylindrically bored smallpipes; the closed-ended form with its single octave compass and closed fingering is known to have existed since the seventeenth century, and open-ended forms were also known.
In the early nineteenth century, makers such as John Dunn and Robert and James Reid added keys to the closed-ended smallpipe, extending its range to almost two octaves.
In the nineteenth century the most notable feature of the region's music was the popularity of the hornpipe in 4/4 time, and in particular the very influential playing of the publican, fiddler and composer James Hill.
Another local composer, in the later 19th century, was the fiddler and dancing master Robert Whinham, some 60 of whose compositions survive, notably the hornpipe 'Remember Me', and 'Whinham's Reel'.
[12] The Northumbrian Small Pipes Society was founded in Newcastle in 1893; although it was short-lived, only continuing until 1900, it ran a series of competitions, won by Henry Clough and Richard Mowat.
[15] Figures such as Lou Killen, The High Level Ranters and Bob Davenport brought Northumbrian folk to national and international audiences.
[16] The melody later used by Simon & Garfunkel in "Scarborough Fair/Canticle" was first sung by Mark Anderson (1874–1953), a retired lead miner from Middleton-in-Teesdale, County Durham, to Ewan MacColl in 1947.
[20] Between their demise and revival in the 1990s, the local scene continued through groups like the more traditional Doonan family, which contained some of the finest folk flute players in the region.
Distinctive local sounds were much more marked in the next generation of traditional Northumbrian folk musicians such as Ed Pickford and Jez Lowe, who have reinvigorated the local scene and artists like fiddler Nancy Kerr and piper Kathryn Tickell have gained international reputations, appearing on records with artists including Kate Rusby, Eliza Carthy and Sting.
[23] Thanks to the efforts of musicians like these in 2001 Newcastle University was the first to offer a performance-based degree programme in folk and traditional music in England.
Musicians and singers that were born and raised in the region include Sting, Bryan Ferry, Dave Stewart, Mark Knopfler, Cheryl Tweedy, Andy Taylor of Duran Duran, Jimmy Nail (Auf Wiedersehen Pet, Spender), AC/DC's Brian Johnson, Neil Tennant of Pet Shop Boys, Paddy McAloon, and Moloko's Mark Brydon.
Mákina music, a subgenre of hardcore techno originated in Spain, has thrived in North East England and Scotland from the late 1990s to current times.
Following the closures of the most prominent venues – in particular the New Monkey nightclub – its popularity has slightly faded in those areas and has been partially replaced with Scouse house.
Despite this it still retains a strong cultural legacy; regularly heard blasting from coaches when Newcastle United and Sunderland AFC play away matches.
