Free Fiddle Lesson – Soldier’s Joy

This is a sample lesson for the [my] Talent Forge online music lessons program.

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Soldier’s Joy is an old-time fiddle tune dating back to at least the 1700’s. In this lesson, Champion Fiddler, Matthew Hartz, walks you through the tune. As with all of our lessons, slow and fast accompaniment tracks are included as well as slow and fast instructional audio.

Backing Track Slow: Soldier’s Joy Backing Track – Slow
Backing Track Fast: Soldier’s Joy Backing Track – Fast
Fiddle Track Slow: Soldier’s Joy Fiddle Track – Slow
Fiddle Track Fast: Soldier’s Joy Fiddle Track – Fast
Sheet Music: Soldier’s Joy – Sheet Music

Soldier’s Joy History according to Fiddler’ s Companion

SOLDIER’S JOY [1] (Lutgair An Sigeadoir/t-Saigdiura). AKA and see “French Four” [2], “I Am My Mamma’s Darlin’ Child,” “John White,” “The King’s Head,” “The King’s Hornpipe [1],” “(I) Love Somebody [1],” “Payday in the Army,”  “Rock the Cradle Lucy.” Old‑Time, Bluegrass, American, Canadian, English, Irish, Scottish; Breakdown, Scottish Measure, Hornpipe, Reel, Country Dance and Morris Dance Tune. D Major (almost all versions): G Major (Bacon, Bayard‑Simmons). Standard or ADae (Edden Hammons) tunings. AB (Athole, Bayard‑Simmons, Shaw): AABB (most versions): ABCDE (Cooke {Ex. 54}). One of, if not the most popular fiddle tune in history, widely disseminated in North America and Europe in nearly every tradition; as Bronner (1987) perhaps understatedly remarks, it has enjoyed a “vigorous” life. There is quite a bit of speculation on just what the name ‘soldier’s joy’ refers to. Proffered thoughts seem to gravitate toward money and drugs.