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The Snows they Melt the Soonest


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Description
A pared-down folk song this time - just the voice over a Mac-generated drone, and a light dusting of flute.

This is a traditional song from the north of England.
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Song Stats
Hits: 3766
Comments: 47
Fans: 18
Plays: 846
Downloads: 169
Votes: 31
Uploaded: Dec 02, 2004 - 06:35:45 PM
Last Updated: Dec 02, 2004 - 04:35:40 PM Last Played: Nov 22, 2009 - 06:13:50 PM
Song License
Creative Commons License:
Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike

Creative Commons

Song Actions
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Hardware:
Mac G5, Peavey microphone, flute (yes, a real one)
Software:
GarageBand
Comments
oldlibmike said 1821 days ago (December 2nd, 2004)
Minimalist!
This is refreshing - almost a capella. Definately features
the voice more and that is great for this piece. Very
soothing.
Check out my latest song called Lama du jour
Rebsie said 1821 days ago (December 3rd, 2004)
Minimalist!
Glad you like it. I didn't particularly plan to make it this sparse - I did the
vocal with the intention of putting some music with it, but when I
played it back I felt it didn't need anything added to it.

Rebsie
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
Peter Greenstone said 1821 days ago (December 3rd, 2004)
beautiful
You sing beautifully. My only complaint is the loud line
hiss, particularly the way that it abruptly cuts in and out,
calling attention to itself. I assume it comes from the mic.
If it's not possible to eliminate the hiss entirely then it's
better to keep it there constant the whole time by not
cutting out any of the spaces on the vocal track.
Check out my latest song called From Nothing
Rebsie said 1821 days ago (December 3rd, 2004)
beautiful
You're absolutely right. The hiss didn't sound too bad in GarageBand, but
when I made it into an mp3 it seemed a lot worse. I know next to
nothing about technical stuff but I'm assuming the problem came from
the mic and the effects I applied to it. You're also right about it being
worse when it drops in and out. I'll try to do something about it next
time I record a minimalist song!

Rebsie
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
ChrisSly said 1821 days ago (December 3rd, 2004)
beautiful
You can try using the Reduce "S" preset equalization. That should help
minimize the hiss without impacting the quality of your vocals too much.

---
sometimes more feet than shoes.
Check out my latest song called La Valse Final Waltz
Rebsie said 1817 days ago (December 6th, 2004)
beautiful
Thanks Chris, that's just the sort of tip I need. GB may be easy to use,
but learning to get the best out of it is another matter.

Rebsie
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
said 1821 days ago (December 3rd, 2004)
Very Well Done
I look forward to hearing more. I think I'll be taking my
Fairport Convention to work today now.
Rebsie said 1821 days ago (December 3rd, 2004)
Very Well Done
Thanks, Mungo. I'm very glad you like my songs!
Rebsie
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
Suzanne said 1821 days ago (December 3rd, 2004)
just woman and her life
something stunning about such a tune sung so simply, just you and the lamenting melody all lifted along by the story, the memory, the wind. your light touch of flute is wonderful, could have used more. would have been better to keep the hiss throughout instead of cutting in and out, if it has to be there. very nice, like Loreen McKinnitt. lovely photo too.
Check out my latest song called Rock The Baby With Voodoo (w/Tobin)
Rebsie said 1817 days ago (December 6th, 2004)
just woman and her life
What a stream of compliments, thank you Suzanne. It's a very powerful
song, this one, and you just have to take a big lungful of air and see
where it takes you. I know I've got it right when I come over dizzy
afterwards from oxygen starvation!

Rebsie
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
cjorgensen said 1820 days ago (December 3rd, 2004)
Fun stuff
You should post more songs. Two isn't enough.
Check out my latest song called Gardens
Rebsie said 1817 days ago (December 6th, 2004)
Fun stuff
I'm actively working on that, I promise!

Rebsie
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
Epileptic Gibbon said 1820 days ago (December 3rd, 2004)
What a voice!
Ah, you have a lovely voice! I think the miminal use of
extra instruments is just right for this track. Any
more could really have made the whole thing feel
cluttered and claustrophobic when what this track
needs is space to breathe and exist. The flute is great
and is used to just the right degree, methinks. We all
know the production could be better but if you just
put that from your mind you end with a fantastic
aural experience. More! More!
Check out my latest song called Fiddler Off the Roof w/Komrade K & Caroline
Rebsie said 1817 days ago (December 6th, 2004)
What a voice!
Well, thank you. It's lovely to have so many nice comments. I do think
this song sounds best when it's kept simple. It would have been difficult
to fit anything else to it anyway because the timing is all over the place.

Rebsie
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
country john said 1818 days ago (December 5th, 2004)
nice one . . .
again . . . brilliant !
there's a lovely peacefull nature to this work of yours . . .
i'm gonna download these . . .
get 'em on my 'pod . . .
and listen to them out in the world.

see if they can help me in my quest to
float above that madding crowd

safe




Check out my latest song called atom bomb
Rebsie said 1817 days ago (December 6th, 2004)
nice one . . .
Oh goody, another download. Thanks very much for dropping in.

Happy floating . . .

Rebsie
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
lomarc said 1818 days ago (December 5th, 2004)
love it
Absolutelly beautifull song. Your voice is able to transport
me where only imagination can arrive.
Check out my latest song called Switch
Rebsie said 1817 days ago (December 6th, 2004)
love it
Very nice of you to say so, thank you.

Rebsie
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
Nolan said 1818 days ago (December 6th, 2004)
Something different
Good on you for submitting this song. It's so easy to add
instruments and loops to GarageBand songs for the sake
of it. You've managed to resist it and rely on your lovely
voice. Very nice, Rebsie. Like some of the others have
said: I can't wait to hear more.
Check out my latest song called Fine
Rebsie said 1817 days ago (December 6th, 2004)
Something different
That's very nice of you, thank you so much. I'm glad you like the minimal
arrangement. The idea was to make the listener focus on the voice
without any distractions.

Rebsie
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
ka-klick said 1817 days ago (December 6th, 2004)
More please
Really love your voice, glad you chose not to clutter this
up with much else. As to the noise floor, that's a toughie,
now that everything's been recorded, but it's a good idea
to try hard to watch your recording levels closely and get
rid of as much hiss as you can at the input stages when
you're going to be using that much reverb and echo, since
they will tend to accentuate it. Some of the EQ settings
mentioned elsewhere here may help. Another thing to
watch out for (depending on what you input with) is
sometimes (and I still don't know why) the input can get
set to 8 bit mono - check in "Audio MIDI Setup" (in
Applications/Utilities"). If it is it'll sound like that, with a
lot of added hiss and crunchyness. - Just something to
watch out for. As others have said - please post more!
Check out my latest song called Big Bad World - Live 1-16-2009 plus - MJRF
Rebsie said 1784 days ago (January 8th, 2005)
More please
Many thanks indeed for the tips and the encouragement. I always seem
to have trouble with line hiss, especially when there aren't many other
instruments to drown it out. I have a very small voice so I usually have to
put the input levels as high as possible, and that may be part of the
problem.
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
webbwork said 1816 days ago (December 7th, 2004)
Beautiful
Great old song, lovely voice. Thanks
Check out my latest song called Hangin' With MoneyMark
Rebsie said 1784 days ago (January 8th, 2005)
Beautiful
Thank you!
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
Mr. EI Oval said 1816 days ago (December 7th, 2004)
Wish I could vote on this!
This is excellent. It has the feel of an Irish Air. I think thats
the right description.

Your voice is wonderful. Keep it up and share some more
of these.

Downloading and iPodding this!


Check out my latest song called Dance under the Clocktower
Rebsie said 1784 days ago (January 8th, 2005)
Wish I could vote on this!
Thank you, a download is always a great compliment. I know what you
mean about Irish Airs, there's a lot of similarities between English and
Irish folk songs because they use the same type of key (old fashioned
ones which aren't used much in other styles of music).
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
Bazar said 1813 days ago (December 10th, 2004)
Beautifull voice!
I love your voice in here! :)
Check out my latest song called Lundi Monday
Rebsie said 1784 days ago (January 8th, 2005)
Beautifull voice!
Thank you. It means a lot to me to have these lovely comments.
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
Iseae said 1786 days ago (January 6th, 2005)
Cheers
Love the song! very lorena macennit esque (no, I can't
spell, and no, I don't care) Beautiful. Great mood set,
though I would have enjoyed a little more instrumentation
as the song progressed, maybe some drums or what not.
You might try dropping the gain on your mic (not sure of
your setup so I don't know how that might be done) to
lessen your line noise.
Check out my latest song called Vickys Song
Rebsie said 1784 days ago (January 8th, 2005)
Cheers
I'm using a half decent (but not brilliant) microphone through an iMic,
which is not an ideal setup. If I knew which of these was causing the
most hiss I might be prepared to upgrade. But it doesn't help that I have
to keep the input gain very high because my voice is very, very quiet! I'm
not sure if there's any solution to that (other than learning to sing
louder).
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
Mystified said 1786 days ago (January 7th, 2005)
Echoing....
...all the nice things that have been said, above. Lovely
voice, so expressive and so perfect for the folk songs you
are singing and want to sing.
I like the 'minimalist' approach for this song, myself, and
as far as mic hiss is concerned--I don't feel so alone now
in the same challenge!
Seriously, though. Keep singing and posting. Looking
forward to hearing more from you!
Check out my latest song called For the Beauty of the Earth
Rebsie said 1784 days ago (January 8th, 2005)
Echoing....
Thanks for those lovely remarks. Looks like we have the makings of a
Line Hiss Self-Help Group.
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
Joanna said 1766 days ago (January 27th, 2005)
Gorgeous!
Absolutely lovely vocals and a stellar performance. I don't
care about line hiss, so I'm gong to forego the
complaining about that.

I, too, sang a folk song and went even more minimal than
you -- I did it a capella. So to me, your musical bed
sounded darn good. The flute was an especially nice
touch.

Now I must go listen to the rest of your songs.
Check out my latest song called Nellie G.
Rebsie said 1756 days ago (February 6th, 2005)
Gorgeous!
Thanks Joanna, I appreciate your comments. I've listened to your a
cappella song and it's excellent. I love singing a cappella but had been
afraid to post any on MacJams in case people didn't like them ... perhaps
I'll upload one and see what happens!
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
legato said 1738 days ago (February 23rd, 2005)
your voice soars higher than mountains
What a great voice with such little accompanyment. My
mind flows with such imagery I can't even begin to
describe them. Mountains, birds that soar, ice and snow,
wind and most of all you on the hillside with flowing white
robes singing...

Awesome thank you.
Check out my latest song called The Hour - Knossos (Live Practice)
Rebsie said 1738 days ago (February 23rd, 2005)
your voice soars higher than mountains
Thank you. I'm really glad it takes you somewhere and fires up your
imagination.
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
Stun Nutz said 1709 days ago (March 24th, 2005)
simple beauty
nicely done... sounds like enya, but more of the real
deal... there is much beauty in it's simplicity.
Check out my latest song called Gossamer dissected
Rebsie said 1556 days ago (August 24th, 2005)
simple beauty
Thank you!
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
dwwave said 1580 days ago (July 31st, 2005)
snow and drone
Enjoy the drones

very good voice

excellent!
Check out my latest song called One Half Person
Rebsie said 1556 days ago (August 24th, 2005)
snow and drone
Nice of you to say so, thanks!
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
Dwayne Plain said 1529 days ago (September 21st, 2005)
Simple & spiffy
You probably don't remember but what are your "drone"
settings? I like your drone quite a bit. The flute is a good
touch as well. I like how little you've done yet it's all
where it should be.



Check out my latest song called Billy Goats Gruff (and rough!)
paddler said 1000 days ago (March 3rd, 2007)
It..
took me about half an hour to scroll to the bottom of this list of compliments! So heres another one! - loved it.I'm intrigued - where do you find the lyrics? I used to be fascinated by books of old sea shanties from Portsmouth - there were just hundreds that you never hear sung.Your'e almost inspiring me to re-vive some of them! Have you ever heard 'Corn Riggs and Barley Riggs' - from the old version of the Wickerman? - I think that was an anonomous poem originally - this country is full of lost and hidden folk music and poetry!
Check out my latest song called Tiger Flame (Halloween Challenge)
Rebsie said 999 days ago (March 4th, 2007)
Thanks!
This is such an old recording and was done on my really crappy previous recording set-up, hence the line hiss ... I love the song though and I've recently been thinking about re-recording it.

Where do I find these old songs? The internet and other people's recordings, mostly. Sometimes I nick stuff from obvious sources like Steeleye Span or Anne Briggs, and I also trawl through wobbly old "field" recordings of old geezers yodelling in pubs. This song is relatively well known on the folk scene but I try to find lesser known songs where possible ... there's some fantastic stuff out there, as you say. And no I don't know the Corn Rigs song ...
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
Peter Bauckham said 933 days ago (May 10th, 2007)
Love it
This is wonderful Rebsie - I love the arrangement - it reminds me of June Tabor (I'm a big fan of her minimalist stuff too). I've only listened through my TV so far, so can't really comment the recording's sound quality, but in any case the song shines through. Another fav. Peter
Check out my latest song called All The Same (CBGB) (Last Chance Challenge)
elfdaughter said 679 days ago (January 18th, 2008)
Simply stunning..
I've just been going through some of your older works, Rebsie, and I love thins one. It's really beautiful, and one I've not heard before. (Strange, since it comes from my area!!)
Check out my latest song called The Journey Begins Final Version
LunaTrick said 185 days ago (May 27th, 2009)
Stands so well...
.. on its own...
Check out my latest song called Luna Gypsy Heart II (Eternal Firelight)
Rebsie said 185 days ago (May 27th, 2009)
Still, I'm very glad
that someone did a better version of it for me.
Check out my latest song called Amongst The Colours (w/ Luna Trick)
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Name: Rebsie Fairholm
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NEW ALBUM "SEVEN STAR GREEN" NOW AVAILABLE! I'm a singer and musician (12-string guitar, celtic harp, etc) rooted in British traditional music and veering off into the psychedelic, dark, experimental and unusual. I'm very blessed to have... [see more]

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