Kate Barnes
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Kate Barnes | |
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 Photo by Kayla Burnett | |
| Born | 1953 (age 70–71) |
| Education | Moravian University (1975) |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1977–present |
Kate Barnes (born 1953 in Burlington, Vermont) is an American musician, composer, and publisher who specializes in English country dance. She has compiled three collections of English country dance music scores (The Barnes Book of English Country Dance Tunes Volumes I, II, and III). These collections include over 1,200 traditional and modern pieces and are considered the standard source of printed English Country Dance tunes. Barnes was given a lifetime achievement award in 2020 for her contributions to traditional music by the Country Dance and Song Society (CDSS).[1] In addition to her foundational work creating a common source of sheet music, this award also reflects her active performing career with Bare Necessities and other New England traditional dance bands.
Early life and education[edit]
Kate Barnes was born in 1953 in Burlington, Vermont, and grew up in Waltham, Massachusetts. She graduated from high school in 1971 before receiving a degree in English from Moravian University in 1975.[2]
Musical career[edit]
Kate Barnes plays piano, flute, whistles and guitar, and a variety of other instruments, according to the CDSS.[1] She dates her musical career to 1977.[2][3] Since that time she has played with two dozen named bands and any number of pickup bands. She worked extensively with Irish traditional singer Cathie Ryan as a keyboard and wind player from 2001 to 2007. She is best known for her work with the band Bare Necessities but has also appeared with The Latter-Day Lizards, Yankee Ingenuity, Les Z Boys, Kestral, Big Bandemonium, among others. She has recorded 15 CDs in the Boston Country Dance Center Series under her birth name of Peter Barnes, and is credited on 80 recordings in all. As Kate Barnes, she recorded At Rainbow's End, 14 tunes that accompany the late English choreographer Fried de Metz Herman's Choice Morsels collection.[4] The CDSS said in 2021 that Barnes averaged "over 250 events per year since 1980" and is "arguably one of New England's busiest and most sought after musicians." She is also and active ceramics artist.[5]
Awards and publications[edit]
Kate Barnes received the Country Dance and Song Society's 2020 Lifetime Contribution award "in recognition of many years of performance and teaching at CDSS programs, the international importance of her publications, her generosity of spirit when running music workshops, and her contributions to current and future communities."[1]
In addition to her recordings, Barnes's first English country dance tune collection was released by Canis Publishing in 1986 and revised in 1995. Volume II followed in 2005, and Volume III in 2019. Each book indexes the previous ones. Volume I includes "A Quick and Dirty Guide to English Dance Accompaniment Styles"; Volume II responded to a growing demand for more tunes, she said in a preface (quipping that it should have been named "The Barnes Edition of ‘Not In Barnes’ Tunes"); and Volume III responded to a "ferment of creativity" in English dance, she wrote in the preface. She also published "Interview With a Vamper," advice on accompanying American contra and square dancing on a piano. A book of tunes for couples dances, "A Little Couple-Dancemusik" was published in print in 1992 but as of 2023 was sold out. It is still available as a digital version.[6]
Additional material[edit]
- Barnes, Peter. "A Little Couple Dancemusik." Greenfield, MA, Canis Publishing, 1992.
- Barnes, Peter. "Interview with a Vamper," Greenfield, MA, Canis Publishing, 1993.
- Barnes, Peter. "The Barnes Book of English Country Dance Tunes" Vol. I, Greenfield, MA, Canis Publishing, 1995, 2009.
- Barnes, Peter. "The Barnes Book of English Country Dance Tunes" Vol. II, 2005, 2015.
- Barnes, Peter. "The Barnes Book of English Country Dance Tunes" Vol. III, 2019.
- Example: Barnes, Anna Patton and Karen Axelrod at Northern Roots 2012 festival, Brattleboro Kate Barnes, Anna Patton, and Karen Axelrod at Northern Roots 2012
- The Round Cambridge - Dance and Music Resources | The Round
- Bare Necessities: Facebook
- Latter-Day Lizards: Schedule - The Latter Day Lizards
- Country Dance and Song Society (Easthampton, MA) <Homepage>
- CDSS camp: Kate Barnes
- Jeff Kaufmann, Contra: Looking back 25 years
References[edit]
- ^ a b c Campbell, Anne (January 1, 2020). "2020: Kate Barnes". Country Dance & Song Society. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
- ^ a b "Kate Barnes". LinkedIn. Retrieved April 3, 2024.
- ^ Vallimont, Julie. "Contra Pulse Episode 9: Kate Barnes". CDSS Podcasts. Country Dance and Song Society.
- ^ St. Germain, Susan. "Fried de Metz Herman: An Obituary". Country Dancers of Westchester. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
- ^ Hamilton, Darlene; Verbil, Lindsay. "5 things: Inside the Dancing Mind of Kate Barnes". Historical Tea and Dance Society. Facebook.com via Zoom. pp. Ca. 15:18 minutes into podcast. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
- ^ "Canis Publishing". Peter Barnes. Retrieved April 4, 2024.