In an earlier post I talked about how you can add ringtones to your iPhone. Today I discovered while working on creating ringtones for my newest song, Angeline the Baker, that somewhere along the line, probably in iTunes 12, Apple removed the ability to manage ringtones easily in iTunes. There is no more Ringtones or Tones option or icon available in iTunes. Looks like a control-freak issue on Apple’s part. As you can see in the screen shot below of iTunes 12.7.x, the “tone” options and icon have vanished.
However, all is not lost. I did a little research on the issue and I discovered that it is still possible to put custom ringtones on your iPhone, you just have to do it manually. To put ringtones on your iPhone it’s a matter of dragging and dropping the ringtone file from your computer onto your iPhone while it is connected to iTunes. If you connect your phone to iTunes (connect it via the lightning cable) and click on the iPhone icon you will see a list like this. And if you have existing tones on the phone there will still be a Tones icon.
To add new custom ringtones to your iPhone you must first select the option “Manually manage music and videos”. Once you have selected this, click on the Tones icon and simply drag and drop your ringtones onto your phone. They should appear in the tones list on your phone immediately.
I have a book called “The Fiddler’s Fakebook” left over from my aborted attempt at learning to play the violin/fiddle. I never got rid of the book because I love a lot of the music in there and find it enjoyable to play on the guitar.
My recording of “Angeline the Baker” is an arrangement I created of an old time fiddle tune based on a song called Angelina Baker written by Stephen Foster for the Christy Minstrels, and published in 1850. The original laments the loss of a woman slave, sent away by her owner. The melody of the fiddle tune, Angeline the Baker differs from the Stephen Foster version.
In my arrangement and instrumentation in this recording I spiced it up and added a bit of country flavor! See my music page to buy a copy of Angeline the Baker.
According to Wikipedia, Lyle Lofgren, writing for Inside Bluegrass, publication of the Minnesota Bluegrass and Old-Time Music Association, “Foster published Angelina Baker in 1850, and it was featured on stage by the original Christy Minstrels.” The melody and lyrics to the original Angelina Baker are:
Angeline the baker lives in our village green,
The way I always loved her beats all you ever seen.
Chorus
Angeline the baker, her age is forty-three,
I bought her candy by the peck, and she won’t marry me.
Chorus
Her father is the miller, they call him Uncle Sam.
I never will forget her, unless I take a dram.
Chorus
Angeline is handsome, Angeline is tall,
They say she sprained her ankle a-dancing at the ball.
Chorus
She can’t do hard work because she is not stout,
She bakes her biscuits every day, and pours the coffee out.
Chorus
I’ll never marry no other girl, no matter where I go.
I said I’d marry Angeline just twenty years ago.
Chorus
The last time I saw her was at the county fair.
Her father run me almost home and told me to stay there.
Chorus
But then, making the history of this tune even more interesting is this comment that was posted on Mudcat.org:
There is a recording of “Angeline the Baker” on the Folk-Legacy CD, “The New Golden Ring: Five Days Singing.” Lyrics are the same as what’s in the Digital Tradition database. Here’s what the CD notes say:
This is an old Eck Dunford tune with possible Negro origins. Frank George, fiddler from West Virginia, calls it “Angeline” and gives it Scottish overtones. In some parts of West Virginia it is called “Angeline Baker,” thus causing some friction between fiddlers when it is played. The tune was played only as an instrumental; the words are a comparatively recent addition. There is a Stephen Foster song called “Angelina Baker,” and the tune may have some derivision from that, or perhaps it’s the other way around. (notes by Sara Grey)
My wife and I raised a child with special needs and autism and have over 20 years of experience with issues from infancy to adulthood. If you have a child with autism I’d love to hear from you to share your stories and share our lessons learned.
This is lesson DB-19 How to Rosin New Bow Hair, and is a continuation of my journal of things I have learned as an adult double bass student. See the video for a few pointers.
Watch The Video Lesson
Here is what I know about how to rosin a bow. First of all, I use Kolstein “Ultra Bass Rosin”, soft grade. I have tried several other types of rosin, and so far Kolstein is my favorite. I comes in a nice silicone case inside the outer cardboard case which keeps it fresh. I have my rosin for over a year and I haven’t noticed any degradation yet. Before you rosin your bow, if the rosin is new, you can rough up the surface first with some sandpaper.
I just got my bass bow re-haired. It is a Brazilian Pernambuco wood bow that I purchased from my bass teacher and I like it a lot. It is definitely better than the beginner bow that came with my bass! I think it is at least 20 years old, but it is in excellent shape.
Before you start to rosin your bow, first tighten the nut on the bow to about the tension you use when you play. Don’t over tighten it. Also be careful to not put your fingers or hands on the bow hair since the oil from your skin will get on the hair. All you want on the hair is rosin.
Now, hold the bow with the hair side up and put your thumb over the metal piece on the frog where the hair attaches. That will prevent the rosin cake from getting cracked when you apply the rosin.
Begin apply the rosin to the bow hair in short strokes about 3 inches long. I work one area at a time until I can feel the rosin begin to stick. I also work side to side to be sure the whole surface of the hair gets covered with rosin. Once the first area feels thoroughly covered, move on to the next 3 inch section and repeat the process. You might be able to see the rosin on the hair, but I can’t. I just go by feel. Once you are done with each section, go over the whole bow with rosin a few times. If you pull the rosin slowly from frog to the tip and feel some spots where it feels slippery, add some more rosin to those spots.
If you play your instrument and the bow seems to just slide over the strings and/or not give you much sound, you need more rosin. If on the other hand you see all kind of rosin dust falling off onto your instrument that means you have way too much rosin on the hair. If you have too much rosin, you can try wiping the hair down with a clean cloth. Again, don’t use your bare hands on the hair.
Don’t forget to loosen the nut on your bow after you are done playing to take the tension off the hair and protect your bow from damage.
Let me know if you have any questions or comments!
