Dave Barkla
From Australian Traditional Music People
Jump to navigationJump to searchDave Barkla (1924-), Castlemaine, Victoria, plays guitar and accordion, and provided details of some of the Australian tunes in this archive.
The National Library of Australia holds aural recordings of interviews conducted with Dave Barkla. He was interviewed by:
- John Meredith in January 1986 [1]. Barkla speaks of the local Italian community, their background, cooking and musician Cling Gervasoni. Barkla and an unknown male speak of the tunes and play accordion in between each track.
- Peter Ellis & Rob Willis, in May 1994 [2], Also available online [3] Barkla talks mostly about the guitar, the accordion and old time dance music, as well as playing some music on the guitar and accordion. The conversation includes: how he started playing accordion with Harry McQueen; a steel guitar made in 1928 by Len Cowling; how Cowling made other guitars, including one from stirling silver, and also how he made piano rolls; how Cowling played the Slide Steel at dances; bars and making a bar out of a harvest part; tuning guitars, minor chords, 7th chords, damping behind the bar, tremolo, problems with strings; early amplifiers; tunes suited for the guitar; the typical programme for a dance and conditions for musicians; button accordion music. Barkla speaks about Harry McQueen and the dances done at the time; the Maxina; the body of a guitar made out of a mortuary slab; wood turning and other general topics. Songs played on the guitar and accordion include:God save the Queen, in waltz time; Pretty white lilies; Springtime in the Rockies; Hi ho the merrio, rakes of mallow; Grandfather's clock; Life on the ocean wave; Maxina; A Gordon for me; Humours of Donnybrook; Lily Laguna; Jervosonni; Labella fem; Scotch polka; Bluebell polka; and Cooper's hornpipe.
