In 1808 in Somers, New York, Hachaliah Bailey (great name!) purchased an elephant named, Old Bet, as the main attraction of his traveling menagerie. He eventually teamed up with P.T. Barnum and the Barnum and Bailey Circus was born. I spent childhood summers and about 20 years of my “adult” life in Somers, about 45 minutes north of New York City. I’ve always been fascinated by this story and the monument to Old Bet that still stands near the Elephant Hotel in Somers.

The waltz, “Elephant Hotel,” was my attempt to emulate “ Westphalia Waltz,” which has always been one of my favorites to play for dancers. The inherent rhythm of the melody is so “danceable.” When playing “Elephant Hotel,” think about providing lift when you play the pickups leading into the first three bars in the first three lines of the A-part.

I bow this tune freely using a variety of patterns suggested by the music and the moment, so I haven’t added any in print here—have fun with that. I did add a harmony line that can be played by a second fiddle, or other instrument. All of the harmony notes are potential double stops that could be played by one fiddler, but I tend to play some, not all. Experiment and do your own thing.

In the B-part, I lift my bow leaving a “breath,” after the short F# in the third bar of lines one and five. Visualize a graceful dancing pachyderm swaying to the music and pausing mid-sway with a leg in the air—a nod to Old Bet and my old hometown.