Scottish Tunes for Two Fiddles
Scottish Tunes for Two Fiddles is a small collection of tunes arranged for two violins, with short historical notes, that I put together for my fiddle class at a local senior center. I originally called it "A Year's Worth of Tunes" because I gave it to my students before I departed for a year to go to graduate school at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland. They kept meeting every week during my absence, thanks to the gentle leadership of a good friend, and they learned all the tunes in the book. The picture to the left is part of our class after a Christmas concert. Click on the underscored titles below to download samples.
Contents:
Marches
Campbell's Farewell to Red Castle
Scotland the Brave
Jigs
The Sailor's Wife
The Stool of Repentance
Reels
Reel of Tullochgorum (Jamie Allen)
My Love Is But a Lassie Yet
Highland Donald
Far from Home
Willafjord
Hornpipes
Boys of Blue Hill (Beaux of Oak Hill)
The Cuckoo's Nest (Jacky Tar)
Strathspey
The Banks of Spey
Air
Taladh Chriosta (Christ Child's Lullaby)
The jigs, reels, and hornpipes are arranged in sets at the end of the book. (Download a sample page.)
Airs and Dances
This collection of one hundred Scottish strathspeys will appeal to the classically-trained violinist or musician, intermediate to advanced, who would like to learn something about the type of music unique to Scotland--the strathspey. It will also appeal to Scottish dance musicians who would like to know a little about the history of some of the tunes and their composers. The collection of tunes encompasses compositions from the early 18th to the late 19th centuries.
Each of the strathspeys is recorded by Mara Shea and the audio files are accessible online on the Mel Bay website for listening. Chords are provided by Julie Gorka. Sketches and illustrations are by Lisa McDonald.
Click on the circular image of the book to go to the Mel Bay website, where you can see samples of pages, the book contents, and order either a printed copy of the book or an e-book.
