Scottish Fiddle Music in the 18th Century: A Musical Collection and Historical Study

Scottish Fiddle Music in the 18th Century - A Musical Collection and Historical Study by David Johnson: When it first appeared in 1984, "Scottish Fiddle Music in the Eighteenth Century" was a trail-blazing book, exploring 100 years of completely unknown fiddle music leading up to the Perthshire maestro Niel Gow. An invaluable collection and historical survey of one hundred years of Scots fiddle music,  the collection includes edited texts of 90 pieces of music and features the composers William McGibbon, James Oswald, Daniel Dow, Robert Mackintosh and Niel and Nathaniel Gow. This is a scholarly book of the best kind by a man who is both an authority and a great enthusiast. It explores the rich world of Scots fiddle music in the 18th. century and the crossover between native tradition, fiddle composers, the drawing room and the influence of continental models. There are extensive and very interesting notes on the background of the tunes and performing styles, but the glory of the book is in the tunes themselves - wonderful airs like 'The Collier's Daughter', drawing room pieces like 'Rory Dall's Port' (the basis for Burns's 'Ae Fond Kiss'), the amazing 'Black Jock', pibrochs, minuets, reels, hornpipes, strathspeys and jigs. For anyone interested in fiddle music whether player or scholar, this book is a beauty.

Paperback: 257 Pages