A Scots fiddle collection of 50 melodies in unique settings.
Including unpublished material from J. Scott Skinner, Hector MacAndrew, Patrick Shuldham Shaw and Bill Hardie himself. Introduction and appendix notes.
A wide range of composers are represented including such famous historical names as Archibald Allan, Simon Fraser, Nathaniel Gow, William Marshall and Peter Milne, to the lesser known Prof. Bannatyne, Duncan Campbell, Alexander Hardie, James Hill, Robert and John Lowe , William MacKinnon, James Porteous, Alec Sim, Alexander Troup and James Young.
The volume also embraces biographical notes and an introduction in which Bill Hardie gives a personalised account of his unique family inheritance and significant influences on his playing and musical development. Notes on the music conclude the volume with information on source collections, musical insights published in 1986.
The music is grouped together according to key, and within this framework the tunes are organised into sets suitable for performance purposes. This collection embraces dance and slow strathspeys, reels, pastorals, hornpipes, marches and slow airs: the music is fully bowed, and through Bill Hardies's characterful settings, we have the links with the family tradition, inherited here from Charles Hardie and William Hardie Jnr, togetrher with the wider notheast influences of Skinner, James F Dickie and J Murdoch Henderson
The Music:
G MAJOR: Strichen House / The Morpeth Rant * The Laird O'Mackintosh / Catterburn.
D MAJOR: Cluny Castle / The Smith's A Gallant Fireman / Largo's Fairy Dance * The Surgeon's Triumph / Bonnie Annie Anderson / Donald Stewart The Piper * The Wind On The Heath / Harvest Home * Dunottar Castle / Stirling Castle / Rachel Rae * Lieut. Murray's Welcome To The 79th / Belladrum House / Pretty Peggy.
A MAJOR: Auchencruive's Welcome / The Miller O' Drone / The Mason's Apron * Madam Frederick / Lady Madelina Sinclair / The Stewart Rant * Fairbairn's / Prince Albert's Strathspey / William J Hardie * The 74th Farewell To Edinburgh / South Of The Grampians / The Marquis Of Huntly's Reel.
C MAJOR: Miss Graham Of Inchbrakie / Orange And Blue / The Wandering Tinker.
F MAJOR: The Maiden By The Silver Dee / Lady Charlotte Bruce's Favourite.
Bb MAJOR: Mrs James Christie / Arthur Seat / The High Level Hornpipe * Miss Austin / Cease Your Funning * John Hardie's Strathspey / The Fiddler Of Ferryhill.
Eb MAJOR: Mr Beveridge / The Pirates' Hornpipe * There's Nae Luck Aboot The Hoose / Alastair Hardie * Castles In The Air / The Dean Brig Reel * The Beauty Of The North / The Marquis Of Waterford's Hornpipe.
