History and Biography

[Note: Many of the titles listed are out-of-print but most of these are available from used booksellers. Excerpts from three of these books appear on the Standing Stones website provided. Whenever known the ISBN or ASIN number has been provided for use in locating these books at used book shops or in libraries. Two recommended on-line used book sellers are Alibris http://www.alibris.com and Abebooks http://www.abebooks.com, which have listed some of these books recently. Any corrections or additions to this list would be welcomed. Please send your suggestions to ecastiglioni@cvm.tamu.edu.]

Mary Anne Alburger. Scottish Fiddlers and Their Music (1996). The Hardie Press, Edinburgh, Scotland. ISBN 0946868190. Survey of fiddle music from the 15th to 20th centuries with concentration on the Gows, James Scott Skinner, and Robert Burns songs. Provides staff notations to 116 tunes. Out-of-print. SCOTTISH FIDDLE

Robert Bruce Armstrong. The Irish and The Highland Harps (1904). David Douglas, Edinburgh, Scotland. The best technical study of the surviving instruments; is well illustrated with detailed photographs and plans. Reprinted by Irish University Press, Dublin (1969), and Praeger, New York (1970). Also available as a photocopied facsimile in two parts from Clive Morley http://www.morleyharps.com/. The Highland Harp contains a history, detailed descriptions and measurements of The Queen Mary and Lamont harps, as well as illustrations, engravings, and eight pages of traditional clarsach tunes. The book is of interest to harp makers and those interested in Celtic design. The Irish Harp documents the history of the harp in Ireland and contains detailed descriptions of old harps, notably the Trinity College Harp. There are sixteen pages of music for the Irish harp taken mainly from the Bunting Collection. SCOTTISH AND IRISH HARP HISTORY AND CONSTRUCTION

Ethel Bassin, ed. Derek Bowman. The Old Songs of Skye: Frances Tolmie and Her Circle (1977). Routledge & Kegan Paul, London, UK. ASIN 071008546X. This is an account of the life and work places Frances Tolmie (1840-1926), one of the foremost Gaelic folklore and folk song experts. A selection of the songs she collected is included. Out-of- print. BIOGRAPHY AND GAELIC MUSIC

David Buchan, editor. A Scottish Ballad Book (1973). Routledge and Kegan Paul Ltd., London, UK. ISBN 0710075669. This collection illustrates the development of the Scottish ballad tradition over centuries from the oral to modern stages. Methods of composition and transmission are explained. The relationship between ballad studies and other genres of folk life studies is explored. The book contains extensive lyrics of the ballads of Anna Brown, and an appendix of about 70 tunes in treble staff notation. Out-of-print. SCOTTISH BALLADS

Alasdair Keith Campsie. The MacCrimmon Legend: the Madness of Angus Mackay (1982). Canongate Publications, Edinburgh, Scotland (also Pelican Publishing Company). ASIN 0903937662. Offers some interesting historical speculation on the legend of the MacCrimmons of the Isle of Skye; of interest for anyone wanting to know about piping history. Out-of print. SCOTTISH PIPE HISTORY

Francis Collinson. The Bagpipe: the History of a Musical Instrument (1975). Routledge & Kegan Paul, London and Boston, MA, USA. Reprinted 1976. ISBN 0710079133. Out-of-print. SCOTTISH PIPE HISTORY

Francis Collinson. The Traditional and National Music of Scotland (1966). First published by Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd. London and Boston, MA. Reprinted in 1970 and 1978. ISBN 0710012136. Collinson was a composer and Founder Member the School of Scottish Studies at Edinburgh University. After offering a thought-provoking working definition of traditional (vs. national) Scottish music, the author analyzes a range of important topics, such as the tonal structure of traditional Scottish music (gapped scales and modes), the development of Gaelic working songs (waulking, churning, rowing, reaping, etc.), the imprint of pipe music on the subsequent structure of traditional music for fiddle, and the revival of the Scottish harp. Of particular interest is the speculative argument that piobaireachd originated with the harp and was taken over by the pipes. About 150 musical examples in staff notation are included. Out-of print. SCOTTISH MUSIC

Comunn Gaidhealach Leódhais (Lewis Gaelic Association), collecting and editing organization. Eilean Fraoich: Lewis Gaelic Songs and Melodies (1982). Acair Ltd., Isle of Lewis, Scotland. ISBN 0861520521. Expansion of the original collection published in 1938. Tunes in staff notation and Gaelic words to nearly 200 songs are given, including puirt-a-beul (mouth music) and all types of labor songs. Out-of-print. GAELIC SONG

William Dauney. Ancient Scotish Melodies, from a Manuscript of the Reign of King James VI. Subtitle: With an Introductory Enquiry Illustrative of the History of the Music of Scotland (1973). ISBN 0404527698. AMS Press, New York, USA. Originally published by the Bannatyne Club, Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1838, and reissued by the Edinburgh Press in 1893 for the Maitland Club. An early dissertation of the history of music in Scotland. Contains transcriptions from lute tabulature into staff notation of the Skene Manuscript. More than 70 melodies are included. Out-of print. EARLY SCOTTISH MUSIC

James C. Dick. The Songs of Robert Burns and Notes on Scottish Songs by Burns (1962). Folklore Associates, Hatboro, PA, USA. First published in 1903, this work is considered the most authoritative published on the songs of Robert Burns. Contains lyrics, melodies and historical notes for 361 Burns songs. This edition includes a supplement by Davidson Cook published in 1922. Out-of print. SCOTTISH SONG

Kenneth Elliott and Frederick Rimmer. A History of Scottish Music (1973). British Broadcasting Corporation, ISBN 0563121920. Out-of-print and difficult to find. Excerpts are available at http://www.standingstones.com/. SCOTTISH MUSIC

George Emmerson. Rantin' Pipe and Tremblin' String: A History of Scottish Dance Music (1971). McGill-Queen’s University Press, Montreal, Canada (J. M. Dent & Sons, UK). ISBN 0773501169. The author is a musician and dancer who traces the history of Scottish music from its earliest written records through the 20th century. The elements of traditional dance tunes, including rhythmic characteristics and tempi are carefully and fully examined. Out-of print. SCOTTISH DANCE MUSIC

Henry George Farmer. A History of Music in Scotland (1970). Reprint of London 1947 edition by Da Capo Press, New York, ISBN 0306718650. Considered one of the finest reference works for medieval Scottish music, musicians, and musical instruments. Out-of-print. Excerpts are available at http://www.standingstones.com/. SCOTTISH MUSIC

Donald A. Fergusson, general editor. From the Farthest Hebrides (1978). MacMillan, London, UK. ISBN 0333247604. Provides tunes, Gaelic words, metrical English translations, and historical notes for Gaelic songs of the Hebridean and Highland immigrants to Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. Includes about 100 songs of the sea, heroic songs of North Uist, love songs, labor songs, and others. Out-of-print. GAELIC SONG

John Glen. Early Scottish Melodies (1976). AMS Press, New York, NY, USA. ISBN 0404086497. Reprinted from the original edition published in 1900 by J. & R. Glen, Edinburgh, Scotland. This meticulously researched work by one of the most respected 19th century authorities traces the origins of hundreds of Scottish airs and tunes, focusing on those in The Scots Musical Museum. In many cases conflicting claims by the English or Irish are debunked. The book also contains a brief analysis of the compositional elements of a Scottish, vs. and English or Irish melody. The author’s tone is sometimes intentionally inflammatory, which makes the volume all the more interesting. Out-of-print. SCOTTISH MUSIC

John Glen, compiler, Duncan Dyker, editor. The Glen Collection of Scottish Dance Music: the Music and Text of the 1891 and 1895 Publications (2001). BIOGRAPHIES [see citation in Sources of Historical and Traditional Tunes to Arrange Yourself]

David Johnson. Music and Society in Lowland Scotland in the Eighteenth Century. Oxford University Press, London, UK. ASIN 0193164019. Out-of-print and difficult to find. Excerpts are available at http://www.standingstones.com/. SCOTTISH MUSIC AND HISTORY

William Matheson. The Blind Harper (an Clarsair Dall): the songs of Roderick Morison [Ruaidhri Mac Mhuirich] and His Music (1970). Scottish Gaelic Texts Society, Edinburgh, Scotland. ASIN 0903586002. Scottish Academic Press, ISBN 070730007X. Life and work of the Blind Harper of Skye, (ca1656-ca1714); the only known example in Gaelic Scotland of the Minstrel. Contains his songs in Gaelic and in English translation, some airs and instrumental music, and biographical notes and anecdotes. BIOGRAPHY

MacNeill, Seumas, Piobaireachd Classical Music of the Highland Bagpipe (1976). BBC Publications. First published 1968 by the British Broadcasting Corporation. Reprinted 1976 with permission of BBC for the College of Piping, 20 Otago Street, Glasgow,Scotland G12 8JH. ISBN 0563074876. Out-of-print. HIGHLAND BAGPIPE MUSIC

J. Murray Neil. The Scots Fiddle, Vol. 1 (1999) and Vol. 2 (2001). Neil Wilson Publishing, Glascow, Scotland. ISBN 1897784864 and 1903238064. The volumes are the first two of three planned on tunes, tales and traditions related to the Scots fiddle. The first volume addresses the Northeast and Central Highlands, and the second the Lothians Borders and Ayrshire. Both volumes contain fiddle music associated with the region, brief biographies of fiddlers and composers from the 16th through mid-20thcenturies, historical notes on some tunes, and staff notations for over 150 tunes per volume. SCOTTISH FIDDLE

Donal Joseph O'Sullivan. Carolan, the Life Times and Music of an Irish Harper, Vols. One and Two. First published in 1958 by Louth. Lincolnshire, England. Also published by Celtic Music. ASIN 0950378461. Of special interest to wire players and anyone wanting to know more about ancient harps is "Part Four" in Volume Two: "The Memoirs of Arthur O'Neill." This is one of the few accounts we have about any harping anywhere from the 1700's. O'Neill was blind and a friend of Carolan's. He also witnessed the harpers at the Belfast Harp Festival, where Edward Bunting notated the tunes. Mentioned briefly is the wire harper Dennis Hempson, who was 40 when Carolan died, and whose one arrangement had been notated exactly by Bunting (without editing the bass part). Out-of-print and difficult to find. IRISH HARP MUSIC

John Purser. Scotland's Music (1992). Mainstream, London and Edinburgh / BBC, Scotland; (1993) Trafalgar Square, London, UK. ASIN 1851584269. Outstanding overview from 8th century to the present day by Scotland’s foremost music historian; covers classical and traditional music and their interrelationships. Sections on Scottish and Gaelic ballads are of particularly interest. Out-of-print and difficult to find. SCOTTISH MUSIC ***Editor’s Choice

Roslyn Rensch. Harps & Harpists (1989). Indiana University Press, Bloomingdale, USA. ISBN 0253349036. Written by a professional pedal harpist and art historian, this book surveys the history and development of the harp from antiquity to the present. Provides an integrated discussion of the non-pedal harp in Western Europe, including Scotland. HARP

Keith Sanger and Alison Kinnaird. Tree of Strings (Crann nan Teud) (1992). Kinmor Music, Temple, Midlothian, Scotland. ISBN 0951120441. Excellent scholarly study of the harp in Scotland from earliest times to modern times. Discusses harp structure and stringing, repertory, mythology, and functions in society. Includes discussion of the "theme and variations" form, as well musical notation for several melodies, such as "Port Ballangowne" from the Skene manuscript, that could be arranged for harp. SCOTTISH HARP ***Editor’s Choice

Martin Van Schaik. The Harp in the Middle Ages: the Symbolism of a Musical Instrument. (1992). Rodopi, Amsterdam. ISBN 9051833679. A scholarly work on harp symbolism, including King David and the harp in Christianity. Of historical interest for those who have seen stone carvings and brass ornaments from 12th century Scotland that depict ancient harps and harpers (including animals). The upwardly curved soundboard and harp back are ancient ideas, independently revived by Dragonheart™ harps. HISTORICAL HARP

Margaret Fay Shaw. Folksongs and Folklore of South Uist, 2nd Edition (1999). Birlinn, Ltd., Edinburgh. ISBN 1841580082. Previously published by other presses in 1955 and 1977. Updated edition of folksongs proverbs and sayings, old cures, recipes and stories collected from crofter-fishermen on the south side of Lochboisdale and the Island of South Uist between 1929 and 1935. Staff notations of melodies, Gaelic words, and English translations to 109 songs and ballads, including work songs (waulking, milking, spinning), lullabies, love songs, and more. Includes photos by the author. The community represented in this book is now largely disappeared. GAELIC SONG AND CULTURE

Maireíd Sullivan. Celtic Women in Music: a Celebration of Beauty and Sovereignty (1999). Quarry Music Books, Cap-Saint-Ignace, Quebec. ISBN 1550822462. Fascinating interviews by the author, an Irish singer, with other women performers of Celtic music. Includes insightful, lengthy interviews with harpers Alison Kinnaird, Gráinne Yeats, and Ann Heymann, as well as fiddlers and singers. CELTIC MUSIC

Derick Thomson, editor. The Companion to Gaelic Scotland (1994). GAIRM Publications, Glasgow, Scotland. ISBN 1871901316. Encyclopedia of historical and contemporary Gaelic culture; includes extensive bibliographies. GAELIC CULTURE

Frances Tolmie, compiler, Lucy E. Broadwood, Editor. One Hundred and Five Songs of Occupation from the Western Isles of Scotland (1997). Lampter, Llanerch, Scotland. ISBN: 1861430388. Reprint of the famous collection by Frances Tolmie (1840-1926) that first appeared in an issue of the Journal of the Folk-Song Society, No. 16, (London, 1911). Tunes are given in staff notation, as well as Gaelic lyrics with English translations. Includes an essay on life in Skye by Tolmie and a note on the modal system of Gaelic songs by Annie G. Gilchrist. GAELIC CULTURE

Gráinne Yeats. The Harp of Ireland: The Belfast Harper's Festival, 1792, and the Saving of Ireland's Harp Music by Edward Bunting (1992). Dalkey, Belfast Harpers' Bicentenary Ltd. Recounts the story of the 1792 Belfast harp festival and the recording of the harpers’ music by Edward Bunting; includes biographies of Carolan and the other harper-composers. Useful to Scottish harpers, as some of the history and music in early times was overlapping. Out-of print. IRISH HARP