Scottish fiddling
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (October 2016) |
Scottish fiddling may be distinguished from other
Regional styles
Shetland
The Shetland fiddling style is bouncy and lively, with
See also
- Tom Anderson
- Aly Bain
- Willie Hunter
- Chris Stout
- Fiddlers' Bid
- Maggie Adamson
- Arthur Scott Robertson
- Jenna Reid
- Alasdair Fraser
Northeast
The Northeast style is elegant and classically influenced, with roots in the
Notable fiddlers in the Northeast style include:
See also
West Coast / Gaelic / Highland Style
The West Coast, Gaelic, and Highland styles also include the Inner and Outer Hebrides and Argyllshire. These regions place great value upon the pipe[5] march, due to the significance of the bagpipe in their respective cultures. The Cape Breton style of fiddle music is related to these styles of music, the Cape Bretoners having come from the Highlands to Nova Scotia in the 1700s. West coast fiddlers include Angus Grant (Senior), Iain MacFarlane (Glenfinnan), Archie MacAlistair (Campbeltown), Alasdair White (Lewis), Allan Henderson (Mallaig), Eilidh Shaw (Taynuilt) and Eilidh Steel (Helensburgh). Highland fiddlers include the late Donald Riddell (d. 1992), and his former pupils Duncan Chisholm (Kirkhill), Bruce MacGregor (Inverness), Sarah-Jane Summers (Inverness), Alexander Grant of Battangorm (1856–1942), and Lauren MacColl (Fortrose).
The Highland style is particularly known for the strathspey, which is said to originate in the area of Strathspey. Sarah-Jane Summers's tuition DVD, Highland Strathspeys for Fiddle, gives an interesting insight into strathspeys as passed from Alexander Grant of Battangorm (in Strathspey) to Donald Riddell (South Clunes, near Inverness) and then to Sarah-Jane Summers (Inverness).
See also
- Angus Grant, left-handed fiddler
- West Coast Fiddle Style
- Duncan Chisholm
- Eilidh Steel
- Iain MacFarlane
- Sarah-Jane Summers
- Bruce MacGregor - founding member of Blazin' Fiddles and BBC Radio Scotland presenter
- Lauren MacColl
Borders
The fiddle music of the Borders has the most in common with English and American fiddle styles. Double-stopping, playing two strings or notes together, is commonly found in hornpipe music; such compositions are often written for two or more fiddlers.[6]
See also
Cape Breton, Nova Scotia
See also
- Cape Breton fiddling
- List of Cape Breton fiddlers
Scottish fiddling in general
Due to migration from rural Scotland, to industrial areas and to other countries, many players have returned again over time with certain traditions intact and some evolved through the melding of various styles. This is especially apparent in the "Central Belt" region of Scotland, where two fifths of the population reside. There is a significant influence in this area from immigration from Ireland and the rural areas of Scotland, coinciding with the rise of industry.
Notable fiddlers from Scotland today include
With mass migration the tradition has been carried with the emigrants (both voluntary and forced migrations) all over the world and "Scottish Trad" is now played around the world. Key performers in the USA include Alasdair Fraser, Hanneke Cassel, Ed Pearlman, Bonnie Rideout, John Turner, Elke Baker, Melinda Crawford, Colyn Fischer, and David Gardner.
Another culturally significant style is that of County Donegal, Ireland (just a short boat journey away), which is not strictly Scots but Irish. The accent on the Donegal fiddle tradition is somewhat more akin to the Scots tradition than to the Irish. The historical connection between the west coast of Scotland and Donegal is an ancient one (many shared names) as can be heard in the volume of strathspeys, schottisches, marches, and Donegal's own strong highland piping tradition. (See Donegal fiddle tradition). Like some Scottish fiddlers (which tends to use a short bow and play in a more straight-ahead fashion), some Donegal fiddlers worked at imitating the sound of the highland pipes. Scotland has influenced Donegal fiddling in various ways. Workers from Donegal would go to Scotland in the summer and bring back Scottish tunes with them; Donegal fiddlers have used Scottish tunebooks and learned from records of Scottish fiddlers like J. Scott Skinner and Mackenzie Murdoch. Fishermen from Donegal have returned from Shetland fisheries with Shetland tunes. [1]
The
See also
- Captain Simon Fraser
- Nathaniel Gow
- Niel Gow
- J. Murdoch Henderson
- Robert Mackintosh
- William Marshall
- James Oswald
- Irish Fiddle
- Donegal fiddle tradition
- Canadian fiddle
- American fiddle
Modern day fiddlers
Scots fiddlers:
- Bruce MacGregor - founding member of Blazin' Fiddles and BBC Radio Scotland presenter
- Alasdair Fraser
- Aly Bain
- Allan Henderson
- Catriona MacDonald
- Chris Duncan
- Duncan Chisholm
- Iain MacFarlane
- John Turner
- Pete Clark
- Chris Stout
- Eilidh Steel
- Colyn Fischer
- Adam Sutherland, with Croft No. 5, Treacherous Orchestra and Peatbog Faeries
- Alasdair White
- Ryan Young
- Charlie McKerron
- Paul Anderson
Cape Breton fiddlers:
- Buddy MacMaster
- Natalie MacMaster
- John Campbell
- Ashley MacIsaac
- Winston (Scotty) Fitzgerald
- Dave MacIsaac
American fiddlers:
- Natalie Haas (cello)
- Hanneke Cassel
- Jane MacMorran
- Jeremy Kittel
- Bonnie Rideout
- Laura Risk
- Elke Baker
- Jamie Laval
- Ryan McKasson
References
- ^ ISBN 978-1-871931-38-9.
- ^ "Shetland's Culture; Music". Saxa Vord Resort, Unst, Shetland. 2007. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
- ^ "An Appreciation of the Donegal Fiddle". 26 October 2009. Archived from the original on 26 October 2009. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ "World Music Central". worldmusiccentral.org. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
- ^ Gilfelder, Mairie-Therese (September 2014). "Mediating between the past and present: changing faces of the West Coast fiddle tradition in Scotland (Music Thesis)" (PDF). University of Glasgow. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
- ^ Haigh, Chris. "Scottish Fiddle; 2 Regional Fiddle Styles in Scotland; Borders Style". Fiddling Around the World. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
- ^ ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
- ISBN 978-1897009093.
Further reading
- Haigh, Chris (2009) The Fiddle Handbook; Scottish fiddle. Milwaukee: Backbeat Books