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King George IV strathspey

By Duncan McKercher

Also known as George IV, George The Fourth, George The IV, King George IV’s, King George IV’s Welcome, King George The Fourth, King George The IV, King George The IVth, The Might Clansmen, The Mighty Clansmen, Rince Garbhchriche Ri Seoirse IV.

There are 43 recordings of this tune.

This tune has been recorded together with

King George IV appears in 1 other tune collection.

King George IV has been added to 32 tune sets.

King George IV has been added to 284 tunebooks.

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Six settings

1
X: 1
T: King George IV
R: strathspey
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Ador
A,2E>A, {C}B,>A,E>A,|~A,2E>A, {C}B,>A, (3G,A,B,|A,2E>A, {C}B,>A,E>A,|
[1 B,>DG>E (3DEC (3B,A,G,:|2 B,>DG>E D<B,G,2||
K:Amix
|:c>eA>B c<Ae>A|c<eA>f (3gag (3fed|1 c<eA>e c>Ae>f|g>fg>d B<dG>B:|
[2 e<aA>g A>fe>A|E<GD>E B,>A,{C}B,>G,||
2
X: 2
T: King George IV
R: strathspey
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Gmaj
|:B/|A2 A3/2B/ c3/2B/ A3/2e/|A2 A3/2c/ B3/2A/ G3/2B/|A2 A3/2B/ c3/2d/ e3/2c/|B3/2d/ g3/2e/ d/c/B/A/ G3/2:|
d/|^c/e3/2 A3/2e/ c/e3/2 d=cBA|^c/e3/2 A3/2e/ d=cBA G3/2d/|^c/e3/2 A3/2e/ c/e3/2 e3/2f/|g3/2a/ g3/2e/ dcBA G3/2B/|
^c/e3/2 A3/2e/ c/e3/2 d=cBA|^c/e3/2 A3/2e/ d=cBA G3/2A/|c3/2B/ A3/2B/ c3/2d/ e3/2f/|a3/2f/ e3/2B/ c3/2B/ A3/2G/||
3
X: 3
T: King George IV
R: strathspey
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Ador
B/|A2A>B c>BA>e|A2A>c B>AG>B|A2A>B c>de>c|B>dg>e d/c/B/A/ G3/2:|
d/|^c<eA>e c<e d/B/A|^c<eA>e d/c/B/A/ G>d|^c<eA>e c<ee>f|g>ag>e d/c/B/A/ G3/2:|
4
X: 4
T: King George IV
R: strathspey
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Ador
|:.A2.A2A3B|cBAB ~e3d|~A3d ~e3A|dedB BAGB|
.A2Ad ~e3A|Bc d2 ~e3d|AB d2 {f}g2 e|dedB BAGB|
.A2Ad ~e3A|Bc d2 ~e3d|~A3d ~e3A|dedB BAGB|
.A2Ad ~e3A|Bc d2 ~e3d|AB d2 {f}g2 e|dedB BAG2|
e4 A3B|cBAB(3efe d2|e4 a3f|g2 agfedf|
e2 ee A3B|cBAB (3efe d2|B2 d2 ~g2 e|dedB BAGB|
e2 e2 {B}A3B|cBAB (3efe d2|{d}e2e2 {b}a3f|g2 {b}agfedB|
a3 f ~g3 e|~f3d (3BcB A2|B2 d2~g3 e|dedB BAGB:|
5
X: 5
T: King George IV
R: strathspey
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Ador
A|"Am"E<A,A,>B, C>B,A,>A|"Am"E<A,A,>C "G"B,>A,G,>A|"Am"E<A,A,>B, "C"C>DE<C|"G"B,<DG>E D/C/B,/A,/ G,:|
d|"A"^c<eA>e c>e "D"d/c/B/A/|"A"^c<eA>e "D"d/c/B/A/ "G"G>d|"A"^c<eA>d c>eA>f|"G"g>g "A"a/g/f/e/ "D"d/^c/B/A/ "G"G>d|
"A"^c<eA>e c>e "D"d/c/B/A/|"A"^c<eA>e "D"d/c/B/A/ "G"G>B|"Am"c<e"G"B>d "Am"A<B"Em"E>F|"G"G>AG>E D/C/B,/A,/ G,||
# Added by Tate .
6
X: 6
T: King George IV
R: strathspey
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: Ador
A|"Am"E<A,A,>B, {B,}C>B,A,>A|"Am"E<A,A,>C "G"{B,C}B,>A,G,>A|"Am"E<A,A,>B, "C"{CB,}C>DE>C|"G"B,>DG>E D/C/B,/A,/ G,:|
d|"A"^c<eA>e c>e "D"d/c/B/A/|"A"^c<eA>e "D"d/c/B/A/ "G"[G3/2G,3/2]d/|"A"^c<eA>B "C"{=cB}=c>de>f|"G"{gf}g>a{ga}g>e d/c/B/A/ [G3/2G,3/2]d/|
"A"^c<eA>e c>e "D"d/c/B/A/|"A"^c<eA>e "D"d/c/B/A/ "G"G>B|"Am"{cB}c>e"G"B>d "Am"{AB}A>B"Em"E>F|"G"G>AG>E D/C/B,/A,/ G,||
# Added by Tate .

Sixteen comments

A Reel Two

Played reel by Altan, in Strathspey with Tommy Peoples.
It’s a Scottish Tune, but i don’t know who is King George

King George IV was King of Great Britain and Ireland from 1820 to 1830. As a young Prince he was notorious for his wild living, but his style earned him the name of “first gentleman of Europe”. He became Prince Regent in 1811, when his father George III had a mental illness, and succeeded to the throne in 1820. The outstanding event of his reign was the passage of the Catholic Emancipation Act. It is possible that this may have been the background for this tune.
-m

There is no such tune called King George IV (reel)

Altan once recorded a Cape Breton reel called “King George IV,” but the tune is actually “King’s Reel,” which is usually played after the strathspey “King George IV.”

To clarify, I meant to say “There is no such *reel* called King George IV.” And I found Cape Breton versions have a different first part. I might transcribe and post it in a few weeks.

The Deanta version is not the same tune at all - it’s in Ador and one version may have evolved from the other, but their version is most definitely a march.

Bagpipe setting

Here is the tune as played by Malcolm Robertson on “The Piper & The Maker.” It’s given here in A Dorian.

X: 1
T: King George IV
M: C
L: 1/8
C: Trad./Arr. Malcolm Robertson
R: Strathspey
N: The Piper & The Maker - Greentrax 2004
K:Gmaj
|:B/2|A2 A3/2B/2 c3/2B/2 A3/2e/2|A2 A3/2c/2 B3/2A/2 G3/2B/2|A2 A3/2B/2 c3/2d/2 e3/2c/2|B3/2d/2 g3/2e/2 d/2c/2B/2A/2 G3/2:|
d/2|^c/2e3/2 A3/2e/2 c/2e3/2 d=cBA|^c/2e3/2 A3/2e/2 d=cBA G3/2d/2|^c/2e3/2 A3/2e/2 c/2e3/2 e3/2f/2|g3/2a/2 g3/2e/2 dcBA G3/2B/2|
^c/2e3/2 A3/2e/2 c/2e3/2 d=cBA|^c/2e3/2 A3/2e/2 d=cBA G3/2A/2|c3/2B/2 A3/2B/2 c3/2d/2 e3/2f/2|a3/2f/2 e3/2B/2 c3/2B/2 A3/2G/2||

Bagpipe setting 2

As recorded by Hamish Moore:

K: Ador
B/|A2A>B c>BA>e|A2A>c B>AG>B|A2A>B c>de>c|B>dg>e d/c/B/A/ G3/2:|
d/|^c<eA>e c<e d/B/A|^c<eA>e d/c/B/A/ G>d|^c<eA>e c<ee>f|g>ag>e d/c/B/A/ G3/2:|

And the reel setting: https://thesession.org/tunes/3859

Version by Déanta (especially the flute melody-line by Deirdre Havlin)

Hi,
after some efforts I have a transcription of the flute playing of Deirde Havlin of Déanta. Tried to get the ornamentation as close to the original as possible. BTW, is this still a reel?

X:1
T:King George IV
C:as played by Deirdre Havlin on Daenta’s “Ready for the Storm” (track 1,tune 1)
M:4/4
R:Reel
K:Ador
|:.A2.A2A3B|cBAB ~e3d |~A3d ~e3A|dedB BAGB|
.A2Ad ~e3A|Bc d2 ~e3d|AB d2 {f}g2 e|dedB BAGB|
.A2Ad ~e3A|Bc d2 ~e3d |~A3d ~e3A|dedB BAGB|
.A2Ad ~e3A|Bc d2 ~e3d|AB d2 {f}g2 e|dedB BAG2|
e4 A3B|cBAB(3efe d2|e4 a3f|g2 agfedf|
e2 ee A3B|cBAB (3efe d2|B2 d2 ~g2 e|dedB BAGB|
e2 e2 {B}A3B|cBAB (3efe d2|{d}e2e2 {b}a3f|g2 {b}agfedB|
a3 f ~g3 e |~f3d (3BcB A2 |B2 d2~g3 e|dedB BAGB:||

Note, the grace notes are meant to be played as cuts! The first grace note on bar |{d}e2e2 {b}a3f| is meant to be played as a slur upwards from d to e. The emphasis on the e of course.

I am note sure, if I got the last row correct especially the second bar. I hear a downwardly directed triplet, but it is drowned by the fiddle. Maybe someone has aguess on that one.

Have fun.

A Highland, No?

What is the usual key for fiddle on KG IV?

This is such a great tune I think especially when played Cape Breton style (no offense intended to any other style) and it seems to me folks like Buddy MacMaster play it in G maj - - I am quite certain that the version I worked out on mandolin is in G-major too.

Yet quite a few of the versions above are presented in the A dorian mode. I am aware that this is the same note set as G major yet I am surprised to see all the ABC versions in the dorian mode -- kind of implying this is the most popular key?

Maybe I just don’t know the difference when I hear it! LOL. Can anyone point to a recording or video that clearly presents the tune in A dorian scale? Thanks!

Cape Breton Settings

The two settings provided are the two settings most commonly heard in Cape Breton. The first is the one you’ll hear from Natalie MacMaster, Buddy MacMaster and others outside of the Mabou style. Most Mabou fiddlers, or fiddlers with family roots there, such as Kinnon Beaton, Andrea Beaton and Glenn Graham, play the second setting.

Posted by .

Re: King George IV

Having some trouble bowing this out…anyone care to give me some ideas?
There’s a pickup of A, then you’re going to E and then A on the G string. (That in itself is kinda hard…) Would you lean your finger over and “barre” the E and A? And any suggestions on bow strokes? Just for the pickup and first measure, mainly.

Re: King George IV

On a video by Andrea Beaton, it credits Daniel Menzies as the composer?

Also. a note regarding Altan and the reel versus strathspey… maybe it was discussed but I didn’t have time right now to read everything! Lol, they play a reel which they call “King George IV,” but perhaps that’s what musicians locally refer to it as in Donegal. The actual reel in Nova Scotia (and maybe Scotland?) is “The King’s Reel”, not to be confused with the nearly-identical “Old King’s” reel… Old Kings has a bit more “growl” and bite to it I think.