Clarke’s strathspey

This is the third highland in Altan’s “The Rosses Highlands” set. This version is that one, with my own little twist. I got the name “Clarke’s” off of Téada’s album.

Also… I typically play this tune as a highland-strathspey-hornpipe type thing… Lots of swing and bounce, and slur all the triplets.

It’s also on Simon Thoumire and David Milligan’s concertina and piano duet album “Big Day In.” Unfortunately Simon doesn’t give us any information of the tune simply calling it Highland, but it is likely he got it from Altan’s recording.

Errik, it seems you are addicted to Donegal highlands. Learn banjo! Donegal tunes would sound nice on it. Well, I’m not so young to learn new instruments and so will stay just on whistle and flute.

Yes, slainte, I think I am addicted to highlands, too. I’m obsessed with anything pertaining to Donegal or the north… 🙂 I’m not too sure what style of fiddle I play in, but there’s definetely a LOAD of Donegal coming through. No doubt about that. I spent a weekend in the southwest part of the county in March, and I noticed how closely my playing resembled the other fiddlers’ playing. We played a lot of the same tunes (mazurkas, highlands, barndances, etc), and had that same “drive” you would expect from the north. Even Cape Breton fiddlers have an influence on me, with the Scottish tunes and all. Up Donegal

slainte, you *are* young enough to learn a new instrument!! If I can start fiddle at 38, you can pick up the banjo if you really wanted too. Aren’t you still in your 20’s? (even if you are over 30, if I can do it, so can you!)

I’m just turning 25 but hadn’t played any instrument for seven years and then picked up whistle two years ago, so I need to stick to whistle and flute for the moment. I really love Donegal tunes, but they’re mostly fiddle tunes which are not so suitable on whistle or flute, so I just enjoy listening them.

If I can afford to buy another instrument, I’ll probably learn and play many Donegal tunes on banjo. It’s a shame a few banjo players play northern tunes. Eamonn Coyne does on his solo album, and Seamus Egan also recorded King George IV on banjo, which is really cool.

Michael Coleman recorded this as Clarke’s in 1944. Probably Oisin from Téada got the title from that. In Kerr’s it’s called Lord Lyndoch.

The Scottish version Lord Lyndoch has a slightly different A-part. Look it up on online tune indexes. Altan’s version is distinctive b/c of its snaps in the 1st part: dcdB A<FFA|G<EEG F<DD2|dcdB A<FFe|(3fga eg fdd..

X: 1
T: Ardara Lasses
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
R: highland
D: Altan - Harvest Storm
K: Dmaj
d2dB A<FFA|G<EEG F<DDc|dcdB AF<Fe|1 (3fga eg fd (3ABc:|2 (3fga eg fddg||
fdad fdad|(3cBA eA cAeg|fdad fdef|g2ag fddg|
fdad fdad|(3cBA eA cAeA|(3Bcd (3cde dfef|gbag (3fed ec||

Key signature: D Major
Submitted on June 14th 2008 by airport.
~ /tunes/8619

X: 3
T: Coleman’s Fling
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
R: strathspey
K: Dmaj
dcdB AFDF | B2 BA B2 Bc | dcdB AFDF | EDEF D2 FA |
dcdB AFDF | B2 BA B2 Bc | dcdB AFDF | EDEF D3 e ||
fdad fdad | cAeA cAeg | fdad f2 fg | abag fdde |
fdad fdad | cAeA cAeA | (3Bcd (3cde (3fed (3efg | abag fd d2 |]

I got this from a workshop with John Carty. this video should help you strathspey-ize it:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Vh8jqGtHue4

play video

# Posted on June 14th 2008 by airport

That’s airport’s U-Tube link…

“The Skye Collection of the Best Reels & Strathspeys”, Keith Norman MacDonald, 1887 ~ page 66

“The Athole Collection of Scottish Dance Music”, James Stewart Robertson, 1884 ~ page 113

X: 1
T: Lord Lyndoch
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
R: strathspey
K: DMaj
|: A |\
d>ed<B A>FD<F | E<BB>A G<BB>c |
d>ed<B A>FD>F | E>DE<F D/D/D D :|
g |\
f/e/d a>d f>da>d | c/B/A e>A c>de>g |
f/e/d a>d f>da>d | g<ba>g fddg |
f/e/d a>d f>da>d | c/B/A eA c>de<A |
B<dc<e d<fe<g | f<ba>g fdd |]

~ further information given in those two sources…

“Winston Fitzgerald: A Collection of Fiddle Tunes”
arranged and edited by Paul Stewart Cranford
Cranford Publications, 1997
ISBN: 0-9691181-7-1
http://www.cranfordpub.com/
http://www.cranfordpub.com/reviews/Winston.htm

Page 50, tune #122 ~ “Lord Lyndoch”

This melody, as is not uncommon with ‘highland flings’, has also been categorized under ‘schottische’ or ‘highland schottische’, and, of course, strathspey… If you’ve been following any of the several discussions on the topic you’ll know that ‘highland flings’ and ‘highland schottisches’ are one in the same species…

X:964
T:Cailini Ard a’Ratha
S:Donegal Fiddle Tutor Vol.3
Z:Nigel Gatherer
L:1/8
M:4/4
K:D
(3ABc | dedB AFDF | GABA GABc | dedB AFDF | ECEF D2 :|
(3ABc | defg afdf | e^def e=dBA | defg afdf | ed (3efe d2
(3ABc | defg afdf | e^def e=dBA | dedB AFDF | EDEF D2 |]

http://sounds.bl.uk/World-and-traditional-music/Reg-Hall-Archive/025M-C0903X0625XX-0800V0

A link to a cylinder recording of this tune ; “The cylinder was almost certainly recorded by Peter Wyper himself in Hamilton, Lanarkshire, circa 1901-7, on his own Empress Records label.”

Highland Donegal version, more or less transcribed from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNuT8aUiz8U

play video

Here it is called: ‘The (Pretty) Girls of Ardara’