The Glencoe march

noticed this tune requested and found the abc format so submitted it. A lovely march in the repetoire of many fiddlers from Cape Breton (home) and composed by the great Dan R. MacDonald.

March ? Don’t the snaps make it a schottische or even a strathspey?
Noel

I always play it along with this tune

https://thesession.org/tunes/2971

which used to be the theme tune for The McFlannells on the Scottish Home Service. It was later recorded by Altan so that makes it "cool" again 🙂

Yes, it’s a bit more of Scottishe sound, I suppose.

It’s classified as a march in The Trip to Windsor Collection: The Music of Dan R. MacDonald, vol. 2, compiled and edited by John Donald Cameron. There it’s given in 2/4 time.

Good tune - I would use this for a Canadian Barn Dance (I would agree it probably should be written as a 2/4 march).

Personally, I wouldn’t use it as a schottische, but slowed down, it could certainly be used for a strathspey.

X: 408
T: Glencoe Village Hall
T: Glencoe March, The
C: Dan R MacDonald
D: Aly Bain/Phil Cunningham: The Ruby
Z: Nigel Gatherer

This transcript was ripped off of the Internet, as happens, without crediting the source, one of our members good works, Nigel Gatherer ~ and note-for-note…

Yes Noel, it makes a great schottische… I’ll add another transcript later…

X: 1
T: Glencoe
T: The Glencoe Village Hall
T: The Glencoe March
S: Buddy MacMaster
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: D Major
|: F>G |
A2 d2 F2 d2 | A>FA<d f3 a | g3 e c>Ac<e | d>cd>B A2 F<G |
A2 d2 F2 d2 | A>FA<d f3 a | g3 e c>Ac<e | d4 d2 :|
|: f<g |
a3 g f>df<a | g3 e c>Ac<e | d>cd>e f>ef<a | g>fg<b a2 f<g |
[1 a3 g f>df<a | g3 e c>Ac<e | d>cd>f e<a-a>c | d4 d2 :|
[2 (3agf g>e f>de<c | d>BA>F D>FA<d | B>GB<d c>Ac<e | d4 d2 |]

X: 2
T: Glencoe
T: The Glencoe Village Hall
T: The Glencoe March
M: 4/4
L: 1/8
K: D Major
|: (3EFG |
A2 d2 F2 d2 | A>FA<d f3 a | g2 g>e c>Ac<e | d>cd>B A>GF<G |
A2 (3ddd F2 (3ddd | A>FA<d f3 a | g>f (3gfe c>Ac<e | (3ded d>c d2 :|
|: (3efg |
a>ba>g f>df<a | g2 g>e c2 c<e | d>cd>e f>ef<a | g>fg<b (3aba f<g |
[1 a2 a>g f2 f<a | g>ag>e c>Ac<e | d2 (3def e<ac<e | d2 d>c d2 :|
[2 (3agf g>e (3fed e<c | d>BA>F D2 F<d | B>G (3Bcd c>Ac<e | d2 (3ddd d2 |]

While these names have been associated with this tune, they are more rightly assigned to a jig by the same hand ~ Dan R’s…

This tune is also on Skip Gorman’s "Mandolin In The Cow Camp," paired with Lt. Howard Douglas.

Crackin’ tune. Have to give it a shot.

John Donald Cameron suggested that I look at this one that day we bought the books in his Port Hawkesbury shop. Best tip of that particular year! Thank you, John Donald.

I’ve always known it as Glencoe Hall. Scottish and Cape Breton marches often have ‘snaps’ and that helps ID them as Scottish. I’ve never tried it as a strathspey but I don’t think it would be very danceable.
Sylvia Miskoe, Concord NH USA

I don’t have anything to add, other than

1) I agree, it’s a fantastic tune, and

2) It’s great to have Sylvia and her comments here.