After Frank's posting of Rose Acre and the mention of JS Skinner in other threads I have put together three very well known Skinner tunes to produce my version of a standard competition set as played by fiddle groups, traditional mixed groups and pipe bands. The tunes are played as March, then Strathspey then reel and the three styles give the competitors some fun with key changes and time signatures. The march is The Lovat Scouts (parts 1 and 2 only as played by pipers who generally do not play parts 3 and 4) then the Strathspey is The Laird O' Drumblair and the reel is the famous The Spey in Spate. They are in the keys of A, G and D to add a bit of variety to the set. I recorded them as a single take on my octave then added the guitar backing track, so a simple two track mix for this one.
This is great, John. You have been a bit quiet on the posting front recently, but this was a real treat worth waiting for. You have a lovely easygoing style that makes it sound as if these tunes were always intended to be played on these instruments.
... on these instruments and by this player! It does sound completely natural and effortless.
This is like a coach journey through the Highlands - so self-contained and serene you can chat with the driver and him never hitting a pothole
Great set, excellent rock steady playing.
That's the spirit John, soaring above the glen!
Sincere thanks, all. I have had a wee break from making any recordings over the past couple of weeks, though still playing live with various groups of friends. It is great to be back playing live after the long period of restrictions and the SAW has played a major part in keeping us all motivated and in touch with other players.
What a great set John! What is the history or reasoning behind grouping tunes. I see this very often in this genre.
Interesting question, Frank, and not easily answered, I would say. Probably the original idea was to give the performers the challenge of putting together three tunes with different time signatures which somehow would blend together well and to play each to the best of their ability and particularly to aim for smooth transitions. There is a feeling that a majority of modern pipe bands nowadays prefer to play a medley rather than an MSR as it gives more scope for creativity, but as in so many fields of human creativity there is a traditionalist versus progressive split. The Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association is the arbiter for all things in the competition world and arguments have gone on for a long time about what should or should not be allowed in competitions. Away from the piping world, when I was competing with our local fiddle group in the traditional mixed instrument competitions in the Scottish National Mod a few years ago we had to offer a set comprising Slow Air then MSR, and the tunes had to be "suitable". The entries for this competition have fallen away considerably over the past few years (just pre-Covid) and when we were defending our title at the National Mod in Glasgow in 2019 we were the only entrants! We reported our "victory" in the press as "having retained our title for a second year" rather than claiming to have won it! As I remarked at the time, we were not only first but also last! My choices for the MSR I posted here came from your highlighting of Skinner as a composer of great tunes in many formats and I just selected those three as I already knew them and played them regularly. Also I will use the set when I play with our fiddlers and mixed instrument combinations.
Don't belittle your success, John. Sometimes we win by persistence, and being the last man standing is not the worst way (indeed the only way in drinking and wrestling).
You put together a nice Skinner set, John, and performed it with confidence as usual.
Thanks, Bertram and Frithjof.
Thanks John
Feels good to listen to a new recording from you, John!
