Celtic MIDI Sets, Page 6

My Celtic MIDI Sets, Page 6 (Sets 126-150)

Set #126
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
The 74th Highlanders' Quickstep	double jig
Rambling in Circles	double jig	Tony Upton
Dowd's Favorite	double jig
Mason's Apron	double jig
Mason's Apron	reel
I've been spending a little time lately rearranging some marches and reels and turning them into jigs, and the results are evident in this set. I don't know why I decided to do it, and I don't know why I picked the tunes I picked, but when inspiration strikes, you don't waste time asking why!! "Rambling in Circles" is a tune I wrote a while back - the title describes the way I tend to think and talk at times.

Set #127
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Untitled	hanter dro
Untitled	hanter dro
Ekostezan Henbont	hanter dro
This is a set of Breton hanter dros, which are dance tunes in 3/4 that come from the Vannetais region along Brittany's southern coast. I don't have any information on the first tune, but I am familiar with the other two. The middle tune was used as the tune for a song sung by a group I heard once on "Thistle and Shamrock" - unfortunately, I don't know the name of the group. The final tune is part of a nice set played by Battlefield Band - the set starts out with a Galician tune (which I think is a muiniera, a dance tune in 6/8) and is followed by a Welsh tune, and finally ends with the same tune that ends this set. I found the title for that tune on their website.

Set #128
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Blackwater Hornpipe	hornpipe	Tony Upton
Juniata	hornpipe
Niven's Scots Measure	Scotch measure
Lady Susan Gordon	reel	William Marshall
This is a somewhat fast-moving set of tunes which starts off with a hornpipe (named after a nearby river) I recently composed. The hornpipe that follows it is a great tune in B flat which comes from the playing of Richard Wood (and others, I'm sure). "Niven's Scots Measure" is a tune I really don't know anything about, and the reel that closes out the set was composed by William Marshall and can be found in the Athole Collection.

Set #129
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Kesh Jig	double jig
Rakes of Kildare	double jig
Coleraine	double jig
Buttermilk Mary	double jig
This set is pretty straightforward...four jigs which (I think) are all fairly well known.

Set #130
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
The Balkan Hills	4/4 march
Lay Dee at Dee	reel
A Yowe Cam Ta Wir Door Yarmin	reel
Jack Broke Da Prison Door	reel
Aandowin At Da Bowe	reel
Here's a set that was a bit overdue, in my opinion - a set of Shetland tunes. The first one is a wonderful march which was played by the late Willie Hunter on his last album, "Leaving Lerwick Harbour." He put in a great deal of time and effort in the final weeks of his life in order to complete the album before he died, and in doing so he left one final gift with all who enjoy and appreciate the great music of the Shetland Isles. The four reels that follow are all fairly common tunes in the Shetland music tradition, and you'll probably notice quite a bit of double-stopping in them as you listen to them.

Set #131
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Barney Brallagan	slip jig
Michael Gorman's	slip jig
Na Ceannabhain Bhana	slip jig
Give Us a Drink of Water	slip jig
This is a set I've been planning for a while, but just couldn't seem to get together until recently. Nothing really fancy or unusual here - it's just a set of Irish slip jigs played on fiddle, flute, and piano.

Set #132
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Eliz Iza
Gwerz Maro Pontkallec
Bal Plin
Breton tune		Tony Upton
Kost ar c'hoat Leskoed
Yet another set of Breton tunes! This one starts off with a slow air in 6/8 and then moves on to a somewhat faster tune in 6/8. The bal plin that follows is basically just like a normal dañs plin, only there's a slower part at the beginning of the tune called a balade. The fourth tune in the set is one I wrote myself. It originally started out as an extra part to go with the tune that precedes it, but it ended up evolving into a totally separate tune. The final tune is one of the many tunes appearing in Tonioù Breizh-Izel, a large collection of Breton tunes compiled by Polig Monjarret.

Set #133
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Auld Lang Syne (the original tune)
Auld Lang Syne (the more common version)
This "set" is just in time for the new year. After singing "Auld Lang Syne" at an office Christmas party recently, I decided to try to put the two versions of the tune together. The first version is basically the original tune the song was set to (and is the one I prefer, honestly), and the second version is the more popular and well-known version that's known the world over.

Set #134
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
The Old Dutch Churn	slip jig
The Old Dutch Churn	double jig
Miss Sophia Campbell	double jig	Robert Mackintosh
Crabs in the Skillet	double jig
This set of G minor jigs starts off with two different versions of "The Old Dutch Churn." I found the second one (which comes from the playing of Buddy MacMaster and Winston "Scotty" Fitzgerald) first, and then I discovered the first version (which is in 9/8) later on. The third (or is it the second??) tune in the set was composed by Robert Mackintosh and comes from the Glen Collection. The final tune is a traditional Irish jig.

Set #135
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Mr. Englefields New Hornpipe	hornpipe
A Basilisa	muiniera
The Irregular March	march	Tony Upton
Planxty Wilkinson		Turlough O'Carolan
The Marchioness of Huntly's Favorite Jig	double jig	William Marshall
This has to be one of the most diverse sets I've put together so far. It starts off with a hornipipe in 3/2 from England, and is followed by a tune in 6/8 from Asturias, which borders Galicia in northwestern Spain. The third tune, which jumps back and forth between 6/8 and 9/8, is a tune I composed. The fourth tune was written by Turlough O'Carolan. The final tune is a Scottish jig that was composed by William Marshall - it appears in his 1822 collection.

Set #136
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Johnny Cope	4/4 march
Princess Beatrice	hornpipe	W.B. Laybourn
Loch Ordie	reel	James MacIntosh
Pigeon on the Gate	reel
The Old Reel	reel
You know, for a while I was doing quite a few Scottish sets and I was only occasionally throwing in some other types of tunes. Lately, it's been the other way around. All of these tunes are in G minor, which has become one of my favorite keys. The first tune comes from the playing of Natalie MacMaster. The tune that follows it is a hornpipe composed by W.B. Laybourn. After that, there's a tune that was composed by James MacIntosh, and a G minor variation of "Pigeon on the Gate," which I think may actually be an Irish tune. The set finishes with a tune that comes from the playing of The Old Blind Dogs.

Set #137
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Untitled	an dro
Untitled	rond de Loudeac
Untitled	rond de Loudeac
Untitled	rond de Loudeac
Untitled	rond de Loudeac
Here we go again with another Breton set...I just seem to keep cranking these out! This one actually starts with a tune I composed, and then flows right into four lively Rondes de Loudeac - all of which come from the playing of Christian Lemaitre as part of the Celtic Fiddle Festival. The first one is one I transcribed by ear from the second track on the first Celtic Fiddle Festival CD, and the two tunes that follow come from track 8 on that same CD. The final tune comes from the second CD, "Encore," and is also one I transcribed by ear.

Set #138
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Cock of the North	double jig
Yellow Hammer Jig	double jig	Tony Upton
The Old Woman Tossed Up in a Blanket	double jig
Seamus Connolly's	double jig
And now for a break from the Breton tunes...!! The first tune in this set is a fairly well-known Scottish tune. The second one is one I composed, and is named for a road near where I live. The tune that follows appears on "The Driven Bow" by Alasdair Fraser and Jody Stecher, and comes from "O'Neill's Music of Ireland." I honestly don't know anything about the final tune in the set, unfortunately.

Set #139
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Son ar Chistr	song
Ton simple plin	dañs plin
Ton double plin	dañs plin
Ton double fisel	dañs fisel
Ton double
OK, now back to the Breton tunes. Why these Breton sets seem so easy for me to produce these days is beyond me, but as long as everyone enjoys them and nobody gets hurt, then there's no harm done, right? Anyway, this set starts off with a song in 3/4 which can be heard on "Celtic Wedding" by the Chieftains. I don't really know anything about the next three tunes that follow it, but the last tune comes from the playing of Alan Stivell.

Set #140
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Hills of Lorne	slow air
The Skye Gathering	strathspey
Miss Drummond of Perth	strathspey	Niel Gow
Muillean Dubh	reel
Lochan a'Chait	reel	James Stewart Robertson
Lassie wi' the Yellow Coatie	reel
Miss Wedderburn	reel
Finally, another Scottish set! It starts off with a slow air which is played somewhat faster on the second time through in this arrangement. The tune that follows is one I unfortunately seem to have no information on. Niel Gow wrote the strathspey that follows, and the first reel in the set (also known by its English title, "The Black Mill") is a popular tune in Cape Breton. The reel that follows was composed by James Stewart Robertson and appears in The Athole Collection, as does the tune that follows it. The final tune is one I've used elsewhere before, but I just couldn't resist putting it here for some reason.

Set #141
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
The Humours of Castle Comer	double jig
Fisherman's Jig	double jig
Cooley's Jig	double jig
The Wandering Minstrel	double jig
Here's a set of jigs - I seem to be doing more and more sets with jigs lately. The first and last tunes in the set are just good Irish jigs. The two in the middle were more products of my deranged imagination - "Fisherman's Jig" is actually a jig version of "Fisherman's Lilt" (which also has another name which I can't remember at the moment), and "Cooley's Jig" is a jig version of "Cooley's Reel."

Set #142
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Doon da Rooth	spinning song
Weindia Little	reel
Da Fashion o da Delting Lasses	reel
Donald Blue	reel
Tame Her When da Snaw Comes	reel
This is a set of great Shetland tunes which starts off with a rather unusual one from the playing of Aly Bain. It's unusual because of the rhythm and because it alternates between 12/8 and 9/8. The two reels that follow are also familiar to me from Aly Bain's playing. The last tune in the set is one I heard played by both Aly Bain and Catriona MacDonald.

Set #143
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
The Short Grass	double jig
The Eavesdropper	double jig
The Tenpenny Bit	double jig
Buttermilk Mary	double jig
Here's another good, solid set of jigs. I was inspired to put the first jig in a set after hearing Wendy MacIsaac play it. The second tune comes from the playing of Natalie MacMaster. The tune that follows is here just because I thought it fit, and even though I've already used the final tune elsewhere, I couldn't find a better way to end the set so I just had to put it in here.

Set #144
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Happy to Meet and Sorry to Part	double jig
Have a Drink With Me	double jig
Haste to the Wedding	double jig
Yes, I know...I've been doing lots of jigs recently. I hope you don't mind too much!! These three jigs are pretty standard Irish fare. By the way, this set is something of a milestone for me and for this site, since it is the first one I've made since switching over to Linux. (If you're really interested, you can find out more about that elsewhere on this site...try the "Something Completely Different" section.)

Set #145
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
79th's Farewell to Gibraltar	4/4 march
Balmoral Strathspey	strathspey
Maggie Cameron	strathspey
Yetts of Muckart	reel
Bonnie Annie	reel
St. Kilda Wedding	reel
Well, as you can see, I finally managed to do something other than jigs for a change. It was bound to happen sooner or later. Anyway, this is a pretty straightforward "march, strathspey, reel" set of Scottish tunes, and that's pretty much it.

Set #146
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Pastwn Mawr	double jig
Evans' Jig	double jig
Eisteddfod Caerfyrddin	double jig
OK, so I'm back to jigs again. At least this time I did something a little different! These are 3 Welsh tunes which I've put together, and to make things a little more interesting I've put two fiddles in this arrangement. I got that idea from listening to some Welsh fiddle music on "Thistle and Shamrock" some time ago - one particular show featured Welsh music, and the second half of the show that week featured Welsh fiddle music. There were some really good fiddle duets during that part of the show, which inspired my arrangement of this set.

Set #147
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
The Bonnie Lass of Headlake	air	Gordon McQuarrie
The Duke of Fife's Welcome to Deeside	march	J. Scott Skinner
Newfield Cottage	strathspey	William Marshall
Marnoch's	strathspey	William Marshall
Miss Smyth of Methven	reel
Lochiel's Rant	reel
The Canongate Twitch	reel
This set was born when Gladys from Gladys' Celtic Corner e-mailed me a suggestion for a tune to put on this site. That tune was "The Bonnie Lass of Headlake," which was composed by Gordon McQuarrie and is one of many great tunes played by Natalie and Buddy MacMaster. It's followed by a well-known march composed by James Scott Skinner and two strathspeys that were composed by William Marshall. The first reel comes from the playing of Buddy MacMaster, and the second reel is a pretty well-known tune. The final tune comes from the playing of The Tannahill Weavers.

Set #148
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Pet of the Pipers	double jig
The Little Pickle	double jig
The Rosewood Jig	double jig
The Road to Skye	double jig
This is a great set of jigs that come from the playing of Natalie and Buddy MacMaster. Not much to say about this set besides that...just listen and enjoy!!

Set #149
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Gusty's Frolics	slip jig
Gift of the Fairies	slip jig
Tiny the Trooper	slip jig
James Byrne's	slip jig
Here's something I haven't done in a while...a set of slip jigs. The first tune can be found on Altan's CD "Another Sky." I don't have any information on the other tunes in this set right now, but if I find out anything I'll be sure to add it here.

Set #150
Tune name	Type	Composer (if known)
Hillside Echoes	marching air
The Banks	hornpipe	Parazotti
Miss Malcolm's Hornpipe	hornpipe	William Marshall
This set was inspired by "The Dances Down Home," an album by Joe Cormier that was originally released in 1976. Rounder Records re-released it in 2001 and added several tracks that either came from other albums of his, or were previously unreleased. Track #10, which contains the first two tunes in this set, was recorded in 1996. For this set, I decided to leave out the usual piano or guitar accompaniment that's present in the majority of the other sets here, mainly because I haven't done that lately.