Page 19 - From '"Mike MacDougall's Tape for Fr. Hector"

ISSUE : Issue 38

Published by Ronald Caplan on 1985/1/1

The Forest of Ga-ick Little Jack MacDonald recorded this tune on a Celtic label LP. Traditional fiddlers don't always play notes that correspond exactly to major and minor intervals. THE FOREST OF GA-ICK (and ATHOLE BROSE, both on Mike's tape) demonstrates this. Conventional key signatures don't take this into account. These "blue" notes, or "neutral" tones, cannot be accurately defined since they are played to individual tastes, by ear. They can be indicated by the use of arrows. When the arrow points downward the note is played a shade flat. Upward point? ing arrows mean play the note sharper. (Note that accidentals are not indicating key signature, but are mere? ly a concession to avoid arrows over every "blue" or "neutral" tone as it appears in the melody • i.e., F''' ac? cidental, first bar, second turn, does not mean the tune is in Key of G. It indicates that the F tones are moving towards sharp rather than natural.) There's a tune that Bill Lamey recorded, called "Lieutenant Howard Douglas," which may be based on THE FOREST OF GA-ICK. It's not exactly the same, but they remind me so much of each other. Mike, to me, seems to be put? ting the one tune into the other, and just gives you extra variations, and that's part of the variations I included here, as well as some from the original Marshall. Wm. Marshall--Strathspey Cape Breton Setting Lady Muir MacKenzie LADY MUIR MACKENZIE was originally written in the Key of C by William Gow. Mike and most Cape Bretoners play it in D. And there's a lot of other variations that I didn't include. It's such a popular reel that it's played many, many different ways. It was one of those tunes that I couldn't mix the different settings, so I had to just write it one straight way • which isn't exactly the way Mike played it. Wm. Gow--Reel Cape Breton Setting The Black Hoe A different variant known as "Morrison's Fancy" is found in O'Neill's Waifs and Strays of Gaelic Melody. The variations given here of THE BLACK HOE are my own. Irish Jig Cape Breton Setting & Variations r r ',,'.i.r:'rxj-m-rr'.|j'r iiMiLrtrriiTfrrnrrrtrriiTrr sifrrtrn (19)

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