Scottish Musical History
6 Lectures by Dr Karen McAulay
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6 lectures on Scottish music:
• Today 7/3 Looking at research in Celtic music• 14/3 Overview of Celtic music• 21/3 18th Century Scottish music• 28/3 19th Century Scottish music• 18/4 Reading between the lines:
interpreting compilers' intentions• 25/4 Celtic Twilight and 20th Century
Revival
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General ‘stuff’
• Choice of 2 essays, set by Dr Argondizza & myself.• Reading list – modern texts, old sources. Dip into both.• Celtic – or Scottish? Sometimes I’ll refer to Celtic
music – that’s so I can draw in Irish and Welsh where I feel it’s appropriate.
• My research: late 18th/19th century Scottish music• Me: musicologist; music librarian; in RCS - a place
focusing on performance. These circumstances inevitably affect my approach!
Research in Celtic Music
An IntroductionDr Karen McAulay
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The beginning of a research journey
• The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (The librarian, the line-manager and the cupboard)
• Alice in Wonderland’s cake (“Eat me”)• Rudyard Kipling’s questions:-• “I keep six honest serving-men
(They taught me all I knew);Their names are What and Why and When And How and Where and Who.”
• - No wonder journalists are taught the rhyme!
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What - Why – When - How – Where - Who
James Simpson’s signature
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What - Why – When - How – Where - Who
James Simpson’s Dalfield Walk address (Book 1)
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What - Why – When - How – Where - Who
James Simpson’s Myrekirk address (Book 3)
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What - Why – When - How – Where - Who
James Simpson’s flute chart (back of Book 1)
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What - Why – When - How – Where - Who
What kind of music? Flute ensemble
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What - Why – When - How – Where - Who
Psalm tune (by a local precentor)
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What - Why – When - How – Where - Who
Anthem/choral item from a published collection
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Six Questions
• What• Why• When• How• Where• Who
• Three weeks’ study leave … the deal …
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Aims
• Find answers to some of the questions• Publish findings appropriate places• Presentation to BA (Scottish Music) students
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Realities of research
• Libraries: Glasgow, Dundee, Perth, British Library• Archives &c: Dundee Archives & Registrar• People: Charlie Gore (The Scottish Fiddle Music
Index); Peter Harrison (Concert Royal); Myrekirk’s owner
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That was Myrekirk house – These are Myrekirk Cottages!
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Outcomes (1)
• Six answers (briefly!)
• What• Why• When• How• Where• Who
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Outcomes(2)
• Box and Fiddle article (Oct 2002)• The Scots Magazine (Nov 2002)• Brio Vol.40 no.1 (Spring/Summer 2003)• RMA Chronicle Vol.38 (2005)
• Not to mention The James Simpson Show (Feb 2003)• And …
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One thing led to another
• My doctoral research• Q: Where are the research centres? (and it’s
not just in universities – private researchers, too.)
• Q: How do research findings get disseminated?
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WARNING! Research as varied as the people doing it!
• Q: Big question: Mine is historical research – but what other kinds of research might be conducted into Scottish music?
• Some examples …• Q: Even bigger question: What is Scottish
music?• Discuss …!
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Interdisciplinarity
• Which means, precisely?
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Examples of interdisciplinarity• Musicology combined with ethnomusicology (eg Edinburgh –
School of Scottish Studies, now Department of Celtic and Scottish Studies http://www.ed.ac.uk/schools-departments/literatures-languages-cultures/celtic-scottish-studies
• Musicology combined with literature – eg Dr Kirsteen McCue’s work (Scottish literature and music) in University of Glasgow’s School of Critical Studies http://www.gla.ac.uk/schools/critical/staff/kirsteenmccue/
• University of Edinburgh’s Centre for the History of the Book http://www.hss.ed.ac.uk/chb/
• Aberdeen’s Elphinstone Institute – postgrad research in folklore, ethnology, anthropology http://www.abdn.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate-research.php?code=elph_int
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Resources
• Historical sources: musical and non-musical• Modern resources: books, journals, databases
(general and musical) • Question: What have I used?
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Resources
• Answer: depending on what you’re researching, you could use a very wide range of resources!
• Music (for my research) EASMES database; Wighton Database, RILM abstracts and indices. Some people rely heavily on RISM, too. Digitised journals eg JSTOR
• General (for my research) ECCO; others covering other periods or subjects eg EEBO
• What if a resource goes ‘down the plughole’?!• General principles of research – being able to back up
statements, cite references, summarise existing research, explain and defend your own position.
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Back to the James Simpson MSS
• Take a look• (Does anyone play the flute? Lead a church
choir?)
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Some interesting links
• Flautist Peter Harrison’s Concert Royal – 18th century performance practice http://www.classical-artists.com/concertroyal/
• Peter Harrison and his present research project http://www2.hull.ac.uk/scarborough/campus-departments/sse/staff/peter-harrison.aspx
• Dundee – Wighton Heritage Centre at Dundee Central Library http://www.dundeecity.gov.uk/wighton/heritage.htm
• EASMES (Early American Secular Music and its European Sources, 1589-1839) http://www.colonialdancing.org/Easmes/Index.htm
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Summary
• Research into Scottish music:-• Historical• Interdisciplinary• Modern• Resources• Research dissemination• The biggest question: what is Scottish music?!
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Next week
• Overview of Celtic music