Strathspey · A major
The Braes of Mar
A classic North-East strathspey with the dotted “Scots snap” rhythm, kept alive on both sides of the Atlantic — nowhere more fiercely than in Cape Breton kitchens.
Setting 1 session skeleton
X:2 T:The Braes of Mar R:strathspey M:4/4 L:1/8 K:A |:E<A A>B c>A e>c|d>B c>A B>G E2|E<A A>B c>A e>c|d>B G>B A2 A2:| |:a>e c>e a>e c>e|f>d B>d f>d B2|a>e c>e a>e c>e|d>B G>B A2 A2:|
Copy the ABC above into any ABC player to hear or print it. This is a simplified setting; ornaments, variations, and regional bowing are left to the player.
Listen
Where it came from, where it went
Strathspeys take their name from the valley of the River Spey; the form is Scotland’s most distinctive contribution to the dance-tune family, defined by the snap — a short note followed by a long one.
Cape Breton fiddlers, descendants of Highland emigrants, preserved older bowing and tempo habits that had softened in Scotland itself, which is why Scottish players now travel west to relearn them.
Sources for the full entry will be listed here — collection, page, and date — in the same way an essay cites its references.
Related
- Soldier's Joy — Reel / breakdown, D major
- The Kesh — Jig, G major