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THE RED HOUSETHE HERITAGE OF THE SCOTTISH FIDDLE

CHRIS DUNCAN | CATHERINE STRUTTJULIAN THOMPSON

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1 Crabbit Shona Set 4’45Crabbit Shona (Angus R. Grant, The Nineties Collection, 1995)Major Montgomerie’s Quick Step (Aird’s Airs, 1782)The Southwest Bridge (Dan R. MacDonald 1911-1976)Fiddle, piano

2 Marni Swanson of the Grey Coast (Andy Thorburn, The Nineties Collection) 4’18Fiddle, piano, cello

3 Red House Set 4’16The Red House (Walshe’s Country Dances, 1731)Miss Russell of Blackhall (Robert Mackintosh, Petrie’s 2nd Collection of Strathspey Reels and Country Dances, 1796)The Nine Pint Coggie (The Scottish Violinist, 1900)Fiddle, cello

4 Rorate (Oxford Book of Carols, 1928) 5’41Fiddle, piano

5 The Battle of the Somme (William Laurie, Army Manual of Bagpipe Tunes Book 2, 1934) 3’39Fiddle, cello

6 Miss Mariane Oliphant Set 4’27Miss Mariane Oliphant (Rossie) (Robert Mackintosh, Third Collection, 1796)Slängpolska efter Byss-Calle [Byss-Calle’s Slängpolska] (Carl Ersson Bössa 1783-1847)Fiddle, piano

7 Lady Charlotte Campbell (Robert Mackintosh, The Athole Collection) 3’49Fiddle, piano

THE RED HOUSETHE HERITAGE OF THE SCOTTISH FIDDLE

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The heritage of Scottish fiddle music is one ofboth preservation and innovation. ModernScottish fiddlers are just as committed to theperformance of the traditional repertoire ofcenturies past as they are to works composedby their contemporaries, and rather thanpreserving a clear distinction between the oldmusic and the new, the performance traditionensures that each style influences the other.

This recording includes some of the oldesttraditional works for the Scottish fiddle alongsidevery recent works, often combined within thesame medley or ‘set’. The combining of pieces inthis way illustrates clearly the extent to whichthe old and new can be skilfully juxtaposed bythe performer to create a cohesive entity.

The use of cello as an accompanying instrumentis consistent with the oldest performingtraditions dating back to the 18th century, whenimprovised accompaniments were provided forthe fiddle when playing for dance. The piano wasa later taste, coming into favour as fiddle musicbegan to be published with keyboardaccompaniments for performance in the homeby the amateur musician. For this recording bothcello and piano provide accompaniment as wellas taking on a soloistic role within certainpieces, often carrying the melody in the absenceof the fiddle or while the fiddle takes on aharmonic function. The piano is increasinglyheard in Scottish music in a completely solo

capacity and this recording also features a workfrom the Scottish fiddle repertoire performed onpiano alone.

Ultimately the music of the Scottish fiddle isessentially part of the broader living tradition offolk music. It is continually evolving andassimilating new influences from other musicalcultures and traditions whilst maintaining afirm and instantly recognisable link to itsScottish heritage.

That so much music is still being written for theScottish fiddle, and performed regularly all overthe world, is testament to the enduring natureand popularity of the art form and confirmationthat this distictive music will continue to flourishinto the future.

1 Crabbit Shona Set

From this first set, it’s clear that the Scottishfiddle tradition is no glass-enclosed museumpiece. Old and new are constantly rubbing upagainst each other, and while there are certainlypurists who cavill at the influence of modernmusical trends and new technology, there areequally players steeped in the traditional skillswho draw inspiration from styles as diverse asbluegrass, ambient and techno, at the sametime drawing new, young and enthusiasticaudiences to their performances.

The jig Crabbit Shona (crabbit being an Ulstervariant of ‘crabby’ in the sense of grumpy) is one

8 Lady Eliza Lindsay Set 2’22Lady Eliza Lindsay (Elizabeth Lindsay, Celebrated Circus Tunes, 1791)Saratoga Hornpipe (Ryan’s Mammoth Collection, 1883)Fiddle, piano

9 Farewell to Nigg Set 4’38Farewell to Nigg (Duncan Johnstone – His Complete Compositions)Paddy’s Leather BreechesThe Fyrish Reel (David Gordon, The Nineties Collection, 1995)Fiddle

0 Pearlin’ Peggie’s Bonnie 4’18Fiddle, piano, cello

! The Dean Brig o’ Edinburgh (Archie Allan, The Scottish Violinist, 1900) 3’24Piano

@ Reel Béatrice Set 3’57Reel BéatriceCatharsis (Amy Cann)Fiddle, piano, cello

£ Unst Bridal March (Fiddler’s Fakebook, David Brody, 1983) 3’52Cello, piano

$ Stumpie’s Set 3’09Stumpie’s Jig (Chris Duncan)Port a’ Bhodaich (The Athole Collection)The Stewart’s Rant (The Athole Collection)Fiddle, cello

% Lydia’s Garden (Muriel Johnstone) 4’53Fiddle, piano

^ King over Water (McGibbon’s Scots Tunes, Book II, c. 1746) 4’49Fiddle, piano, cello

Total Playing Time 67’43

Chris Duncan fiddle • Catherine Strutt piano • Julian Thompson cello

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product of this kind of cross-fertilisation. It waswritten by Angus R. Grant, the fiddler inEdinburgh band Shooglenifty, which includesamong its instrumental line-up banjo, banjax,bouzouki, slide guitar and electronic sampling.Their music has been described as‘hypnofolkadelia’ and ‘acid croft’; their debutalbum was named Best Folk Album of the Yearby BBC Radio Scotland. Grant himself wastaught from early childhood by his father, therenowned left-handed Lochaber fiddler AngusGrant, and wears his West Highland heritageproudly. ‘Crabbit Shona’, for example, despite itspopularity as a remix, sits very comfortably withMajor Montgomerie’s Quick Step, firstpublished in 1778 in Joshua Campbell’sCollection of Newest and Best Reels andMinuets, though performed here from the firstvolume of Aird’s Airs – A Selection of Scotch,English, Irish, and Foreign Airs, adapted for theFife, Violin or German Flute of 1782.

The final piece in the set comes not fromScotland, but from Cape Breton Island inCanada; nevertheless, its Scottish credentials areimpeccable. During the first half of the 19thcentury, Cape Breton experienced an influx ofaround 50,000 Highland Scots, a result of theHighland Clearances which saw tens ofthousands of clansfolk evicted from theirtraditional lands. Scots culture has dominatedthe island ever since; there are still elderly Cape Bretonners who speak Gaelic as their first language.

One of the finest Cape Breton fiddlers ofmodern times was Dan Rory MacDonald, anative of the Cape Breton town of Judique.MacDonald created over two thousand tunes,but had a special flair for reels, such as The

Southwest Bridge.

2 Marni Swanson of the Grey Coast

The Scottish fiddle tradition continues to growand to evolve, with talented musicians like AndyThorburn adding to the repertoire. Thorburn isbest known as the keyboard player in Blazin’Fiddles, a northern band featuring fiddle playersfrom various regions of the highlands andislands, but his eclectic musical tastes includeblues, rockabilly, salsa, classical andexperimental. Several of his pieces werecomposed for the Grey Coast Theatre Company,an ensemble dedicated to the creation ofindigenous Northern Scottish theatre, depictinglife in the rural north of the country in a way thatis ‘passionate, original and stunningly down toearth’. Marni Swanson of the Grey Coast is onesuch tune; composed in the mid-1990s, it is fastbecoming a contemporary folk standard.

3 Red House Set

It’s not known for certain where or what theRed House was; one account places it inBerwick-upon-Tweed, the first Scottish townencountered by Edward I when he invadedScotland in 1296. Berwick was a thriving port;

the Red House was the headquarters of theFlemish merchants and craftsmen who hadmade their home in the town. Before sackingBerwick, Edward offered these Flemish settlersthe chance to leave in safety; their reply wasthat they preferred to share the fate of thetownsfolk who had made them so welcome.Edward is said to have torched the Red House,killing everyone inside including a bridal couplewho had celebrated their wedding just asEdward’s army was approaching.

The Red House reel carries no hint of suchgruesome tales. It appears in a Northumberlandmanuscript dated 1694 as Rood House Rant,and is found in Playford’s 1695 edition of hisDancing Master and again in Walshe’s CountryDances. The tune was clearly very popular, andwas later used in numerous 18th-century balladoperas. It was taken up by Alan Ramsay in 1724for his poem Where wad bonny Annie ly, andagain some fifty years later, by Robert Burnswho used it for his poem O, wha my babie-clouts will buy? (‘Oh, who will buy my babyclothes?’) which he claims to have sent to ‘a young girl, a very particular acquaintance ofmine, who was at that time under a cloud.’ Thetune has been suggested as the ancestor of theEnglish border song D’ye ken John Peel.

Miss Russell of Blackhall is a jig by Robert ‘RedRob’ Mackintosh (c.1745-1807), a contemporaryof Niel Gow and an extremely fine fiddle player,

widely considered Gow’s most serious rival. Hepublished four volumes of his own musicbetween 1783 and 1803; Miss Russell is alsofound in Robert Petrie’s Second Collection ofStrathspey Reels and Country Dances (1796).

There are several tunes, both Scottish and Irish,bearing the name The Nine Pint Coggie; thisversion is the one which appears in Skinner’sThe Scottish Violinist of 1900, where it isdescribed as an ‘Ancient Reel’. A similar tunecalled The Collier’s Daughter is found in NeilStewart’s 1761 collection, Newest and BestReels or Country Dances. The word coggieusually refers to a small wooden bowl; this one,at nine pints (just over five litres), would be asubstantial vessel indeed.

4 Rorate

Nothing is known of the origins of the tuneRorate; the name comes from the opening lineof a Christmas poem by the great Scottish poetWilliam Dunbar (c. 1460-c. 1520): ‘Rorate coelidesuper! Hevins, distil your balmy schouris! Fornow is risen the bricht day-ster, Fro the roseMary, flour of flouris’ – in modern English,‘Heavens, distil your balmy showers, For now isrisen the bright Daystar From the rose Mary,flower of flowers...’ Dunbar’s career included aMasters degree from the University of StAndrews, a long stint as a wandering Franciscanfriar, at least one high-level diplomatic embassyengaged in the delicate business of securing a

are swung under the arms. Byss-Calle is thenickname for Carl Ersson Bössa (1783-1847), thelegendary Swedish nyckelharpa virtuoso – anyckelharpa being a medieval keyed fiddle, ratherlike a cross between a fiddle and a hurdy-gurdy.Like Paganini on the violin, Byss-Calle’s talentswere so impressive that they were widelybelieved to be of supernatural origin.

7 Lady Charlotte Campbell

Charlotte Campbell seems to have been able toinspire the best in people – at least, in fiddleplayers. She is the dedicatee of no fewer thanfour dance tunes: three strathspeys and a reel.Nathaniel Gow’s strathspey is ranked among thefinest Scottish fiddle pieces ever composed;Robert Mackintosh’s reel in her honour, writtenin 1793, was described by Skinner in 1904 as‘the finest reel in B-flat extant’. Mackintoshwrote two strathspeys for Lady Campbell; it isthe second of these, sometimes called LadyCharlotte Campbell’s New Strathspey, which isrecorded here.

Lady Charlotte Susan Campbell (1775-1861) wasthe daughter of John, the fifth Duke of Argyll,and was a lady-in-waiting to Caroline, Princess ofWales. She was a famous hostess and a womanof great refinement. La Belle Assemblée (or Bell’sCourt and Fashionable Magazine AddressedParticularly to the Ladies) described her in 1826 as‘a distinguished ornament of the world of fashion.Her mind was of the highest order – her person at

once elegant, graceful, and commanding. Shewas, if we mistake not, the first who introducedthe style of Grecian costume in this country.’ Theauthor of a number of romantic novels, Campbellwas also close friends with such literati as LordByron and Sir Walter Scott.

This recording, with its measured pace andelaborate embellishments, reminds us that theslower strathspeys were not thought of asdance tunes, but rather as recital pieces.

8 Lady Eliza Lindsay Set

Elizabeth Dalrymple Lindsay, Countess ofBalcarres in Fife (1759-1816), was a patroness ofEdinburgh musicians. She was herself anaccomplished keyboard player, and also acomposer: a hornpipe she had written for herten-year-old daughter, Lady Eliza Lindsay, waspublished in John Watlen’s 1791 collection ofCelebrated Circus Tunes. The tune is commonlyused for the dance Captain McBride’s Hornpipe.

The Saratoga Hornpipe is variously attributed tothe USA, Scotland and Canada; the New YorkCity researcher Don Meade claims that the tuneis named after the spa and resort town ofSaratoga in New York (also famous for itssummer horse racing season). The earliestpublished version seems to be Elias Howe’s1000 Jigs and Reels, published in Boston around1867; it also appears in Ryan’s MammothCollection (Boston, 1883).

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bride for the young James IV, and an appointmentas poet laureate at the Scottish court.

Tune and poem are found together in the originalOxford Book of Carols, published in 1928. There,the tune (described as a ‘little-known Scottishmelody’) is set out in a regular four-in-a-barmetre suitable for congregational singing; on this recording, the mood is more lyrical and meditative.

5 The Battle of the Somme

The Battle of the Somme refers to the four-and-a-half month campaign around the River Sommein northern France during the First World War.Massive losses were sustained by both Alliedand German forces; this infamous battle stillholds the record for the largest number ofcasualties sustained by British forces in a singleday, in any war, with 57,500 casualties includingover 19,000 dead. By the end of the campaigncasualties on both sides totalled over 1 million.

The piece bearing this battle’s name wasoriginally composed as a 9/8 march for thehighland bagpipes to be played as a retreat – inthis sense a ‘retreat’ is a piece played not on themarch but at the end of the day once soldiershave already returned to barracks. The composerwas Pipe Major William Laurie (1882-1916) ofthe 8th Battalion Argyll & SutherlandHighlanders, one of a number of famousScottish regiments involved in the campaign.

This recording presents the piece as a slow air –and is deeply effective as such – the slow tempoand droning cello accompaniment sustain asombre mournful mood appropriate given theinspiration for the piece. Performed in this waythe piece is also reminiscent of the greatScottish funeral air The Flowers of the Forest,also a piece of mourning commemorating theaftermath of battle.

6 Miss Mariane Oliphant Set

The links between Scotland and Scandinaviareach back to 794, the year of the first Vikingraid. Music – instruments, songs and dances –has been moving back and forth across theNorth Sea ever since, and this set demonstratesthe affinity between the traditional musics of thetwo cultures.

Rossie is a tiny village in Perthshire, centralScotland. Its name is immortalised in severalScottish dance tunes: Mrs Cheape of Rossie’sStrathspey, Mr Stewart Oliphant of Rossie’sReel, and the strathspey that begins this set:Miss Mariane Oliphant (Rossie). This last isanother of Robert Mackintosh’s tunes, publishedin his Third Collection of 1796. Its powerfulmelody is matched in this performance by a full,muscular piano accompaniment.

The dance with which Miss Mariane Oliphant’sstrathspey is paired in this set is a Swedishslängpolska, or ‘slinging’ polska in which dancers

! Dean Brig o’ Edinburgh

This strathspey is generally attributed to ArchieAllan of Forfar (1794-1831), thought to havebeen at one point a fiddler in Nathaniel Gow’sband, who played ‘neat and powerful especiallyin the Strathspeys’. It appears in Skinner’s ‘pinkbook’, The Scottish Violinist and again in hisHarp and Claymore collection of 1904, whereSkinner credits the tune to ‘Airchie Allan’ anddescribes it as having been ‘nursed & tended byPeter Milne’, an itinerant fiddler known as theTarland Minstrel who took up the tune andplayed it into popularity. The earliest knownsource, Davie’s Caledonian Repository (1829)wrongly names as composer a Reverend Toughof Kinnoul; Skinner is quick to debunk this myth– Tough’s contribution, it seems, was only tosupply a copy of the tune to Davie – but at thesame time Skinner asserts that the tune’soriginal title was ‘Miss Gray of Carse’, which is adifferent piece altogether.

The Dean Brig is a sandstone bridge inEdinburgh, spanning a deep valley over the Waterof Leith. Designed and built by Thomas Telford, itwas opened in 1831, and was important inopening access to the north of the city duringthe development of the New Town district.

@ Reel Béatrice Set

This set is a fine example of the ability ofScottish fiddle music to reach beyond the

borders of its native land. Reel Béatrice comesfrom Québec in French-speaking Canada, whereit was popularised by Joseph Bouchard, whorecorded it on a 78rpm record in 1938. In morerecent times, it has been taken into therepertoire of the button accordion player PhilippeBruneau. Its origins, however, appear to lie inItaly, with a tune known as Oggi nevica (TodayIt’s Snowing), which was a polka in the balloliscio tradition – ‘smooth dancing’ such as thewaltz and the mazurka, as opposed to skippingor hopping dances.

Catharsis is a reel by the contemporary fiddlerAmy Cann, from Vermont in New England, USA.She describes her inspiration for the tune asfollows: ‘My boyfriend at the time had asked meto save a certain Saturday for us to have somequality together time, and I had loyally turneddown a lucrative wedding gig... Come Fridaynight I find a phone message: “An old friend ofmine is in town and we’re going hiking – I don’tremember if you and I had anything planned, but you can join us if you want.” I knew that if Icalled him right back I’d probably kill him, so Iplayed the fiddle first. The tune pretty muchwrote itself in about two minutes.’

£ Unst Bridal March

Unst, with a population of around 500 and asurface area of only 120km2, is the northernmostinhabited island of the Shetland group: closer toBergen in Norway than to Aberdeen. Scottish

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The earliest hornpipes originated in the bordercountry and were in a triple-time rhythm with ajaunty lilt; in the 18th century, a new type ofhornpipe developed to a rhythm known as the‘Scottish measure’. This had four beats to the bar,and was characterised by a three-note ‘pom-pom-pom’ rhythmic motif which brought eachsection of the dance to a close. Both Lady ElizaLindsay and the Saratoga Hornpipe are in theScottish measure; in this performance, the ‘pom-pom-pom’ motif is embellished in various ways:in Lady Eliza Lindsay, the third note is often tiedto the second to create a jaunty syncopation andin the Saratoga Hornpipe, the second note isfrequently decorated with a little turn.

9 Farewell to Nigg Set

Farewell to Nigg is arguably the most famousbagpipe tune composed by Duncan Johnstone(1925-1999), a gifted piper and prolific composer;many of his tunes have become part of thestandard bagpipe and Scottish folk musicrepertoire. The Nigg of the title refers to thevillage and bay that lies to the north of Invernessat the mouth of the Cromarty Firth.

Paddy’s Leather Breeches is a very popularbagpipe jig and has been a favourite of Scottishdance bands the world over for decades. Little isknown of its origins, apart from an assumptionthat it may originally have been an Irish tune,although now it is virtually exclusively performed

in the context of Scottish music. Paddy’s LeatherBreeches is also the name given to the dancesteps of the ‘Irish jig’ as performed as acharacter dance in Scottish Highland dancing.When danced by a male, the steps depict thecharacter of Paddy expressing his anger at theactions of the careless washerwoman who hasshrunk his prized leather pants.

The Fyrish Reel is by contemporary Scottishfiddler and composer David Gordon. The piecewas included in a seminal collection of fiddlemusic called The Nineties Collection; this was aninitiative of the Traditional Music and SongAssociation of Scotland who sought to collecttogether fiddle works in the traditional stylecomposed at the close of the 20th century. Anumber of other pieces on this recording aredrawn from this important collection.

0 Pearlin’ Peggy’s Bonnie

‘Pearling’ is a type of lace made of white silkused for trimming the edges of garments – thename refers to the delicate loops or ‘pearls’ ofthread. The tune, also known as The Laird ofFoveran, achieved popularity set to the poemThe Lassie o’ the Glen, by Angus Fletcher:‘...And though I wander now unhappy, Far fraescenes we haunted then, I’ll ne’er forget thebank sae grassy, Nor the lassie o’ the glen.’ Theglen in question is Glendaruel in Argyleshire.

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territory since 1468, the Shetland Islands werefor the previous five centuries a Norse colony,and Shetland culture retains many strongresonances with the culture of Scandinavia.Wedding marches, for example, are aScandinavian tradition. With tunes such as theUnst Bridal March, the fiddler would lead thebridal couple from the church to the bride’shouse for the post-wedding festivities. In thisrecording, the cello imitates the droning of thesympathetic strings on the hardanger fiddle, aNorwegian folk instrument.

$ Stumpie’s Set

Stumpie’s Jig was written by Chris Duncan andnamed after a baby Eastern Rosella that wasabandoned by its parents in a hollow stump near Duncan’s home. The bird also had a short,‘stumpy’ tail, making its name doubly apt.Unfortunately Stumpy turned out to be anaggressive pet and was donated to a wildlifesanctuary.

The strathspey Port a’ Bhodaich and the reelThe Stewart’s Rant are both taken from TheAthole Collection of the Dance Music ofScotland, an important source of 870 works(strathspeys, reels, jigs, hornpipes and countrydances) compiled by James Stewart Robertsonin 1884. The collection draws on works fromvarious major collections by Niel and NathanielGow and Captain Simon Fraser’s The Airs and

Melodies Peculiar to the Highlands of Scotlandand the Isles; as such it includes works byknown composers from the golden age ofScottish fiddle music as well as many traditionalworks of uncertain origin. The largest single-volume collection of Scottish fiddle music, sincea major reprint in 1961 The Athole Collection hasbeen integral to the resurgence of interest inScottish fiddle music in the latter part of the20th century and into the 21st.

% Lydia’s Garden

Muriel Johnstone combines her considerabletalents as pianist and composer with her manydecades of experience as a dancer, and herstrong interest in dance music has led her torecord a number of discs of comparativelyobscure tunes, both preserving and bringing tolife again many otherwise difficult to obtainpieces. Lydia’s Garden was written by Johnstoneas a birthday gift for another keen dancer, LydiaHedge. The piece was originally written as atwo-part tune about Lydia’s garden, one of herfavourite pastimes, but grew to a four-part tune,with her ‘garden’ becoming her growing groupof friends and family.

^ King over Water

‘...And I’ll be Lady Keith again, That day our kingcomes owre the water.’ Whether it was actuallyLady Keith (née Lady Mary Drummond, daughterof the Earl of Perth) who penned these words is

not known, but the air King over Water (or Whenthe King Comes owre the Water ) is often knownas Lady Keith’s Lament. It’s a Jacobite song,bewailing the English rule of Scotland andlooking forward to the return of the descendantsof the deposed James II: his son James FrancisEdward, the ‘Old Pretender’, and his grandsonCharles Edward, the ‘Young Pretender’ or‘Bonnie Prince Charlie’. The tune was firstpublished in McGibbon’s Scots Tunes, Book II(c.1746) but it dates back at least to the 17thcentury. Curiously, it bears a number ofsimilarities to an Irish Protestant anti-Jacobite air,Boyne Water, celebrating the victory of Williamof Orange over James II at the Battle of theBoyne in 1690.

Chris Duncan

Born in the New SouthWales town of Narrabri,Chris Duncan started fiddlelessons at the NewcastleConservatorium when hewas eleven but it was notuntil he was a teenager thathe embraced Scottish fiddle music. Hisinspiration was the sight of legendary folk fiddlerBob McInnes from the Southern Highlands ofNSW, who was energetically playing for aScottish dance. In those early years of the late1970s McInnes was one of only two Scottishfiddlers in Australia. Chris Duncan became thethird and together they pioneered Scottish fiddlemusic in Australia.

Chris Duncan formed a band of his own, Harpand Claymore, and played for dancing bothnationally and internationally for over 21 yearsuntil he moved on to play full time as a duo withCatherine Strutt. For nearly thirty years he hasbeen performing and giving workshops andclasses in the art of the Scottish fiddle acrossAustralia and internationally.

He has been a leading figure in the developmentof Scottish fiddle clubs in Australia and theMusic under the Mountains Celtic music schoolin Tasmania and Victoria. He is the master of hisart, the definitive expert on the strathspey, andtoday, it would be a formidable pursuit to find a

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Festival, as well as appearing as a performer. He also plays regularly with the AustralianChamber Orchestra.

Julian Thompson combines his career as aclassical musician with a busy schedule as aperformer in non-classical genres, especially folkmusic, and he has appeared at most ofAustralia’s major folk festivals.

Executive Producers Robert Patterson, Lyle ChanRecording Producer Virginia Read 1-3, 5-$, ^,Stephen Snelleman 4, %

Recording Engineer Virginia Read 2, 3, 5, 8-0,@-$, ^, Yossi Gabbay 1, 4, 6, 7, !, %

Editing and Mastering Virginia ReadEditorial and Production Manager Hilary ShrubbPublications Editor Natalie SheaBooklet Design Imagecorp Pty LtdCover Photo Black Rock Cottage, Glen Coe, ScottishHighlands © Chris Ladd/Getty ImagesArtist Photos Catherine Strutt (Chris Duncan,Catherine Strutt), Clara Tuisk (Julian Thompson) Artwork p2 Catherine and Jennifer Struttwww.thestruttsisters.comBooklet Notes Natalie Shea and Robert Patterson

Recorded 17 September 2000 4, %, 31 May 20031, 6, 7, !, 29 May 2004 5, 7, 9, 12 September 2004 2, @, 18-19 September 20043, 0, £, $, ^ and 13 March 2006 8 in the EugeneGoossens Hall of the Australian BroadcastingCorporation’s Ultimo Centre

ABC Classics thanks Alexandra Alewood and Melissa Kennedy.

www.chrisandcatherine.net

� 2006 Australian Broadcasting Corporation. � 2006 Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Distributed in Australia and New Zealand by Universal Music Group,under exclusive licence. Made in Australia. All rights of theowner of copyright reserved. Any copying, renting,lending, diffusion, public performance or broadcast of this record without the authority of the copyright owner is prohibited.

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Scottish fiddle player in Australia who has notbeen inspired and influenced by theunprecedented talent of Chris Duncan.

Catherine Strutt

Catherine Strutt was born tomusical parents who, whenshe was three, founded abush band; calling itCoalbrook Ceilidh, theyplayed up and down theeast coast of Australia for25 years. After taking up thepiano at twelve years of age, Catherine Struttjoined the band at 14.

With the demise of the popularity of bushdancing in the early 1990s, Coalbrook, who hadbecome pivotal in the bush music scene, had a name and genre change and are currentlyplaying Scandinavian traditional music asSalmiakki Pelimannit. This new band has played atmany folk and dance festivals including Kaustinenin Finland and Nordlek in Denmark and Sweden.

Catherine Strutt has undertaken extensivestudies at various schools of folk music aroundthe world, including Alasdair Fraser’s Valley ofthe Moon Music School in California, the CeilidhTrail School of Celtic Music and St Ann’s GaelicCollege in Nova Scotia. She is considered to beone of the finest Scottish-style piano players inAustralia and is well respected as an innovative

and sensitive accompanist. She teaches pianoregularly at the Music under the MountainsCeltic music school.

Julian Thompson

Julian Thompson is one ofAustralia’s most versatileand adventurous cellists,with a career that hasincorporated all facets ofmusic making including solo recitals, concertoappearances, chambermusic, CD recordings, orchestral playing, artisticadvising, teaching and composition.

After graduating from the Australian NationalUniversity School of Music he was awarded aFulbright Scholarship in 2000 and he completeda Masters degree at Indiana University in 2002,studying under the cello luminaries TsuyoshiTsutsumi, Janos Starker and David Baker (Jazz).

In 1997 Julian Thompson was appointed PrincipalCello with the Canberra Symphony Orchestra, aposition that he continues to hold. In 2005 heappeared with the CSO as soloist in Dvořák’sCello Concerto, winning the Critics’ Circle Awardfor that year’s most outstanding musicalperformance. In 2006 he performed Haydn’s C major Cello Concerto with the Haydn Bande.Between 2004 and 2006 he was Artistic Adviserto the Canberra International Chamber Music

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