Simon Fraser’s book & Angus Fraser’s manuscript

Edinburgh University Library ms Gen. 614

These manuscripts represent the collections of Angus (c.1800-1870) and his father Simon Fraser (1773-1852). Some of the material was published by Simon in "The Airs and Melodies Peculiar to the Highlands of Scotland and the Isles" (1816).

The manuscripts contain melody lines of old Gaelic song tunes. Many have fiddle-style variations although these may be Angus Fraser's own compositions. Also there are extensive notes on many of the tunes.

Frances Collinson in 1966 described the manuscripts as "the only seemingly authentic Scottish harp music ever to be recovered" (The Traditional and National Music of Scotland, p.266). however this is in the conclusion where he is effusing about the possibilities of future research and discovery; in the chapter on the harp he does put a lot of weight on these manuscripts (p245-248) but is a lot more cautious. His unfortunate quote above is likely wrong on two counts: first that the instrumental variation sets written out by Angus Fraser are most likely his own newly composed work, in a pseudo-ancient style, and second, that there is plenty of other Scottish harp music preserved, as Collinson himself describes on p.243 and as catalogued here in this section of this website.

Description at archiveshub

Editions

Simon Fraser
The Airs and Melodies Peculiar to the Highlands of Scotland And The Isles
John Gow, Edinburgh and London, 1816
A collection of song airs arranged with treble and bass.
Spiral-bound facsimile of the 1874 2nd edition
Available here from the Early Gaelic Harp Emporium. Click here to order your copy

Angus Fraser
The Angus Fraser Collection of Scottish Gaelic Airs
Taigh na Teud, Scotland, 1996
Angus worked to complete his father Simon's collections, but his manuscripts were never published. This edition by Taigh na Teud though incomplete, presents many of the tunes, given in melody line only.

Gaelic harp music in these sources

These sources are very difficult to use as sources for Gaelic harp tunes. Most of their content is Gaelic song airs, many of the older of which may have been originally sung with harp accompaniment. In both the mss and the printed book, they have been heavily arranged according to 19th century scholarly taste; the book includes lush piano basses and plenty of accidentals to push the tunes into major and minor keys, while the manuscripts have Angus Fraser's variations that he seems to have made up according to his theories of ceol mor.

Mairi Nighean Dheorsa “Grant of Sheuglies contest betwixt his Violin, Pipe & Harp”
A&M no. 3, 1816 p.12 / 1874 p.2
Other versions: Dow: Mari nighean Deorsa - Mary the Daughter of George

Tha mi mo chadal “I am asleep”
A&M no. 34, 1816 p.22 / 1874 p.12
This is Táim i mo Chodladh in Bunting ms29; Neal; Burk Thumoth etc.

Craobh na teud or The Harp Tree
TnT edition p.7 / ms part 1 no.1 / part ? no.44
A lot has been written and recorded about this tune and/or title, with speculation that it is a harper’s song air, or the oldest or the most significant, piece of ceol mor for the Gaelic harp, and that it is the missing link between early Gaelic harp music and pibroch. All of these claims may well be bogus.
Angus Fraser wrote out the tune in his manuscript “with its characteristic variations revived for the piano forte” (these variations are not printed in the TnaT edition). He seems to have combined the tune of ‘an Leannan Sìth’, with the title ‘Craobh na teud’ of a pibroch pipe tune of similar melodic shape, and to have added his own “characteristic variations”.
William Matheson in his edition of the poems of Rory Dall Morrison claimed that Rory Dall's poem ‘Féill nan Crann’ fitted both the title and the melody of ‘Craobh na teud’ (though the fit of both has been disputed)

An Caoineadh Rioghail (The Royal Lament)
TnaT edition p.15 / ms ?
Other versions: Oswald bk8 p.36: The Royall Lament; MacFarlane: The Royal Lament
Angus Fraser’s version of this tune is somewhat different from the set given by Oswald and MacFarlane, being less flowing and tune-like. In the TnaT edition, it is given as three sections which seem to me to be three of Angus Fraser’s “characteristic variations”. We may be missing the melody in this source.

Easbuig Earra-ghàidheal (The Bishop of Argyle)
TnaT edition p.69 / ms ?
Other versions: Dow: Cumh Easbig Earraghaal or Bishop of Argyle’s lament
This is a different tune to the Lament for the Bishop of Argyll in MacFarlane.

Iain Breac Mac Leoid
TnaT edition p.17 / ms part 1 no.28
Presumably a song air for Rory Dall Morison's song in praise of Iain Breac MacLeod of Dunvegan
Other versions: A version of this tune can be heard being sung in an archive recording from 1953 on Tobar an Dualchais: Margaret Ross sings “Oran do Iain Breac Mac Leòid”

A cheud di-luain de’n raidhe
TnaT edition p.58 / ms part 2 no.5
Other versions: Patrick MacDonald, no. 166
William Matheson (The Blind Harper, 1970) suggests this is the air for Rory Dall Morison’s song, A’ cheud di-liain de’n raithe

Creach na Ciadainn
A&M no.85, 1816 p.? / 1874 p.31
Other versions: archive recording of performance, SSS SA 1963.19.A2, not yet online at Tobar an Dualchais.
William Matheson (The Blind Harper, 1970) suggests this is the air for Rory Dall Morison’s song, Creach na Ciadaoin. He lists some other airs that may be connected to this song, and comments on their similarity to each other.

Far-fhuadach a chlàrsair (The harper’s dismissal)
TnaT edition p.73 / ms part 2 no.63
William Matheson (The Blind Harper, 1970) suggests this is an air for Rory Dall Morison’s song, Oran do Mhac Leoid Dhun Bheagain.

Simon Chadwick