Annotation:Marquis of Granby's March (1)

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MARQUIS OF GRANBY'S MARCH. AKA - "1st Troop of Horse Grenadier's March." English, Air and March (4/4 time). D Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB. A very popular fife march that appears in a great many music tutors, country dance collections, and musicians' manuscripts on both sides of the Atlantic (for listing see EASMES [1]). Early printings of the march (which dates from around 1760) can be found in Charles and Samuel Thompson's Compleat Tutor for the Fife (London, 1770), the Thompson's Thirty Favorite Marches, Book 2 (London, 1770, p. 4), and Longman, Lukey & Co.'s Compleat Instructions for the Fife (London, 1770). Simplified and set as a song, "Marquis of Granby's March" was published in London c. 1765, and begins:

To arms, to arms, to arms, my jolly grenadier,

For more on John Manners (1721-1770), Marquis of Granby, see Annotation:Marquis of Granby.

An unusual performance of the melody was noted in London's Universal Magazine (1808, p. 448):

Mr. Hall, of the City Road, having purchased several of the natural curiosities that belonged to Sir Ashton Lever's Museum, his exhibition now consists of several hundred stuffed birds, beasts, insects, and reptiles, in the highest state of preservation. In one case, a pair of goldfinches are exhibited, billing and cooing,--a bullfinch singing "Life let us cherish,"--a starling singing the "Marquis of Granby's March,"-- and a thrush his wild notes, besides a canary bird, &c.

Source for notated version:

Printed sources: Johnson (A Further Collection of Dances, Marches, Minuetts and Duetts of the Latter 18th Century), 1998; p. 6.

Recorded sources:

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