Annotation:Duncan’s Dance

Back to Duncan’s Dance

---

DUNCAN'S DANCE. Scottish (originally), American; Jig (6/8 time). G Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AB. The melody was also entered into the 1784 music manuscript collection of Elisha Belknap (Framingham, Mass.), and the 1819 manuscript of John Gaylord, Jr. (""Majr. John Gaylord Jr. Owner of This Musick Book"). Drum notaton for "Duncan's Dance" was also entered into Massachusetts percussionist Levi Lovering's c. 1792-1805 commonplace book (""The Rule of the First Roll or Gamut for the Drum"). The tune, as "Dunkers Dance" is contained in the Woburn Fife Manuscript, a ms. collection inscribed with the the name Seth Johnson and "Woburn (Mass.). April 20th day, 1807. I Bought this Book, 5:3." Entries were made between 1807 and as late as 1840. The second strain of "Duncan's Dance" is cognate with the first strain of Canon James Goodman's (County Cork) "Cailleach an dilisg."

Source for notated version:

Printed sources: Aird (Selection of Scottish, English, Irish and Foreign Airs, vol. 1), 1782; No. 74, p. 26. Oswald (Caledonian Pocket Companion, Book 8), 1760; p. 7.

Recorded sources:

---