QUADRILLE MONTCALM (Montcalm's Quadrille). AKA - "Reel Montcalm." AKA and see "Clydesdale Lasses," "Cuisinière (La)," "Gigue des draveurs," "Gigue du draveurs," "Quadrille de Montcalm," "Reel dans la Cuisiniere," "Reel du lac." French-Canadian, Quadrille (2/4 time). F Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AA'BB'. General Louis-Joseph de Montcalm (1712-1759) was the commander of the French forces in Canada during the Seven Years War. After some initial success in the conflict, he was finally defeated by the British forces under James Wolfe and slain on Quebec's Plains of Abraham [1] in 1859. Montcalm is also the name of a district in Québec City, near the site of the battle. However, Allard researcher Jean Duval suggests the 'Montcalm' title may refer to the county of the same name in the Lanaudière region, but probably more likely to the Montcalm Hall, a hall located in the east of Montreal used for traditional dance events.Joseph Allard
"Quadrille Montcalm", a variant of Scottish fiddler-composer Nathaniel Gow's "Clydeside Lasses," was recorded by Quebec fiddler Joseph Allard [2] (1873-1947) for Victor in 1929, reissued by the subsidiary Bluebird Records in 1936 with the same title. Duval uncovered the recording notes from Allard's 1929 session and found that originally the title was to be "Reel du lac," but that it had been crossed out and replaced by "Quadrille Montcalm."
The 'cuisinière' titles derive from the reel's inclusion in the influential Quebecois group La Bottine Souriante's set "La cuisinière."
Additional notes Source for notated version : - Montreal fiddler Joseph Allard [Duval].
Printed sources : - Billette & Mallette (Québec Folklore vol. 2), 2004; p. 20. Cuillerier (Joseph Allard: Cinquante airs traditionnels pour violon), 1992; p. 13. Demers (1000 airs du Québec et de l'Amérique francophone), 2020; p. 177. Jean Duval (La Musique de Joseph Allard 1873-1947), 2018; No. 33, p. 17. Songer & Curley (Portland Collection vol. 3), 2015; p. 169.
Recorded sources : - Bluebird B-4876-a (78 RPM), Joseph Allard (1929).
Mille-Pattes – 675270203927, La Bottine Souriante – "En Spectacle" (1996. In set "La Cuisinière").
"Les sessions du Vices & Versa: 15e anniversaire" (2021. 2nd tune in "Ça galope pour moi").
See also listing at : Hear Joseph Allard's 1929 recording at Virtual Gramophone [3]
