Annotation:Beau Stratagem (The)

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BEAU STRATAGEM, THE. AKA - "The Beaux' Stratagem." English, Country Dance Tune (2/2 time). A Minor. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB. The French word 'beau' became a nickname for eighteenth century dandified men, especially after a rage for English fashions swept the Continent. The tune was printed in later editions of Playford. The Beaux' Strategem was a play by George Farquhar, published in 1707, that presents a "terrible indictment on love and marriage" in a era when divorces were difficult or impossible to gain, and in which women could be left destitute because of property laws. The melody (as "Beaus Stratagem") was published in the 1718 and 1728 editions of John Young's The Dancing Master (London).

Printed sources:

Source for notated version: Williamson (English, Welsh, Scottish and Irish Fiddle Tunes), 1976; p. 35.

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