Annotation:Legacy (1) (The)
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LEGACY [1], THE. AKA and see "How Can We Abstain from Whisky." Scottish, Irish, English, American; Air, Jig or March. B Flat Major (Hardings): C Major (Raven): D Major (Cole): G Major (Kerr): A Major (Kennedy). Standard tuning (fiddle). AAB (Raven): AABB (Cole, Hardings, Kennedy, Kerr). The jig has wide currency in a number of countries, genres, forms and keys, although it appears to be derived from the Scots "Annotation:How Can We Abstain from Whisky." An English derivative may be seen in the morris dance tune "Constant Billy", while Irish poet Thomas Moore wrote a song to the air beginning "When in death I shall calm recline." "The Legacy" was also early employed marital use, and later as a double-jig for dancing. It appears to have been a popular marching tune in America, where it appears in James Hulbert's Complete Fifer's Museum (Greenfield, Mass., 1811), Paff's Gentleman's Amusement, No. 1 (New York, 1812), Blake's Gentleman's Amusement (Philadelphia, 1824), Blake's Martial Music of Camp Dupont (Philadelphia, 1816), and Edward Riley's Flute Melodies, vol. 1 (New York, 1814). In the Camp Dupont publication it is indicated the melody was the signal for 'doublings of the troop'. In manuscript form it can be found in the copybooks of fiddler John Fife (Perthshire and at sea, 1780-1804) and in an American commonplace book entitled "Greenfields" (now in the collection of the Litchfied, Conn., historical society). "The Legacy [1]" is also related to "St. Patrick's Day (in the Morning)."
Source for notated version:
Printed sources: Clinton (Gems of Ireland: 200 Airs), 1841; No. 18, p. 9. Cole (1000 Fiddle Tunes), 1940; p. 74. Hardings All-Round Collection, 1905; No. 172, p. 54. Harding's Original Collection (1928) and Harding Collection (1915), No. 45. P.M. Haverty (One Hundred Irish Airs vol. 1), 1858; No. 32, p. 13. Hughes (Gems from the Emerald Isle), 1867; No. 55, p. 14. Kennedy (Jigs & Quicksteps, Trips & Humours), 1997; No. 104, p. 26. Kerr (Merry Melodies), vol. 3, No. 252, p. 28. McDonald (The Gesto Collection), 1895; p. 18. Moffat (202 Gems of Irish Melody), p. 24. Raven (English Country Dance Tunes), 1984; p. 127. Robbins, 1933; No. 155. Ryan's Mammoth Collection, 1883; p. 105. Smith (Scottish Minstrel), 1820-24, vol. 4; p. 4.
Recorded sources:
See also listing at:
Jane Keefer's Folk Music Index: An Index to Recorded Sources [1]