Annotation:Delgaty Castle

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DELGATY CASTLE. Scottish, Country Dance Tune. A Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABBCCDD. Delgaty Castle was first published in 1783 by Robert Mackintosh in a collection of "Airs, Minuets, Gavotts and Reels..." described as being composed by him. Of note, the next tune in Petrie's collection is 'Monaltrie's Reel', a very similar melody to the next tune in Macintosh's, 'Monaltrie's Strahspey'. The melody also appears in the 1790 collection of Kirkmichael, Perthshire, fiddler and composer Robert Petrie (1767-1830).

Delgaty is an estate with a mansion in north Aberdeenshire, near Turriff, and holds the distinction of being Scotland's oldest lived-in castle. The castle was built around 1579, perhaps incorporating an older structure, and was originally the property of the Hays of Erroll. In 1762 it was sold to Peter Garden, Esq. of Troup; as Petrie was an employee of the Garden family at Troup, Banffshire (his 2nd Collection is dedicated to Mrs. Garden of Troup), it is likely he came into contact with the Delgaty branch of the family. It was sold to Alexander Duff (1778-1851), who long made it his residence. There are several tunes in Petrie's collections that mention Delgaty.

Source for notated version:

Printed sources: Petrie (Collection of Strathspey Reels and Country Dances), 1790; p. 15.

Recorded sources:

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