Annotation:Braye's Maggot
X:1 T:Braye’s Maggot M:9.8 L:1/8 R:Country Dance Tune B:Thomas Bray – “Country Dances” (London, 1699) N:The volume was dedicated to the 10 yr. old Duke of N:Gloucester, William Henry, son of Queen Anne. N:Bray was a theatrical dancer and dancing master in N:London in the 1690’s. Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion K:A AcA ecA BGE|AcA ecA B2E2|Acf ecf eca|ecf ece a2c:| dfd afd ecA|dfd afd e2A|dfd afd|ecA|dfd afd e2c| dfd ecd BcA|BFB FBA G2E|AcA ecf eca|ecf ece !fermata!a2 A||
BRAYE'S MAGGOT. English, Jig (9/8 time). A Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AAB. The tune and dance of the same name are attributed to dancing master Thomas Bray, who created dances (and danced them!) for the theatrical stage. Bray was a dancing master for the United Company from 1689-94, afterwards moving to Lincoln's Inn Fields with Thoms Betterton's company; he came into contact with some of the most famous composers and actors of the age. His country dance collection was printed in 1699 by William Pearson, "Sold by Mr. Plaiford (i.e Henry Playford) at the Temple Change, Fleet Street," dedicated to the ten-year-old Prince William Henry, Duke of Gloucester. The Prince was the only child of Queen Anne's to survive infancy and a great favorite at court, but he too died just after his eleventh birthday.
A 'maggot' was a small tune, a 'fancy' or 'trifle', from the Italian word magioletta, for 'plaything'.