Annotation:Marquis of Huntly's Highland Fling (1) (The)
X:1 T:Marquiss [sic] of Huntly's fling [1] M:C| L:1/8 R:Country Dance B:Preston's 24 Country Dances for the Year 1796 Z:AK/Fiddler's Companion K:D A|d<df>d g>ef>d|B<Be>B c>AA>c|d<df>d g<ef>d|B>e d/c/B/A/ d2D:| |:B|A>D F/E/D A>Bd>f|g>ef>d e>dB>d|A>D F/E/D A>B d>b|a>fe>f d2:|]
MARQUIS OF HUNTLEY'S HIGHLAND FLING [1], THE. See "Flax in Bloom (The)," "Maids of Erin (The)." Scottish, Strathspey or Fling. D Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AB (Surenne, White): AABB (Alburger, Balmoral, Emmerson, Gow, Johnson/Cooper, Kennedy, Martin, Skye): AABB' (Athole): AABBCCDD (Martin). Composed by George Jenkins Sr. who was a friend or at least a correspondent of the Gows (perhaps, like them, from Perthshire, although his country of origin is obscure). He is recorded to have been a teacher of "Scotch Dancing" in London about the year 1794, and was sometimes employed by the Duchess of Gordon. He died in 1798[1]. One of his sons was also named George, and was, like his father a dancer and dancing master. The Kentish Gazette of May 8, 1792, recorded that at the Duchess of Gordon's Ball: "the two young Jenkins's, hbited in the garb of their country, were called on for a Scots dance, which they executed with universal applause; this was followed....with a much admired Scots measure by the elder Jenkins"<ref>Quoted by Paul Cooper, "Paper 22: Nathaniel Gow (1763-1831)" [1], accessed 8/7/2020.<ref>.
The tune, the title of which was the first use of the term 'Highland fling', appears in his First Collection of New Scotch Music &c. of 1793, dedicated to the Prince of Wales. It also appears in Issac Cooper of Banff's (b. 1755-d. 1804, 1806, 1810 or 1811, although sometimes the year of his death is given as late as 1820) Collection of Strathspeys, Reels and Irish Jigs for the Piano-Forte & Violin to which are added Scots, Irish & Welch Airs Composed and Selected by I. Cooper at Banff (London, Edinburgh, c. 1806). Christine Martin (2002) says the Highland Fling is the oldest Highland dance, and is said to have been based on the rutting of stags (and as such, is related to fertility dances). The Gows published it in Repository, Part Second, usually dated 1802, although the Purdie edition contains the note that it was composed by "the late Mr. Geo. Jenkins," leading one to believe the publication date for that edition was older then 1804. Jenkins composed a few good reels and strathspeys, but John Glen (1895) was of the opinion that "a number of his tunes do not possess the true Scottish character."
Canon biography:James Goodman's "Maids of Erin (The)" is a version of "Marquis of Huntley's Highland Fling [1]" with the parts reversed. The second part of the tune appears as the first part of the Irish "Denis Murphy's Slide (1)", as it does in the reel "Flax in Bloom (The)."
- ↑ Oxford Journal, March 17th, 1798.