The Fox and the Crow

Have a folk tune named after you!

The Fox and the Crow: a collection of diverse tunes composed in early folk style

I have always been an avid lover of folk music. As a performer it is something that I have always tried to keep up (all while dedicating myself to the beautiful craft of performing and composing art music; lately more so in early art music), and I find immense joy in delving deeper into the traditional music of other cultures.

The project, nay journey that I am about to undertake is one that I am extremely excited about, and it is in many ways an amalgamation of a few different paths: firstly, a young boy sitting at his record player, dissecting old recordings of The Chieftains with fiddle in hand. Secondly, a young man obsessing over old musical scores, revelling in the sheer beauty of the music and how it is engraved. And lastly, a slightly more matured composer that sees the art in the simplicity of folk music, and how powerfully emotive this music can be.

As the director of Here be Dragons early music ensemble I have composed a few pieces in the style of early traditional folk music, and having developed a taste for it I have decided to start to pen them down in a collection that I will call "The Fox and the Crow" (a nod to my first early folk piece), a faux 17th Century collection of 'traditional' pieces (these will of course all be written by me). This collection will take form as a digital publication, but at the highest tier will be offered as a limited, signed print edition.

If one pages through similar publications of the time it becomes apparent that composers of these tunes openly expressed their admiration through their music - these admirations ranged from infatuation to gratitude (from love interests to patrons), and with names like "Mrs Stewart's Jig", "Miss Gibson's Strathspey" and "The Duke of Atholl's Reel" the tunes immortalised their subject along with them.

It is my intention to dedicate the tunes from my collection to people that cross my path, and as a supporter you would naturally be such a person - I have to confess, I do have but one infatuation in my life and it would not be fair to dedicate all the tunes to her: instead I would dedicate the project to her as a whole, and leave some space for diversity in my dedications.

This will be an ongoing project, as I envision a collection of about 100 tunes. The patronage will also be tiered, and it will range from a creative mention in the book (this could be anything from and anecdotal reference in the preface to a random scribble in one of the margins) up to a tune dedication and arranged recordings for ensemble plus a signed copy of the printed collection. There will also be an option to have a tune dedicated to someone as a gift.