Annotation:72nd's Farewell to Aberdeen (The)

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X: 1 T: the 72nd Highlanders' Farewell to Aberdeen T: the Boy's Lament for his Dragon C: William Mackay (c.1885) B: William Ross's Collection of Pipe Music, 1885 N: Earliest known publication: "72nd's Farewel to Aberdeen (The)" in Ross's 1885 collection. R: march Z: 2006 John Chambers <jc:trillian.mit.edu> B: Queen's Own M: C| L: 1/8 F:http://www.john-chambers.us/~jc/music/abc/march/72nd_Highlanders_Farewell_to_Aberdeen-D-32-2.abc K: D A2 \ | "D"A2d2 d2ef | "A7"gfed "D"f4 | "G"g2B2 B2cd | "E7"efed "A7"c2A2| "D"A2d2 d2ef | "A7"gfed "D"f4 | "G"g2B2 "A7"cdec | "D"d4 d2 :| |: fg \ | "D"a2A2 "D7"A2=c2 | "G"B2G2 "A7"A4 | "D"A2d2 "Bm"ABde | "E7"f2e2 "A7"e2fg| "D"a2A2 "D7"A2=c2 | "G"B2G2 "A7"A4 | "D"A2d2 "A7"fedc | "D"d4 d2 :|

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SEVENTY SECOND'S (72nd's) FAREWELL TO ABERDEEN, THE. AKA and see “Boy’s Lament for his Dragon (The).” Scottish, March (cut time). D Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB. The debate between what is the proper name for this tune continues, as does who composed it. The march was composed as “Boy’s Lament for his Kite (The)” by William MacKay according to Donald MacPhee’s A Selection of Music for the Highland Bagpipes (c. 1876-1880) and David Glen’s Edinburgh Collection of Highland Bagpipe Music, Book 1 (1903). However, the march contemporaneously appears as “The Royal Highlander’s Farewell to Aberdeen” in Uilleam Ross’s c. 1880’s collection, and as “The 72nd’s Farewell to Aberdeen” in Logan’s Complete Tutor for the Highland Bagpipe(c. 1901, where it is attributed to N. Mathieson)”.

The 72nd Regiment was the 1st Battalion of the Seaforth Highlanders (prior to the 19th century reorganization known as the Ross-Shire Buffs and the Duke of Albany’s). The first battalion were men recruited from the east coast of Scotland, who were sent overseas to China from Aberdeen, occasioning the title of the march.