Annotation:Ironbridge Hornpipe (The)

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 IRONBRIDGE HORNPIPE, THE. AKA and see "Athlone Bridge (The)," "Bridge of Athlone (2) (The)." English, Hornpipe. England, Shropshire. B Flat Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB. Editor Gordon Ashman suggested in 1991 that the hornpipe may be a locally composed Shropshire tune, and suggested possible associations with an iron bridge in Colebrook Dale, Shropshire, begun in 1777 and the first bridge to be made of that metal in the world. A village that sprang up at the site of the work took its name from the structure. However, the hornpipe is known in Ireland as "Bridge of Athlone (2) (The)," and although no Irish sources have been found that predate Moore's collection, the provenance still may be Irish instead of English. It is possible that Moore's title is a miss-hearing of "Athlone Bridge Hornpipe".  Source for notated version: a c. 1837-1840 MS by Shropshire musician John Moore [Ashman].  Printed sources: Ashman (The Ironbridge Hornpipe), 1991; No. 44a, p. 16.  Recorded sources:

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