Annotation:Mr. Hoy—Gordon Castle

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MR. HOY--GORDON CASTLE. Scottish, Slow Air (3/4 time). F Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AB. Composed by William Marshall (1748-1833). Mr. Hoy was employed by the Duke of Gordon as his librarian and meteorologist, and knew Marshall through the latter’s capacity as Steward of the Household. Additionally, the Duke, Marshall and Hoy shared interests in books, astronomy and scientific pursuits, and Hoy was a close friend and companion to his employer. Although he came from humble beginnings, the son of a gardener on the estate of Haining, Selkirkshire, it is said money held no lure for him and that he never possessed more than two suits at any one time (Moyra Cowie, The Life and Times of William Marshall, 1999). To play the double stops noted in the tune requires going to third position on the violin.

Source for notated version:

Printed sources: Alburger (Scottish Fiddlers and Their Music), 1983; Ex. 56, p. 85. Marshall, Fiddlecase Edition, 1978; 1822 Collection, p. 51.

Recorded sources:




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