Annotation:Mrs. J.F. Gordon of Balmuir's Strathspey
X:1 % T:Mrs. J.F. Gordon of Balmuir's Strathspey M:C L:1/8 R:Strathspey B:Gow & Shepherd - Collection of entirely original strathspey, reels, marches, quicksteps etc. (1796, p. 7) Z:AK/Fiddler's Companion K:G g|d<GTB>G A>DDg|d<GTB>G de/f/gd|egdg aAAB|G>G Td>B d2d:| |:d|Tg>db>d aAAd|Tg>db>d g>db>d|Tg>db>d a>AAB|G>G Td>B d2d:|
MRS. J.F. GORDON OF BALMUIR'S STRATHSPEY. Scottish, Strathspey (whole time). G Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB. The strathspey was published by the Edinburgh music publishing firm of Nathaniel Gow and William Shepherd in a volume entitled A Collection of Entirely Original Strathspey Reels, Marches, Quick Steps &c. (1797, p. 7), "by Ladies resident in a remote part of the Highlands of Scotland, as corrected by Nath. Gow." Unfortunately, the composers names are not given. The Leeds antiquarian Frank Kidson (1854–1926) penciled a note in his copy of the volume that the composers were, or included, “the Misses Whyte,” and modern researcher Charles Gore thinks “the Misses Whyte” may possibly be a Miss White and a Miss Brocky, of Morayshire, east Highlands.
James Farquhar Gordon was the eldest son (and one of twelve children) of John Gordon of Balmuir, writer to the Signet. He married, in Nov., 1797, Miss Lillias Hunter, third daughter of Charles Hunter, Esq. of Burnside (which would give the Shepherd and Gow publication a date of no earlier than 1797), who is the 'Mrs. J.F. Gordon' of this strathspey.