Monthly Archives: June 2019

June 2019 Tune of the Month: The Mooncoin Jig

You may be aware that I’ve been collecting and arranging tunes for the Scottish smallpipes which are applicable to those interested in playing in Irish music sessions. Most of the tunes are for A smallpipes, though no small number require you to turn your drones off as the tunes resolve on G instead of our usual A or D. In addition to that, a similar number require you to have the C natural note which uses an extra hole on smallpipe chanters as their cylindrical bore does not facilitate alternate fingerings to achieve “accidentals” (notes outside the default key). You could very heavily tape the normal C# down to C natural, but the note becomes very muted. However, for the tune of the month, I have identified The Mooncoin Jig as being one of the more behaved tunes with only a single high B that I have also taken the liberty of arranging a replacement phrase for those of us without a high B key.

The Mooncoin Jig <- pdf

You might notice in the video below that on the repeat of the first part I reverse the order of the end of the 5th bar with the beginning of the 6th bar (swapping the birl with the GDE on low A), as suggested in the notes in the sheet music (although I referenced them as the first and second bars in the pdf). The second time through the tune, in the *2nd* part: I also play the 7th bar twice (as the 6th and 7th bars) as an alternative to the high B section.

Breadalbane Component Drone Sounds by William McKenzie

Full

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

Bass

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

Tenor

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J