New (sic) Tunes

Last night we had the second session with the new band tunes. Some of us have played the strathspey before but not in a few years. Why is it that even though I have so far forgotten the tune that I need the written music for every part, yet the mistakes are still there right where they always used to be. You’d think I’d have to learn those afresh, too, now wouldn’t you.

Some of last year’s tunes will, I think, go into my permanent repertoire whatever the band does. Loch Ruan is actually a pretty little tune. But we have hammered it to death. I really don’t want to hear it again. But I doubt it will ever go away, no matter how hard I try. Like some of those commercial jingles of my youth. (Has anybody else ever noticed that the old Pepsodent theme “You’ll wonder where the yellow went. . . .” is actually a strathspey? Try it; it is. It seems to be a slightly re-arranged “Roes Amang the Heather”.) And Royal Scots Polka is a knock-out tune. That one is definitely staying alive.