The Oban Times, 13 October, 1915
The Bagpipe
9 November, 1915
Sir,–As regards sol-fa-ing pibrochs, I find it quite simple if one has the keynote. Thus “Patrick Og” on G is quite easy. If one did not know the keynote (G) and thought it was a tune in A, because played on an instrument whose greatest scope of notes was A scale with flat seven, one would come to grief.
As all bagpipe music is only in a compass of nine notes, it could all be very conveniently written in sol-fa notation, with appropriate signs for the grace notes. Were the drone harmony in the present example on G, the effect would be better all through, but with present fixed A drones, this is difficult.–I am, etc.,
J. C.
