I'm no historian, so be warned! I believe there were dances known as "strathspey reels". I don't believe anyone really knows how they were danced; there are people who try to work it out.
Is it possible that reels and strathspeys were not played as differently two or three hundred years ago as they are now? E.g., it seems to be well known that strathspeys for Scottish dancing were played a good deal quicker in the early years of the 20th century than they are now. How were the reels played? Interesting example: compare the tune for the Duke of Perth in the early editions of RSCDS Book 1 with the current version; the current version is tuneful and danceable; I can't imagine what the original sounded like, if played at (about) 60 bars per minute. Another example is The Lassie Wi' the Yellow Coatie; when played as usually written at even close to the above speed, it is (to me) jittery and unpleasant, but if one doubles the number of bars (by adding an extra bar line in the middle of each in the original) and plays at the same number of _new_ bars per minute, one gets a lively, lilting tune. Peter McClure Winnipeg, MB Posted to Scots-L - The Traditional Scottish Music & Culture List - To subscribe/unsubscribe, point your browser to: http://www.tullochgorm.com/lists.html
