Bagpipe Music Book
Bagpipers may find themselves at this site looking for my bagpipe music manuscripts. This is an evolving electronic archive of over 100 tunes for the Great Highland Bagpipe I've written over the years.
Project Progress
Well, sort of complete...
Have a Look
FAQ
What inspired you to write music?
In 1993 I found myself in Mackay, Queensland, Australia with an urge to return to pipe bands after a short hiatus from piping.
"Oh, Danny boy, the pipes, the pipes are calling?"
Without any manuscripts or music books of my own (my father had an extensive library on the other side of the world) I turned to writing my own tunes for some fun and variety. And it turned out I was hooked.
Who taught you music?
Like most musicians, I am a musical magpie, picking up bits and pieces wherever I find them. But I have been very fortunate indeed to have had 3 very fine music teachers, covering a broad spectrum of musical styles and techniques. All 3 have left an indelible mark — each in their own unique way.
- My father, the late P/M R. H. (Bob) Martin of Boghall & Bathgate Pipe Band.
- My private tutor, the late P/M Johnny Barnes of Polkemmet Pipe Band.
- Stewart Cameron, opera singer and teacher.
The first two gave me an invaluable grounding in music and an insight into its interpretation and presentation. The third opened my eyes, and my ears, to the broader world of music.
What is the most recent edition of the book?
Edition #4, containing 105 tunes, was released on 8 May 2023. Subscribers to the book were emailed directly.
Where can I find previous editions?
The book has been released in editions, not volumes. So each edition contains the tunes from previous editions plus new content.
Will there be more tunes added?
Yes, there will be at least one more edition. I've uncovered old manuscripts from when I first started writing bagpipe music and I will resurrect some of them, and of course, add some more new material.
Is this music licensed?
Yes. The written part of this work (The Bagpipe Music Book), unless stated otherwise in any part thereof, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
What software do you use to typeset your music?
I use ABC Notation, packaged into a Mac app called EasyABC. While there are many other fine solutions, I prefer this one for its flexibility and supportive community.
Free Book Download
If you would like a copy of the current edition sent to you and to receive future edition updates, please subscribe to the Bagpipe Music Book mailing list below. You can, of course, unsubscribe at any time, but if you do you won't receive any new updates. Please note that to minimise spam, you will need to check your inbox and confirm your email address before a link to the download file will be sent to you.
A Small Request
I provide this music for free to give something back to the generous pipe band community in which I grew up. In return, all I ask is that you help me out by posting a message to your favourite social media platform or forum, encouraging people to visit this page and subscribe for their own free copy with updates. Copy this link to link to this page.
Thank you for your interest and patience, and keep on piping!
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Book Index
| TABLE OF CONTENTS | |
|---|---|
| Tune | Page |
| DANCES | |
| Amazing Grace 140º | 1 |
| One Night in Kyiv | 3 |
| HORNPIPES | |
| Aboard The Vital Spark | 4 |
| Acrobat, The | 5 |
| Back To The Bus We Go! | 6 |
| Betwixt and Between | 7 |
| Biddy Blackmore | 8 |
| Bohemian Piper | 9 |
| Braes of Fallon, The | 10 |
| Coondoo Street | 11 |
| Crusts of Salt | 12 |
| Dancing Through Cairo | 13 |
| Down The Range | 14 |
| Fortune Teller, The | 15 |
| Groovin' Green Apron, The | 16 |
| Koah Kid, The | 25 |
| Mareeba Man | 26 |
| Northlanders | 27 |
| Pocketful of Dollars | 28 |
| Red Room Rumble | 29 |
| Red Thunder | 30 |
| Tourist, The | 31 |
| Twisted Rigging | 32 |
| Victoria Street | 33 |
| Walking The Surf | 34 |
| JIGS | |
| Aboard The Vital Spark | 35 |
| Amphitheatre Ascent | 36 |
| Apothecary, The | 37 |
| Bear and The Bee, The | 38 |
| Beriozka Boys, The | 39 |
| Buchasia Beach | 40 |
| Catching Mermaids | 41 |
| Coming to The Crunch | 42 |
| Derek The Peacock | 43 |
| Down The Souk Market | 44 |
| Fortune Teller, The | 45 |
| Kick The Peever | 46 |
| Little Jammy Fingers | 47 |
| Mr Drones | 48 |
| Rhona Duncan | 49 |
| Roxy MacLean's Jig | 50 |
| Runaway Wheel, The | 51 |
| Skelpit Heid | 52 |
| Sorcerer's Secret, The | 53 |
| Two Shots of Black | 54 |
| Velvet Stingrays | 55 |
| MARCHES | |
| Barefoot Through Brisbane | 56 |
| Barefoot Through Brisbane (+ harmony) | 57 |
| Barron Falls, The | 58 |
| Basque People, The | 59 |
| Blair Stewart | 60 |
| Braes of Lochalsh, The | 61 |
| Castles in the Sky | 63 |
| Crossing The Manly Ferry | 65 |
| Doug Lawrie | 66 |
| Drums of Independence | 67 |
| Eimeo Creek | 68 |
| Finbar The Whistling Fish | 69 |
| Fourth March, The | 71 |
| Great Hall of Edinburgh Castle, The | 72 |
| Great Muster, The | 73 |
| Hills of Caravonica, The | 74 |
| Hugh Goldie's Farewell to Port Douglas | 75 |
| Kangaroo Point | 76 |
| Let's Hit The Frog And Toad | 77 |
| Lights of The Story Bridge | 78 |
| Starlight | 79 |
| Thunder Queen | 82 |
| Wee Callum Graham | 83 |
| REELS | |
| Baila Conmigo | 84 |
| Bell Ringer, The | 85 |
| Big Flit, The | 86 |
| Biscuit Reel, The | 87 |
| Boy and The Goat, The | 88 |
| Cajun Wullie | 89 |
| Donald's Other Troosers | 90 |
| Eumundi Praise | 91 |
| Fannie Korminski | 92 |
| Fields of Fire | 93 |
| Kinlodden House | 94 |
| Leaving LaLa Land | 95 |
| McTaggart's Reel | 96 |
| One Shoe Reel, The | 97 |
| Quartermaster's Reel, The | 98 |
| Rowdy's Reel | 99 |
| Roxy MacLean | 100 |
| Skipping Path, The | 101 |
| Smugglers' Train, The | 102 |
| Spinners' Night Out, The | 103 |
| Swordies, The | 104 |
| Three Sided Slide, The | 105 |
| Treadmill, The | 107 |
| Up The Shoogly Stairs | 108 |
| SLOW AIRS | |
| Amazing Grace (3 part harmony) | 109 |
| Autumn Brown | 110 |
| Children of Kyiv | 111 |
| Echoes of a Distant Land | 112 |
| Highland Whisper | 113 |
| Jessie Martin's Air | 115 |
| Protector, The | 116 |
| Quiraing | 117 |
| Voice of an Angel | 118 |
| Wee Brig, The | 119 |
| STRATHSPEYS | |
| Drovelone, The | 120 |
| Windy City | 121 |
Changes to audio
From Edition #3 onwards audio recordings of the Bagpipe Music Book will be deprecated on SoundCloud. The undressed audio might be fine for clarity or learning a tune, but it doesn't represent the way I hear or feel about the music. And this has been largely responsible for my neglecting to complete the audio recordings for the latest editions. For me, the difference is like Black and White Television vs Colour Television. I know which one I prefer.
So from now on, I will be doing all-new recordings of bagpipe tunes in dressed arrangements – bagpipe music in the context I hear it – and the tracks will be made available via Spotify.
Old audio
The 40 or so bagpipe recordings on SoundCloud for Edition #2 will also be rearranged and recorded in dressed format – slowly but surely – and transferred over to Spotify.
In the meantime, for all the Black and White buffs out there, the original Edition #2 recordings can still be found on SoundCloud.