I ran across an interesting Robert Baille music project by Shane Lestideau of the Evergreen Ensemble (Australia)!

Introducing Wintergarden Fantasias - Shane Lestideau & Donald Nicolson. 

Violinist and fiddler Shane Lestideau explores the Baillie Collection: Scottish fiddle music played in Australia in the early 1900s. This is the music that brightened the days of Australian communities before the advent of recordings, blending virtuosic showmanship with beloved Scottish tunes. Played on a fiddle that had been part of the Baillie family for generations, this album recreates the soundworld of the travelling entertainer and the delight of those who came to hear it.

Robert ‘Ballantyne’ Baillie was a Scottish musician who emigrated to Australia in 1912, bringing with him the music of four generations of Baillie violinists. Lestideau stumbled across this precious collection of manuscripts during a fellowship at the National Library of Australia, and knew immediately that these treasures needed to be heard again. ‘The music is absolutely unique,’ she says, ‘and, to the best of my knowledge, no-one has recorded anything like it in Australia before. I describe it as “Fritz Kreisler meets James Scott Skinner”: virtuosic Romantic music mixed with a peated dash of Scottish fiddle flair.’

The violin Lestideau performs on here was gifted to her by Baillie’s son. Made in 1777 [Germany], it has a warm, grainy tone perfect for this style of intimate chamber music, and carries the signs of many years of music-making – the bow still bears the indents of Ballantyne Baillie’s fingers.

Shane Lestideau, playing the 1777 Carl Schneider model violin formerly owned by R. Baillie - 'Selection of Scotch Airs, Annie Laurie'. 

This is an informal recording - not the CD track, no piano accompaniment. 

Your Loving Father - Shane Lestideau Solos Album, 19 track Playlist 

One of the special things about the 'Your Loving Father' album is that the 19 tracks were paired with historical instruments and bows best suited to draw out the unique characteristics of the pieces themselves. Tunes from the 18thC were played on a baroque violin and with a baroque bow, those from the 19thC were played on transitional, gut-strung instruments, and the pieces composed with the sound of the bagpipe in mind were played on violin d'amore and viola d'amore (their sympathetic strings helping to imitate the drones of the pipes). This album explores the solo violin music of the Baillie Collection and the compositions of four generations of Baillie violinists are featured. 

Your Loving Father - Presentation of Fiddles, Shane Lestideau 

THIS IS WHERE THINGS GET VERY INTERESTING!  YOU see what I see (starting at 2:33)?

The Original owner of the double-string violin: Iain Criathrar (John Crerar), A Highland Perthshire Fiddle Player 1750-1840). 

Jonnie Cope

I have heard several versions of 'Jonnie Cope', that I really like - but this tune has a very strange history - Johnny Cope. 

Just wanted to share a short of Shane Lestideau playing the double-stringed violin (she uses to play some of the Robert Baillie arrangments) - I mentioned earlier. 

Playing John Crerar's violin and reel

This unusual 7-string violin is believed to have been owned by John Crerar (Iain Criathrar), born around 1750 in Scotland and a student of Neil Gow. It found its way to Australia in recent times, as did a 19thC manuscript copy of his Marquis of Tullybardin reel in the collection of an unrelated fiddler. Through a long string of coincidences I was able to bring the two together!