The Bride of Lammermoor

Sir Walter Scott was ailing when he wrote The Bride of Lammermoor and referred to it as dismal. Fortunately, Scott worked very quickly and the novel was sent to the publisher before he could scrap it and we can still enjoy the work in print and on stage. One of my favorite scenes in all of opera is the Sextet from Donizetti's opera, but here are two links to share a few moments of the many hours of sheer joy provided by the talent of a great singer who is no longer with us.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xToxhv_Y9nc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2X1cGPpiBGU

The Sad Demise of Lowland Malts

In 1974, there were fourteen Lowland malts available to blenders:

Auchmtoshan, Auchtermuchty (closed 1926), Auchtertool (closed 1927), Bankier (closed 1928), Bladnoch (closed 1993), Glenkinchic, Inverleven (closed 1991), Kinclaith (closed 1992), Ladyburn, Littlemill (closed 1993), Provanmill (closed 1929), Rosebank (closed 1993) and St Magdalene (closed 1983).

Glengoyne, on Loch Lomond, is also listed as a Lowland, although its current owners prefer to call it a Highland.

Glenkinchie and Auchentoshan remain. Join us for a Scotch and Murder Mystery evening to sample some of Scotland's finest products. R.S.V.P. by invitation only or start your own Scotch tasting club with an evening of spirited gaming.

This week's book is The Talisman by Sir Walter Scott. Have you read it? If you have attention deficit disorder because of our media oriented society, watch King Richard and the Crusaders with Rex Harrison in celebration of Sir Walter Scott's birthday on August 15th. Toast the great bard with a wee dram of GlenKinchie.

Scotch Tasting

There are now less than 100 distilleries in Scotland out of approximately 800 constructed. Have your friends over for a wee dram and support an important part of Scotland's economy. We just had our second scotch tasting here in Jacksonville and sampled seven malts:
Scapa Flow 16 year old
Isle of Jura 10 year old
Ledaig Isle of Mull 10 year old
The Arran Malt 10 year old
Talisker 10 year old
Highland Park 1985 19 year old
Laphroaig 18 year old
Do the Orcadians really not consider themselves to be Scots? That would be too bad because the Highland Park 1985 was most excellent.

Ivanhoe

Did you know an American was the model for the heroine of Scott's Ivanhoe? Read the blog post at http://blog.loa.org/2010/07/washington-irving-and-model-for-rebecca.html

Brownie of Bodsbeck

The Brownie of Bodsbeck is James Hogg's first novel and is set in the 17th century when the Covenanters were hiding from the king's forces during what is know as the killing times. This book not only depicts an important period of Scottish history but also provides an excellent portrait of rural life and folklore.
Brownies are peculiar to Scotland and England and can be very helpful if treated properly. Feed your brownie cookies and milk and your housework will be done for you leaving you time to read this excellent book.

The Talisman by Sir Walter Scott

The works of Sir Walter Scott spawned plays, operas and musical works which filled theaters around the world in the nineteenth century. The plays themselves were similar to the musicals of the 1950s with songs and sword play which could still appeal to the current audiences if only a playwright or screenwriter would be so inclined (Rob Roy was immortalized by Scott and the most recent film about this highland rogue had one of the best sword fights in the history of film). The Jacksonville Scottish Country Dancers will celebrate Scott's birthday in August with dancing, food, piping and a film based on The Talisman.

Hebridean Weaving Lilt

A few years ago the Scottish Country Dance teacher in Jacksonville moved. Even though I had many years experience as a professional ballet dancer and as an open level Highland Dancer, my experience with this form of dance was very minimal. Nevertheless, I volunteered to teach classes while learning the formations, patterns, music, etc. Fortunately my wife had a music degree from Columbia University and gradually took over the bulk of the teaching as I developed my knowledge of this form of dance. We now have a growing class which frequently has enough dancers weekly for two sets and there are three teens who are earning school credit by taking our classes.
The Hebridean Weaving Lilt was the first dance I learned 25 years ago while performing in Scotland. This was long before I ever took Scottish Country Dancing and did not realize it had very unique characteristics and seldom appeared on dance programs. I saved it from the dance wraith yesterday by teaching it in Jacksonville.