Mrs MacLeod of Raasay
The group performing activity may be played on a variety of instruments and
the Scots or Gaelic lyrics (or diddling syllables) can be used as a vocal part.
Alternatively, play the tune as a solo or unison piece with melody only, or
simply add a drone on the keynote.
Before attempting to perform Mrs MacLeod, pupils should listen to the single line performance of the reel on the fiddle. Discuss features of the tune and the concepts it illustrates (shown on the score), taking special note of stylistic aspects such as phrasing, ornamentation and tempo. Ideally, all pupils should then sing over the melody, to become more thoroughly familiar with the tune before attempting to play it.
The countermelody part has sections where chords of two notes are shown. Teachers should use their discretion here; if the part is being played on tuned percussion then pupils should be encouraged to play both notes with two beaters; if playing a melody instrument which can only play one note at once, then the upper or lower note should be played (or both if there are enough pupils able to share this part); upper strings playing this part might double stop these chords.