So what is this Blue Bells of Scotland, anyway?

I have posted previously about the title Blue Bells of Scotland, and its roots as, first an old Scottish air, made famous by one Mrs. Jordan's lyrics, and, later, turned into a theme and variations for trombone by the remarkable Arthur Pryor, a prodigy of the late 19th and early 20th century.

Because Blue Bells of Scotland centers on musicians, I have a Music of the Blue Bells Trilogy page at my Blue Bells Trilogy site which gives links to youtube videos for many of the pieces referenced in the book.  The first link is to a performance of the trombone solo.

However, not surprisingly for such an old piece, there are many variations of the piece, by singers and instrumentalists alike.  Nan Hawthorne, author, blogger, DJ, and songwriter, has put together a playlist of many of these versions for this week's Same Difference program.  This is a fun feature Nan runs, in which she chooses a song each week, and at specified hours during that week, plays an entire hour of that same song.  It's a lot of fun to hear all the variations on beloved pieces, and her versions of Blue Bells are bound to be very different from the trombone version I posted!  I'm looking forward to hearing them!

Check out Nan's Radio de Danann if you love Celtic music!

Here is the schedule for upcoming selections:

Week of January 22:  Bluebells of Scotland
Week of February 6:  Danny Boy
Week of February 13 -  Love Week:  Gentle Maiden
Week of February 20:  Greensleeves
Week of February 27: John Barleycorn
Week of March 6: Lark in the Clear Air
Week of March 13 - Irish Week: Foggy Dew
Week of March 20:  Paarting Glass
Week of March 27: Rising of the Moon/Wearing of the Green


The Same Difference Hour happens at:

Mondays, 9 PM Eastern, 6 PM Pacific
Wednesdays, 3 PM Eastern/Noon Pacific and a reprise at 9:30 PM Pacific
Fridays (Saturdays), 7 AM Eastern, 4 AM Pacific

And a reminder that a Smashwords edition of Blue Bells of Scotland will be given away on January 31st.  Just follow the blog to enter.

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