Frances Wilkins | University of Aberdeen (original) (raw)
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Books by Frances Wilkins
This dissertation is the culmination of a three year research project into sacred singing among e... more This dissertation is the culmination of a three year research project into sacred singing among evangelical Christians living in North-East Scottish and Northern Isles coastal communities. The exact geographical area in question was the stretch of coastline
between Aberdeen and Wick, and the Orkney and Shetland Islands. The aim of this has been to record and analyze current practices, placing them historically and contemporaneously within the faith communities and understanding them in their social and cultural contexts. The pivotal role of sacred music in the community was researched, along with the meaning of the music to the participants, and its role in constructing
personal and group identity. Religious traditions and fishing heritage have been explored with particular reference to the construction of a distinctive ’soundscape’. As far as
possible, examples of sacred singing outside church worship have been documented including singing in the workplace, in the home, and in the public sphere.
Papers by Frances Wilkins
Routledge eBooks, Aug 9, 2023
Folk Music Journal, Feb 1, 2017
University of Aberdeen, Elphinstone Institute eBooks, 2010
Yearbook for Traditional Music, 2011
MUSICultures, Oct 25, 2013
Folk Music Journal, 2015
The Voice of the People. Ed. Reg Hall. CD. Topic Records TSCD678, 2014. [pounds sterling]12.00. [... more The Voice of the People. Ed. Reg Hall. CD. Topic Records TSCD678, 2014. [pounds sterling]12.00. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] With excellent packaging, extensive sleeve notes, and thirty-three diverse musical offerings, this CD is a valuable and informative addition to Topic Records' Voice of the People series and a welcome contribution to scholarship on Orcadian music. The music, selected and presented by Reg Hall, is from Peter Kennedy's collection of field recordings made during a visit to Orkney in 1955 while working for the BBC and EFDSS. Along with its notes, this volume complements other collections of Orcadian music, most notably Alan Bruford's field recordings of songs, stories, and tunes made in the 1960s. (1) The main difference between the two is that this collection comprises specifically dance music performed on fiddle, accordion, guitar, and tin whistle, both solo and in various combinations. Soloists, including John Fraser (fiddle) and Peter Pratt (tin whistle and fiddle), are presented alongside fiddle and accordion groups, including the Garson Trio and Anderson Brothers Band, and the fiddle orchestra sound of the Orkney Strathspey and Reel Society. The notes comprise an introduction to the series, a historical overview of Orcadian music and dance, and an account of Kennedy's visit to the islands. The text offers a concise history of folk revival and folk song .collecting, and a discussion of the practitioners involved. Hall .describes part of the motivation behind the series as to 'shift the emphasis away from the values of the folk-song collectors and to present traditional music in its own right, reflecting its history, social contexts and the values of its practitioners' (p. 4). The music, described by one musician as made by people 'with dirt under their finger nails', (2) is reflective not only of the repertoire of an era but also of the cultural context within which it was practised and performed. Hall explains that the recordings chosen represent 'cultures that have passed or are passing rapidly' .(p. 8), elaboratin.g that, in terms of meaning and significance of the tunes, listeners will find it increasingly difficult to grasp the nature and quality of the lives of the performers, making it clear that the recordings do not make up for the live performance. A section on Orkney, which includes long quotations from the works of the Fleas and John Firth, (3) gives a wealth of information on the history of music and dance in the islands. It includes detailed descriptions of various aspects of a wedding, including the concluding dance, called 'Bobadybouster' in Orkney. The section includes accounts of the changes that took place in Orcadian dance music during the twentieth century, especially as a result of the influence of Jimmy Shand, who toured the island in 1948, and the formation of the Orkney Strathspey and Reel Society, also in 1948. The written section on Kennedy's visit to Orkney gives a real sense of the excitement of field collecting. …
MUSICultures, Oct 25, 2013
Fiddle music and dancing have formed a major component of the social lives of the Algonquian Firs... more Fiddle music and dancing have formed a major component of the social lives of the Algonquian First Nations Cree population living in the James Bay region of Ontario and Québec since the instrument and its associated repertoire were introduced to the region by British (and most notably Scottish) employees of the Hudson's Bay Company who travelled across the Atlantic on ships from the late 17th to the 20th century. Based on archival research and ongoing fieldwork in the region since 2011, this article aims to explore this transatlantic musical migration from the British Isles to James Bay and the reshaping of Scottish fiddle music and dance through indigenization and incorporation into the Cree cultural milieu. By examining this area of cultural flow, the article seeks to engage with current themes in ethnomusicology on the subject and add to the growing body of knowledge surrounding them.
Atlantic Sounds: Ships and Sailortowns International Conference, 2015
This dissertation is the culmination of a three year research project into sacred singing among e... more This dissertation is the culmination of a three year research project into sacred singing among evangelical Christians living in North-East Scottish and Northern Isles coastal communities. The exact geographical area in question was the stretch of coastline
between Aberdeen and Wick, and the Orkney and Shetland Islands. The aim of this has been to record and analyze current practices, placing them historically and contemporaneously within the faith communities and understanding them in their social and cultural contexts. The pivotal role of sacred music in the community was researched, along with the meaning of the music to the participants, and its role in constructing
personal and group identity. Religious traditions and fishing heritage have been explored with particular reference to the construction of a distinctive ’soundscape’. As far as
possible, examples of sacred singing outside church worship have been documented including singing in the workplace, in the home, and in the public sphere.
Routledge eBooks, Aug 9, 2023
Folk Music Journal, Feb 1, 2017
University of Aberdeen, Elphinstone Institute eBooks, 2010
Yearbook for Traditional Music, 2011
MUSICultures, Oct 25, 2013
Folk Music Journal, 2015
The Voice of the People. Ed. Reg Hall. CD. Topic Records TSCD678, 2014. [pounds sterling]12.00. [... more The Voice of the People. Ed. Reg Hall. CD. Topic Records TSCD678, 2014. [pounds sterling]12.00. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] With excellent packaging, extensive sleeve notes, and thirty-three diverse musical offerings, this CD is a valuable and informative addition to Topic Records' Voice of the People series and a welcome contribution to scholarship on Orcadian music. The music, selected and presented by Reg Hall, is from Peter Kennedy's collection of field recordings made during a visit to Orkney in 1955 while working for the BBC and EFDSS. Along with its notes, this volume complements other collections of Orcadian music, most notably Alan Bruford's field recordings of songs, stories, and tunes made in the 1960s. (1) The main difference between the two is that this collection comprises specifically dance music performed on fiddle, accordion, guitar, and tin whistle, both solo and in various combinations. Soloists, including John Fraser (fiddle) and Peter Pratt (tin whistle and fiddle), are presented alongside fiddle and accordion groups, including the Garson Trio and Anderson Brothers Band, and the fiddle orchestra sound of the Orkney Strathspey and Reel Society. The notes comprise an introduction to the series, a historical overview of Orcadian music and dance, and an account of Kennedy's visit to the islands. The text offers a concise history of folk revival and folk song .collecting, and a discussion of the practitioners involved. Hall .describes part of the motivation behind the series as to 'shift the emphasis away from the values of the folk-song collectors and to present traditional music in its own right, reflecting its history, social contexts and the values of its practitioners' (p. 4). The music, described by one musician as made by people 'with dirt under their finger nails', (2) is reflective not only of the repertoire of an era but also of the cultural context within which it was practised and performed. Hall explains that the recordings chosen represent 'cultures that have passed or are passing rapidly' .(p. 8), elaboratin.g that, in terms of meaning and significance of the tunes, listeners will find it increasingly difficult to grasp the nature and quality of the lives of the performers, making it clear that the recordings do not make up for the live performance. A section on Orkney, which includes long quotations from the works of the Fleas and John Firth, (3) gives a wealth of information on the history of music and dance in the islands. It includes detailed descriptions of various aspects of a wedding, including the concluding dance, called 'Bobadybouster' in Orkney. The section includes accounts of the changes that took place in Orcadian dance music during the twentieth century, especially as a result of the influence of Jimmy Shand, who toured the island in 1948, and the formation of the Orkney Strathspey and Reel Society, also in 1948. The written section on Kennedy's visit to Orkney gives a real sense of the excitement of field collecting. …
MUSICultures, Oct 25, 2013
Fiddle music and dancing have formed a major component of the social lives of the Algonquian Firs... more Fiddle music and dancing have formed a major component of the social lives of the Algonquian First Nations Cree population living in the James Bay region of Ontario and Québec since the instrument and its associated repertoire were introduced to the region by British (and most notably Scottish) employees of the Hudson's Bay Company who travelled across the Atlantic on ships from the late 17th to the 20th century. Based on archival research and ongoing fieldwork in the region since 2011, this article aims to explore this transatlantic musical migration from the British Isles to James Bay and the reshaping of Scottish fiddle music and dance through indigenization and incorporation into the Cree cultural milieu. By examining this area of cultural flow, the article seeks to engage with current themes in ethnomusicology on the subject and add to the growing body of knowledge surrounding them.
Atlantic Sounds: Ships and Sailortowns International Conference, 2015
West Highland Free Press, 2020
Join researchers from the Universities of Aberdeen and Stirling as they share how findings from a... more Join researchers from the Universities of Aberdeen and Stirling as they share how findings from a multi-disciplinary project
conducted on the Island of Eigg are providing unique insights into the historical use of sound and landscape in this area. We’ll explore the reconstruction of these funerary traditions through photography, videography, and soundscapes accompanying the talk. The accompanying exhibition runs until Christmas.
The lecture and exhibition are free.