Barsanti, Francesco - A collection of old scots tunes - Soprano recorder and Basso continuo

In 1742 Barsanti published a collection of Scottish melodies to which he had added a general bass (A Collection of old Scots Tunes, With the Bass for Violoncello or Harpsichord).

The old folk music of Scotland follows the pentatonic system, which is difficult to force into the major-minor system otherwise used in Europe. Barsanti, however, actually succeeds in writing his basses in a reasonably unforced manner. The harmonies he finds for the melody always seem quite natural, and he thus lives up to his claim that this undertaking "should not be contrary to the taste of the ancestors".
This edition is for soprano recorder and basso continuo.

To explain the special ornamentation marks, the Rules for Graces from The Harpsichord Master (1697) by Henry Purcell are added.