Most-Recorded Schottisches
The Top Ten Schottisches of the Century

Of related interest:
  • Top 100 Tunes of the Century.
  • Top Ten
  • Rhythm Distribution: How common is this rhythm (tune type) in the bigger picture of all distinct Irish tunes?
  • Recordings by Decade: A graph of the historical distribution of the recordings considered here.

This list ranks the top ten most-recorded schottisches out of the 8 distinct schottisches on the indexed recordings. The tunes are ranked in descending order of number of recordings. When tunes have the same number of recordings, tunes having the oldest recordings appear first. Note that reuses of a particular cut in later anthologies are counted, which is fair, since the popularity of a recording is a good indicator both of the popularity of the tune and of the likelihood that musicians will learn the tune from that recording.

Click Tune Info below to see tune details and sources.

RankNumber of
Recordings
Explanation
Titles used for this tune (and other notes)
15 – Tune
Info
Transcription of first 2 bars of Green Grow the Rushes OGreen Grow the Rushes O / Green Grow the Rushes-O / Green Grow the Rushes / We're a' Dry wi' Drinking o't (also as reel, also in Bb)
23 – Tune
Info
Transcription of first 2 bars of Billy Malley's SchottischeBilly Malley's Schottische / Joe Banes Scotishe (1st in set Heel and Toe on Skylrk 2)
32 – Tune
Info
Transcription of first 2 bars of Killarney Wonder SchottischeKillarney Wonder Schottische / The Killarney Wonder (2nd in set The Killarney Wonder on MC)
42 – Tune
Info
Transcription of first 2 bars of Mrs. Kenny'sMrs. Kenny's / Mrs. Kenny's Barndance / Woodland Flowers (also in Bb)
51 – Tune
Info
Transcription of first 2 bars of Farrell O'Gara SchottischeFarrell O'Gara Schottische / Hilary's Choice (1st in set The Killarney Wonder on MC)
61 – Tune
Info
Transcription of first 2 bars of Thistle and ShamrockThistle and Shamrock (1st in set)
71 – Tune
Info
Transcription of first 2 bars of Kelly'sKelly's (2nd in set Heel and Toe on Skylrk 2)
81 – Tune
Info
Transcription of first 2 bars of Very Kind and GraciousVery Kind and Gracious (composed by Grey Larsen)