Free Fiddle Sheet Music
& Guitar Tabs
Mari's Wedding
Free fiddle sheet music "Mari's Wedding" (also known as "Mairi's Wedding") is a traditional Scottish song for fiddle and guitar.
Download two versions with easy guitar tabs for your students, and A NEW ARRANGEMENT with lyrics for singers!
Please scroll down the page for the download links.
Here is a fine version of this song by The High Kings (with a long intro... the real music starts at around 30 seconds):
The High Kings is an Irish group, singing a Scottish song.
This song has a repeating, predictable, and yet engaging tune that even beginning singers can pick up easily.
As you can see above, I doubled the timing for the sake of beginners who do not read well. I have a few young students who struggle with timing, and this approach works with them.
Now here is a version of Mari's Wedding with standard notation plus guitar tabs:
Please scroll down the page for the download links.
Good chord practice
This cute Scottish song uses the same guitar chord progression as "I Love the Mountains": G - Em - C - D (or D7).
This is a great exercise for beginner guitar players just starting the "big" G and C chords... I like to set a goal of playing this set of chords with eyes closed, moving from G to Em, then C and D7 with one finger down on the guitar neck at all times (a different finger with each chord).
An easy-to-count approach
Below is the easy-to-read version of the free fiddle sheet music Mari's Wedding, with double-time notes for beginning fiddlers and guitar players.
I have found that beginning players do very well counting rhythms in this manner that would otherwise be beyond their ability.
(However, if you want to focus on FLAT-PICKING, then it really is more useful to use the version with eighth notes, above. Students can quickly point out the places where UPSTROKES must occur, and you can place a mark there to help the memory.)
Please scroll down the page for the download links.
Guitar & violin duet tips
If fiddle and guitar want to play together, but the guitarist wants the fun of flat-picking, then have your beginning violinist drone on the chord tones, using a single note. Softly!
For those teachers who may be unfamiliar with violin techniques, that just means the fiddler will stay all on one note, drawing the bow for the duration of that harmony.
Measure one needs a G chord, so it is easy to "drone" on the open G string.
On the next chord, Em, have the violinist play finger one on the D string for the E drone, not the open E string, which is high and far away from the previous drone note.
Make it part of a medley
Some of my students (part of a group called "The Fiddleheads" here locally) played Mari's Wedding as the second half of a medley, the first half being "Swampwalk" from The American Fiddle Method Book 2. The two pieces are a nice contrast to each other, and were a hit at the Alaska Folk Festival we participated in (I got to play the bass!).
Your students will enjoy this free fiddle sheet music, whether they play fiddle, guitar, or mandolin!
The links to the sheet music PDFs:
Download Mari's Wedding melody with lyrics for singers
Download free fiddle sheet music Mari's Wedding, with guitar tabs
Download fiddle music Mari's Wedding with doubled time
More Folk Songs to Sing:
Ae Fond Kiss - a love song about saying goodbye, from Scotland
All the Pretty Little Horses - a soft and repetitious lullaby, quite pretty
Ash Grove - a famous and lovely song from Wales
Auld Lang Syne - the New Year's Eve song!
Colorado Trail Song - an American tune written by a real cowboy
Come By the Hills - another popular Irish melody
Down By the Salley Gardens - a famous and pretty song, very sweet
Green Bushes - a brisk little song that is pretty while being good for breath control training
Grenadier and the Lady - my favorite folk song of all. Find out why
I Gave My Love a Cherry - the "Riddle Song" is very pretty
Loch Lomond - the famous and sad song about never meeting again
Mari's Wedding - a singable tune with bouncy chords that is fun to play or sing
Minstrel Boy - a lovely and patriotic song about a warrior-poet
Molly Bawn - a sad story of a young hunter who thought he was shooting at a swan
Morning Has Broken - a beautiful melody made famous again by Cat Stevens
Once I Had a Sweetheart - "but now I have none!" Very pretty, and little-known.
Parting Glass - a well-known Irish tune which my singers always love
Raggle-Taggle Gypsies - a story about a young bride who abandons her wealthy new husband to go off with the gypsies. A catchy melody!
Scarborough Fair - an old and famous tune of lost love
Shenandoah - a famous and lovely American tune with ambiguous lyrics
Skye Boat Song - a pretty song from Scotland about the escape of Bonnie Prince Charlie over the sea
Spanish Ladies - a minor key sea chanty that swings energetically along - BOYS like singing it too!
The Spanish Lady - Upbeat and energetic, this Irish song is fun to perform with a group
Star of the County Down - LOTS of fun to sing and play! An excellent ensemble piece
The Wellerman - a sea chanty that is very singable, and very fun!
Dianna:
Your website is a light in the darkness. THANK YOU for all you do in helping to spread the love of music. It matters!
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Comments
Do you have a funny story about this music, or does it remind you of something you'd like to share with other readers? Do you have a question? I'd love to hear it!
Please note that all comments are moderated, and will not appear until I have approved them. Also, IF YOU ARE ASKING FOR MUSIC THAT IS NOT IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN, YOUR REQUEST WILL BE IGNORED. That's pretty much any music written in the last 75 years...
About the Author
Hi, I'm Dana! (Say that like "Anna".) I'm the owner of Music-for-Music-Teachers.com, and a newer site, SingTheBibleStory.com.
Like some of you, I've been playing the piano since early childhood, and have added a few other instruments along the way, plus an interest in arranging and composing music.
You can find out more about me and the reason for this website at my About Me page.
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