The Dan R. MacDonald Memorial Prize for Best Senior Fiddle is named after Dan Rory MacDonald of Inverness County on Cape Breton Island. He became one of Cape Breton’s most prolific composers of fiddle tunes. Usually known as “Dan R.”, MacDonald took an early interest in music, encouraged by his fiddle-playing father. He made his first radio appearance in 1935, the next year he composed his first tune – a reel called The Red Shoes. Although Dan R. had a reputation as an outstanding fiddler, people remember him best for his composing. He estimated in the early 1970s that he had written over two thousand tunes. Many of his compositions have become part of the “standard” Cape Breton repertoire. Two published volumes of Dan R.’s compositions exist: The Heather Hill Collection and The Trip to Windsor Collection.
The Robert Burns Society of Charleston Inc. is recognized as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization committed to celebrating and sustaining Scottish-American heritage in the South Carolina Lowcountry. This commitment includes the promotion of historical awareness, cultural expression, and military traditions associated with Scotland. The Society fulfills its mission by hosting educational and cultural activities, supporting the mastery of traditional Scottish arts—such as Highland Bagpiping, Highland Dance, Scottish Fiddle, Scottish Harp (Clàrsach), and the Scots Gaelic language—and by providing grants and scholarships that support academic advancement within the Scottish-American community.
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