Free Vocal Sheet Music
Free vocal sheet music "Skye Boat Song" from Scotland, a song about Bonnie Prince Charlie. With free guitar acoustic tablature as well as standard notation. This song makes a great lead sheet for piano, too! This is a beautiful song about the Jacobite Rebellion, and the fateful battle at Culloden in 1745. Here Scotsmen made a last heroic stand for Scottish freedom from English rule by fighting for Charles Stewart - Bonnie Prince Charlie. |
The Scots longed for a ruler who was true-born, of the royal line. There was terrible slaughter at Culloden, the Scots beaten by the English with their muskets and cannon, but Prince Charlie escaped to the Isle of Skye with the help of Flora MacDonald, a Jacobite heroine. She dressed him up as her maid, and he almost gave himself away, acting like a man! (To learn more about the time of the Jacobites, look for the beautiful and powerful -- if violent and vulgar -- movie Rob Roy
with Liam Neeson, and also a much more child-friendly movie with beautiful music and characters, Lorna Doone
Both movies are action-packed. And both have memorable soundtracks.)
Download Skye Boat Song with free guitar acoustic tablature
You can hear a snippet of a choral version of Skye Boat Song at Folk Songs for Two by Jay Althouse (nice because they can be male/male, female/female, or male/female). This book has a high number of very likeable songs -- good for a group of singers. Here is a list of the songs:
All Through the Night, Amazing Grace, Camptown Races, Cindy, He's Gone Away, Poor Wayfaring Stranger, Scarborough Fair, Shenandoah, Siyahamba, Skye Boat Song, and the VERY POPULAR Homeward Bound.
Here is a version of the duet arrangement by Jay Althouse:
Notice that the words are not the traditional lyrics I have here, but an alternate set of lyrics penned by Robert Louis Stevenson, author of Treasure Island and Kidnapped.
Now I just have to mention a very beautiful song called Bring Me a Boat by Kate Rusby which is startling similar to Skye Boat Song, but with the first interval turned upside-down:
This song is copyrighted, but her CD, Underneath the Stars
Irish Tin Whistle:
Comments
Do you have a story or even a question about this vocal piece? Share it!
If I publish it, I will not use your last name, and certainly never show your email address (name and address are optional, anyway).
Back to Beginning Guitar for more free guitar tabs
Back to Beginning Voice for more free vocal sheet music
Back to Beginner Piano for more free piano music for kids
Home for more free sheet music
Danielle:
What a lovely, generous site! Many thanks from a fellow singer and music teacher in New York State. Loved the inclusion of the video for "The Ash Grove," a song I just recommended to an adult voice student today. I was pleased to be able to send her the link to not only the sheet music, but a charming performance of the song as well.
Amber:
Thank you! THANK YOU!!! For keeping the beautiful art of Opera alive! I stumbled upon this site and I'm so happy I did!
Toni:
Thank you for your wonderful website. I also teach piano, voice and guitar - spooky! My absolute passion is opera, and have opened many a singing student's ear to the beautiful melodies and voices in the repertoire. Thank you for the wonderful warmups which I have downloaded, and will be using at the earliest opportunity - I will let you know how they go! Looking forward to more warmup ideas, too.
Useful Sites for Vocalists
ArtSongCentral, source of much free vocal literatureCantorian.org, home to free classical sheetmusic
ChoralWiki, Home of the Choral Public Domain Library
International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP) Petrucci Music Library
Musicnotes.com - Transpose your vocal music up or down!
Note-Perfect.com, Resources for Choral Singers and Soloists - hear your choral part!
Sheetmusicplus.com
What's New at Sheetmusicplus
Wynn:
Thank you so much for this site. I admire you so much for taking the time to reach out and share so much with others. After years of singing professionally I am finally making myself re-learn the piano in order to play for myself and to do some piano bar work. Your scales and your feedback are inspiring! Create Beauty and fill the world with LOVE!
Marta:
Thank you for the free downloads! I'm a private teacher and I teach piano and beginner voice as well. :) I've been running my studio for about a year and I've come across the same issue; I don't want my students to have to purchase an entire supplemental book for only a couple of songs. So thank you for this site...some great downloads!!
Marybeth:
I love your site! It has been an incredible resource for me as a Music teacher. I love your ideas and the music you share...
Over 60,000 digital sheet music titles!