Though Ottorino Respighi is known and remembered mostly for his contributions to orchestral and chamber music, his contributions to the art song repertoire provide performers and audiences with an incredible collection of musically and dramatically diverse works. Songs like “Nebbie” fall comfortably into programs alongside traditional bel canto repertoire by Bellini or Neapolitan songs by Tosti; Deità silvane is a cycle of five songs for soprano and piano (or soprano and orchestra) that could easily be described as a tone poem featuring a singer as the vocalist and accompaniment combine to portray woodland creatures; and Respighi’s Cinque canti all’antica adopt a style that echoes the textural and harmonic tendencies of the Italian Renaissance.

Perhaps the clearest examples of Respighi’s ability to adapt and make use of disparate styles of vocal music are his forays into folk music. Between 1915 and 1925, Respighi published three sets of folk songs from different regions of the world: Quattro Rispetti di Toscani (Tuscany), Quattro Liriche su Parole di Armeni (Armenia) and Quattro Arie di Scozzesi (Scotland).

This set of four Scottish folk songs are set to Scots English texts and based on existing local music. Musically, the set exemplifies many characteristic aspects of Scottish folk music including bagpipe-like drones, the scotch skip rhythm, and the use of a flatted-seventh. Textually, the set makes use of strophic forms and includes themes typical of Scottish folk music. In order, the songs declare the beauty of a simple life, detail a young shepherd’s courtship, exalt the highlands of Scotland and recall a traitorous rogue in the 1715 Jacobite Rising.

Respighi dedicated the set to Felix Lamond, a pianist/organist and director of composition at the American Academy in Rome. The intricate and virtuosic nature of the piano accompaniment are likely connected to this dedication.