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Alexander Grant (1856 - 1942) was a native of Battangorm, Carrbridge, which gave rise to his familiar name - 'Battan'. As a boy he was exposed to what were to become his two great passions - fiddling and fishing. He went on to excel in both areas; as an angler by inventing his own unique fishing rod known as the 'Grant Vibration Rod', and as a fiddler by leading the Highland Strathspey and Reel Society for almost forty years and by becoming an expert in fiddle making techniques. He also invented a unique disc-shaped violin known as a 'Rondello'. An example of Grant's fishing rod, fiddle and Rondello can be seen at Inverness Museum and Art Gallery (IMAG).

Grant was a great friend of fellow musician and composer James Scott Skinner (1843-1927), a major figure in the development of Scottish traditional music, often referred to as 'The Strathspey King'. This hand-written manuscript is part of the Grant collection. It contains the music for Scott Skinner's 'Raigmore's Birlin Reel'. This tune may have been composed for Neil D. Mackintosh of Raigmore, President of The Highland Strathspey and Reel Society

This item is part of a collection held at Inverness Museum & Art Gallery.
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