Cape Breton Milling Songs

Milling, or Waulking as it known in Scotland, was a method of fulling newly woven cloth, shrinking the nap so that the cloth might be warmer when made into clothing or blankets. The cloth was first sewn at the ends so as to create a circle, then placed on a wooden table and dampened with a mixture of soap and water. As many as twelve men and women might sit around the table and with their hands, beat the cloth to the rhythm of a song. It should be noted that in Scotland, milling was performed exclusively by women, while Nova Scotians included men and their own attendant repertoires.

Although the structure of milling songs may vary, as well as styles of beating the cloth and participation, one aspect remains constant and serves as a defining characteristic of the genre, that is the solo presentation of the verses and group participation in the chorus. This chorus is often comprised of two to four lines of vocables, another defining feature of the milling genre. Although tradition bearers in Cape Breton to this day still differentiate between "true" milling songs and those which are simply performed at milling frolics, the long-established presence of non-traditional milling songs in the performance repertoires of Gaelic singers makes the line of generic distinction rather fuzzy.

photo: Milling frolic, Johnstown.

Millings which serve utilitarian purposes have not been performed in Nova Scotia for over fifty years, but simulations of the event remain an integral part of Gaelic culture in the province, engaging the participation of native Gaelic speakers in a time when venues to speak and sing in the language have grown scarce.