Note this

The Asian visitor who referred to Gaelic psalm singing as “delightfully un-european” (Letters, 14 May), was probably reacting to the “stretching” of the notes and improvised ornamentation common in this type of unaccompanied singing, which is more reminiscent of Middle Eastern music with its quarter-tones than it is of Western art music where the composer has usually given a strict indication of how the piece is to be performed. HARRY D WATSON Braehead Grove, Edinburgh