Workshop Information
Recently, we have been trialling running a short tune-learning workshop at the beginning of each session.
This involves spending 30-40 minutes learning a new tune by ear. The idea is to increase the confidence
of the sessioners for playing tunes by ear and relying less on the music. After we have learned a tune,
we will post notes about the tune we learned here.
The tunes here should all be shown as scores. If they're not then it could be your browser doesn't support
the library used to draw the music. You can probably see the ABC notation used to generate the music. I'm
trying to add PDFs to all the music so you can download that to see the score. Alternatively, use a new browser!
Select a date below:
- September
The Lilting Fisherman (jig)
- August
The Cow That Ate The Blanket (jig)
- July
Maggie O'Ham (jig)
- June
L'Air Mignonne (polka)
- May
Faroe Rum (Reel)
- April
Rocky Road To Dublin, The (slip jig)
- March
Saint Anne's (reel)
- February
Gravel Walks, The (Reel)
- January
High Road to Linton (Reel)
- December
The Bird's (hornpipe)
- November
Derry Hornpipe, The (Hornpipe)
- October
Barefoot (Jig)
- September
The Hills of Kaitoke (slow reel/air)
- August
Going To The Well For Water (slide)
- July
The Butterfly (slip jig)
- June
A Fig For A Kiss (slip jig)
- April
The Happy Polka (polka)
- March
Church Street Polka (polka)
- February
Bundle and Go (jig)
- January
The Holly Bush (jig)
- December
Rolling In The Ryegrass (reel)
- November
The Boy In The Boat (reel)
- October
Old Copperplate, The (Reel)
- September
Free and Easy (reel)
- August
(No tune this month)
- July
The Harp And The Shamrock (hornpipe)
- June
Patsy Geary's (slide)
- May
Winnie Hayes' (jig)
- April
The Seven Stars (jig)
- March
The Morning Star (reel)
- February
The Sweetness Of Mary (strathspey)
- January
Calum's Road (strathspey)
- November
Jullåten (Waltz)
- October
Autumn Child (reel)
- September
The Humours Of Glendart (jig)
- August
Stan Chapman's (jig)
- July
The Rolling Waves (jig)
- June
The Green Fields Of Rossbeigh (reel)
- May
The Musical Priest (reel)
- April
The Sally Gardens (reel)
- March
Haste To The Wedding (jig)
- February
The Killavil (jig)
- January
Rambling Pitchfork, The (jig)
- November
Crested Hens (waltz)
- October
The Pigeon On The Gate (reel)
- September
Mouse In The Kitchen (jig)
- August
Tripping Up The Stairs (jig)
- July
Willie Coleman's (jig)
- June
The Dunmore Lasses (reel)
- May
The Hare's Paw (reel)
- April
The Abbey (reel)
- March
Joe Derrane's (jig)
- February
The Mist On The Mountain (jig)
- January
The Miller's Maggot (jig)
- December
(No tune this month)
- November
Drummond Castle (jig)
- October
The Old Favourite (jig)
- September
The Rose In The Heather (jig)
- August
The Monaghan Twig (reel)
- July
Toss the Feathers (reel)
- June
The Humours Of Tulla (reel)
- May
The Lilting Banshee (jig)
- April
Scotsman Over the Border (Jig)
- March
Gallagher's Frolics (jig)
- February
Pretty Maggie Morrissey (hornpipe)
- January
The Wonder (hornpipe)
- December
(No tune this month)
- November
Jessica's (polka)
- October
The Finnish (polka)
- September
Pull The Knife And Stick It Again (jig)
- August
The Maid At The Well (jig)
- July
The Banks Of Lough Gowna (jig)
- June
Sleep Sound In The Morning (reel)
- May
Dick Gossip's (reel)
- April
The Sligo Maid (reel)
- March
My Darling Asleep (jig)
- February
The Pipe On The Hob (jig)
- January
The Hag At The Churn (jig)
- December
In Dulci Jubilo (hornpipe)
- November
(No tune this month)
- October
Michael Turner's Waltz (waltz)
- September
Old Joe's (jig)
- August
The Rollicking Boys Of Tandragee (jig)
- July
Danse Breton (reel)
- June
The Lea Rig (Reel)
- May
The Star Of Munster (reel)
- April
Laride ("Gavotte") (Laride a six temps)
- March
Tobin's Favourite (jig)
- February
(No tune this month)
- January
The Ships Are Sailing (reel)
- December
(No tune this month)
- November
Navie on the Line (reel)
- October
Planxty Irwin (Jig)
- September
The Faery's Reel (reel)
- August
Mountain Road, The (reel)
- July
Banshee, The (reel)
- June
Donnybrook Fair (jig)
- May
Coleraine, The (jig)
- April
Little Diamond, The (polka)
- March
Maids Of Ardagh, The (polka)
- February
Waiting for the Federals (American Reel)
- January
Shove the Pig's Foot a Little Closer to the Fire (American Reel)
- December
(No tune this month)
- November
(No tune this month)
- October
Maggie in the Woods (Polka)
- September
Fairies, The (hornpipe)
- August
Lanigan's Ball (jig)
- July
Down by the Sally Gardens (waltz)
- June
Behind The Haystack (jig)
- May
Spanish Lady (polka)
- April
Jim Ward's (jig)
- March
Lucy Farr's (barndance)
2014.07.11 - Hardiman The Fiddler (Slip Jig)
So here's a very common session tune that everyone will know. It's called Hardiman the Fiddler and is honouring James Hardiman, author of Irish Minstrelsy (1831). It's a trance-inducing tune that just wants to be played again and again, and it can be quite hard to stop! To stop the tune, play upto the long F-sharp in the first bar as a coda.
Being a slip-jig that has no definitive ending, it can be quite hard to follow the phrasing of the tune, so it's quite important to try to exaggerate the phrasing a little. In particular, ensure you exaggerate the jig rythmn.
It's in the key if D mixolydian which has a single F-sharp, just the same as G major. However, for backing the chords would be mainly D and C, for simple backing. You could substitute Bm and Am in various places for variation.
Download Score
X:1
T:Hardiman The Fiddler
R:Slip Jig
M:9/8
L:1/8
K:Dmix
|: "D"A2 G FDE F2G | ABA AGA "C"cAG | "D"A2 G FDE F2 G | Add ded "C"cAG :|
|: "D"Ad^c d2 e f3 | Add ded "C"cAG | "D"Ad^c d2 e f2 g | agf ged "C"cAG :|
Download ABC