Tag Archives: Celtic & Folk Music

April Tune of the Month: The Cliffs of Moher

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Right click and choose 'save target as' for a printable version

This upbeat tune is popular at the Celtic sessions in our area. It lies fairly easily under the fingers for harp (especially the B part), so with practice you should be able to play it at a decent clip. Click here to listen (right click to download the midi file).

We often play Cliffs of Moher in a set with Tenpenny Bit.

The HarpBlog Tune of the Month is courtesy of Chubby Sparrow Music . For a printable version, right click on the picture and choose “save target as”, or pop over to the Chubby Sparrow Free Music page for more detailed printing instructions (note: if you just left click and try to print directly from the browser, it probably won’t print at the right size).

February Tune: Drowsy Maggie

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Drowsy Maggie is an example of the type of quick reel that is often played in sessions. We usually do this in a set with several other E minor reels. The chords are fairly simple, mostly alternating between Em and D in the A part; and D, A and G in the B part.

The HarpBlog Tune of the Month is courtesy of Chubby Sparrow Music . For a printable version, right click on the picture and choose “save target as”, or pop over to the Chubby Sparrow Free Music page for more detailed printing instructions (note: if you just left click and try to print directly from the browser, it probably won’t print at the right size).

January Tune: Brian Boru’s March

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Once again it’s properly winter here in the PeterPatch, with snow swirling merrily about outside. The snow first arrived on Tuesday. Concerned that it might just up and melt away the way it has every other time this year (it had been a disturbingly warm and wet winter up to that point), M. and I decided to take advantage of the stuff and dig out our snowshoes. So the past few days have seen us tromping through the snow, and coming home cold but happy to cups of hot chocolate. The cats, of course, are deciding that this is the perfect time to curl up under warm blankets. What has this to do with harps, you ask? Not much, I admit. Except that since this is a very quiet time of year as far as harp gigs are concerned, I’m able to dedicate more time to working on the update of the Chubby Sparrow Site, and to playing with Sibelius. January’s tune is Brian Boru’s March, because – well, because I just couldn’t avoid it any longer. This is one of the very first tunes I learned on harp, and one that I teach to many beginners. It’s easy to pick up because of its repetitive patterns, and it’s a cheerful little upbeat march that works well on just about any instrument. Enjoy!

The HarpBlog Tune of the Month is courtesy of Chubby Sparrow Music . For a printable version, right click on the picture and choose “save target as”, or pop over to the Chubby Sparrow Free Music page for more detailed printing instructions (note: if you just left click and try to print directly from the browser, it probably won’t print at the right size).

December Tune: To Drive The Cold Winter Away

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After an unusually warm and rainy November, winter has finally descended on our little town. We woke up this morning to chilly sub-zero temperatures and a blanket of snow. So I thought this would make for an appropriate December tune of the month. “To Drive the Cold Winter Away” (also known as “All Hail to the Days”) is one of my favourite seasonal tunes, a standard with my early music ensemble and my flute, harp and cello trio. Because the words are also quite lovely, I’ve also included the lyrics to the song below. The duet part was written for our cello player. If you want to use the bass as a left hand part for solo harp, you can leave out the G# if you don’t have G levers, or don’t feel like flipping in the middle of the piece.

The HarpBlog Tune of the Month is courtesy of Chubby Sparrow Music . For a printable version, right click on the picture and choose “save target as”, or pop over to the Chubby Sparrow Free Music page for more detailed printing instructions (note: if you just left click and try to print directly from the browser, it probably won’t print at the right size).

Lyrics: “All Hayle to the Dayes”, Eng. trad.

All hayle to the days that merit more praise
Than all the rest of the year!
And welcome the nights that double delights
As well for the poor as the peer!
Good fortune attend each merry man’s friend
That doth but the best that he may,
Forgetting old wrongs with carols and songs
To drive the cold winter away.

To mask and to mum, kind neighbours will come
With wassails of nut-brown ale,
To drink and carouse with all in the house
As merry as bucks in the dale;
Where cake, bread and cheese are bought for your fees
To make you the longer stay;
The fire to warm, will do you no harm,
To drive the cold winter away.

Thus none will allow of solitude now
But merrily greet the time,
To make it appear of all the whole year
That this is accounted the prime:
December is seen apparel’d in green,
And January fresh as May
Comes dancing along with a cup and a song
To drive the cold winter away.

This time of the year is spent in good cheer,
Kind neighbours together do meet
To sit by the fire with friendly desire
Each other in love to greet;
Old grudges, forgot, are put in the pot,
All sorrows aside they lay;
The old and the young doth carol this song
To drive the cold winter away.

September Tune: Out on the Ocean

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New Tune of the Month, courtesy of Chubby Sparrow Music (right click on the picture and choose “save target as”, or just pop over to the Chubby Sparrow Free Music page for more detailed printing instructions).

Out on the Ocean is a popular upbeat session tune, and can be played in either a leisurely or more rollicking fashion.

It goes well with Rolling Waves, Geese in the Bog and Connacht Man’s Rambles.

Also known as Mick Mulcahy’s, O’Connell’s Jig On Top Of Mount Everest, O’er The Sea, Out In The Ocean, Out Of The Ocean, Over The Ocean, Portroe, Split The Whisker, The Wind Is Over The Ocean.

August Tune: Morrison’s Jig

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Morrison's Jig

New Tune of the Month, courtesy of Chubby Sparrow Music (right click on the picture and choose “save target as”, or just pop over to the CS free music section for more detailed printing instructions).

Morrison’s, a spritely jig in E dorian, is a well-known standard at Celtic sessions everywhere. Typical of trad tunes, it goes by other names as well, including Pipe on the Hob, Maurice Carmondy’s Favourite, Stick Across The Hob, and Tom Carmondy’s Favorite.

You can also get a midi version of this tune and other Celtic melodies over at Chubby Sparrow. Alternate versions of this melody, and more information on the tune, can be found at thesession.org, a great source of trad tunes.