Irish Flute Tunes

Hello. This site contains recordings I have made as a source of tunes for people who play the flute, or other instruments for that matter. They are often just versions of tunes as I remember them but, as my memory isn’t the best, in some cases I cheat and find the dots online. As often as not, the online versions and the dots inside my head aren't quite the same so there may be a sort of 'average'...

Here's a nice tune from a nice county (you can probably work out which county from the sentence below).   It's named after the Fermanagh flute player on the right in the photo below (you can probably work out his name from the title above) and was popularised by Cathal McConnell, who is also in the photo (you can probably work out what side he's on from the side that's already been used up by the...

The way I'm playing this tune here is probabably about as reliable as the average Harlequin. Nice tune though.   More info here   And a more competent rendition here    

I don't know anything about this tune apart from how it goes, or sort of how it goes. I do know some Jimmies and have met an O'Reilly or two, but that probably doesn't give me much to base a tune blurb on here. So there'll be no blurb. Enough to say that I like this tune because it never quite goes how I'd expect it to.         The session.org has some (occasionally strange) versions here.  

Here's a reel composed by Charlie Lennon, who made up lots of great tunes. He had the ability to make a new tune sound like it had been there for years, thanks to his imagination combined with having heard thousands of traditional tunes thousands of times each over tens of years. Unlike Charlie Lennon, loads of people make up tunes all the time just relying on the imaginatioin bit. Leaving out the...

Here's a tune written by the concertina player William Mullaly (1884 - ca.1955) from Mullingar. I was reminded of it by a recording of the recently departed fantastic musician Charlie Harris. That recording, along with a recording of William Mullaly himself playing it in the extreme olden days, is available here: The Drunraney Lass on "The Session".   The tune reminds me of "The Lark on the Strand...

Here's a tune I learned from a recording of the Chicago fiddle player Johnny McGreevy. The session.org call it " By Golly ". I was  surrprised to see "By Golly" written on the "session" site without an exclamation mark. So surprised that I nearly said "OMG!!!!!!!!!!".      There's more information about the tune and the Jimmy Neary (and it's played properly!) at https://connollymusiccollection.bc....

I might have posted this tune under a different name in the days before AI, but here it is anyway, along with computer generated triplets in the picture below, to go with the flute generated ones in the recording. Sorry if the notation is a bit truncated and twisted. That's all my free Chatgpt account would give me. The rest of the notes are here: Wexford Lasses notation.  

Here's a second post for this Olympic-length posting period. A sensible reel without much musical tautology. Rare enough in our times.   My new (cheap) phone can't seem to handle anything louder than a sigh so the recording is a bit distorted. No harm: I can hide my dodgy tone behind the buzzing. I've been keeping my flute and my mouth in a cupboard for over 9 years so rich resonances are rare in...

I was just reminded yesterday of the existence of this Irish Flute Tunes site by getting my annual subscription receipt from Podbean. So, I thought I might as well put a tune on it to get my money's worth.  I played this one on a very reliable Rob Forbes flute which I got off eBay a little while ago. My wooden flutes are also reliable but my ability to find them is less so. I'm in Belfast at the m...

Here's another tune from O'Neill's Dance Music of Ireland. I hadn't noticed it before, despite its being there since 1907. I don't remember ever seeing a wren either. Maybe because they're so small.  

Tune number 748 from O'Neill's Dance Music of Ireland - 1001 gems  There are 1000 tunes in this book with better names but only some of them are better tunes.      

O'Neill's Dance Music of Ireland tune number 129   I probably would have been better getting the cat to play it.  

I play this tune by direct debit.  

Here's another tune from Francis O'Neill's 'Dance Music of Ireland - 1001 Gems'. My understanding of 'gem' in today's context is a tune without syncopation and notes keeping close company with other notes they don't get on with.  

Here's tune number 652 in O'Neill's Dance Music of Ireland.   It's the best tune between tunes 651 and 653.  

As requested, here's an attempt at a flute version of a steadfastly fiddle tune.     X: 1 T:Jackson's Reel (sort of flute-friendly'ish) R: reel M: 4/4 L: 1/8 K: Dmaj |:F|D2FD EDFE| DEFD EAcE|GE ~E2 GABd| ceAc dBAF| D2FD EDFE| DEFD EFGE| ABce dBAG| F/2G/2F EG FDD:| |:g|fd d2 ~d3f| edef edcB|A2cA BAcB| ABcA Bcde| fd d2 ~d3f| edef edcB|ABde faea|1fd d2 ~d3:|2fddc d/2d/2c dB|| A3A B2AG| FAAF G/2F/2E F...

Here's a tune high in vitamin C. Also called the 'Belfast March', named after a town low in every vitamin.     https://thesession.org/tunes/5000

Here's a tune I was asked to post here. It's a great tune but I can't play polkas, so I never play them, so I can't play them, so I never play them, so ...   The associated polka dots are here:  https://thesession.org/tunes/1560  

Here's a tune which Tom Morrison recorded i 1928. London clogs are probably mainly fatbergs in the sewers these days.   Here it is played properly: https://archive.org/details/TomMorrisonTheLondonClog   Here it is written out badly:

This reel was made in space for the flute; sorry this effort isn't as out of this world as the title would suggest.    

Here's a tune written by Josie McDermott in honour of Peg McGrath who made one of the nicest flute noises I've ever heard.  

A short tune to fill a spare minute. I don't know how much postmen/postwomen (or even postmodernists) whistle now under the burden of Amazon boxes.  

Here's a tune I first heard from a recording of John McGuire - Seán's father. The guy in the photo was Jack Rowe - looks like he could blow a flute with the back of his neck. Some feat. Some neck.    

Here's a reel which you can hear Denis Murphy playing at:  Mount Collins Reel / Doon Reel . There are special wobbles in the second tune which, according to the info at archive.org, are due to a hole being 'punched slightly off-center'. I'd imagine that could cause a wobble or two right enough.   Here are some notes:  https://thesession.org/tunes/4026