The Blue Keys reel

It’s the Slow Reel which is played by Brian Finnegan and Ed Boyd in the Ceird an Cheoil video before Road to Errogie.

This tune is in a video on the Kerrywhistles website, “Flook USA 2007”, played after another of Brian’s tunes called Forest Baby. He wrote this tune for his sister, and it’s called Morna, I believe.

Sorry, correcting myself as I watch the clip again. The set is Forest Baby, Morna, and then this tune. I couldn’t hear the title well enough, but the name is The Blue something or other… The quality and accent combined make it hard to tell.

Okay, thank you for that informations.
I will see if i can get some informations about that.

Okayyy, now you’ve to help me please.
I can’t find that video. On kerrywhistles
-movies - Flook is no video with this name.

Go to the “Cinema” tab, you may have to register if you’ve not before, and then look under “Celtic” and it should be near the bottom. Many other great concerts to check out in that section as well.

Here’s my transcription, closer to what Brian plays on the Ceird an Cheoil vid, from my Chiff & Fipple posting. The mode is F# minor pentatonic. Since that’s not an option on the main page here, Amajor is the closest related key that gives the needed F# and C# (and a redundant gapped G#).

X:1
T:Mystery Tune
S:Brian Finnegan, Ceird an Cheoil
S:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hp-RndJFKz0

play video

N:{B} and {A} are true appoggiaturas here, stealing half the
N:value of the following note.
Z:MTGuru for C&F, 2009-02-01
M:C|
K:F#m
F2 B/c/e fB{B}c2|Bcaf c2BA|{A}B2Bc efB2-|B2BA Bcec|
F2 B/c/e fBcF|Bcaf c2BA|Bz BA Bcez|Bcec f4||
F2 B/c/e fB{B}c2|Bcaa c2ef|B2Bc efB2-|B2BA c3B/A/|
F2 B/c/e fBcz|Bcaf c2BA|Bz B/B/B Bcef|B/c/cec f4|]
z2 ba bc’f2-|f2e2 c2B2-|B2BA Bcee|BBBc A2F2-|
F2 ba bc’f2-|ffec a4-|abaf ecf2|ecB2 B/c/eBA||
f2 ba bc’fz|ffee ccB2-|B2BA Bcee|BBBc A2F2|
z2 ba bc’f2-|ffec a4-|abaf ecf2|ecB2 B/c/eBA|]

Does anyone know the actual title yet, or if Brian composed this tune?

The tune’s definitely by Brian, no doubt about that. In the video on Phil Hardy’s site, he says he wrote it for a friend of his who had died. I can never make out the name, though.

Thank you, Joseph!

I listened to the Kerrywhistles vid, and I’m pretty sure the title is “The Blue Keys”.

Or maybe “The Blue Cays” or “The Blue Quais” … 🙂

Let the time work for you and everythig will fix itself…..^^

Thank you for your help 🙂

In the The Ravishing Genius Of Bones cd booklet thingy it says the tune name is Blue Gaze and is composed by Brian Finnegan.

This still seems confusing. Based off listening to his Ravishing Bones album. I still cannot not tell the exact key Brian Finnegan plays this in. It sounds as if he is playing roughly…

A2 Ega EDCDE caEDC… (forgive the lack of ornamentation and correct spacing).

This is what the notes sound like when he starts this 3rd portion (Blue Gaze) of Frida. I can match what is played on a low G whistle. But it doesn’t sound correct on a low F whistle (what I was told he used). None of the ABC downloads sound right either. Of course they usually need adjustments made anyway. Where am I going wrong here?

He is using an Low F whistle, and Key of A Dorian. i have one and is very confortable to play, in position of F# Dorian (Key of D Whistle). And that’s it :D

@Caleb from what I can tell he plays the first 2 tunes on an F whistle then switches to a G for the last one

My transcription from The Ravishing Genius Of Bones album.

Actually he might play it in this key on an F whistle.

A great tune, for sure. And thanks to you all for your transcriptions. Just discovered this great version of it played by BBC 2018 Young Trad finalist Alexander Levack. It’s the first tune in this set: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbV05y63-Dw

play video