Miss Monaghan reel

Matt Molloy plays this tune extremely fast. It sounds almost as if there are two flutes playing at the same time. That can be heard on “Music at Matt Molloys”

8^/

Huh. Someone calls this the Belles of Tipperary/The New Policeman? Wierd…

Not only this tune but many others have been given obviously mistaken names. How can we deal with the problem?

Well, I think that’s one for Jeremy, and he’s in Miltown at the moment…

A lovely tune this one. I’m learning this right now actually to complete the set Silver Spear/Father Kelly’s/Miss Monaghan. Theres no long rests or breaks in it so you’ve to be alert all the time but its very repetitive so that helps.

I recently noticed a similarity between this reel and the Carraroe Jig: https://thesession.org/tunes/771 It’s probably only accidental though.

definitely goes well with the Silver Spear - i go straight off the end of MM to the beginning of SS.

–DtM

I Believe that Miss Monaghan isn’t the correct name.
Seamus Ennis played it for his wife who was from Monaghan and She liked it so he called it Miss Monaghan.
People from on knew it as this.
This is one of the Big Seanòs Dancing Tunes.

Then how do you explain the fact that “Miss Monaghan” is in “O’Neill’s 1001 Gems” - published in 1907, and Seamus Ennis was born in 1912 ?
Also , what’s a “Big Seanos Dancing Tune ? - not a term I’ve come across before, although I am familiar with “Sean Nos” singing.

Sorry kenny I only heard that.
As for Seanòs Dancing tune here in Ireland the tunes most comonley played for seanòs dancing are e’g Miss Monaghan,Miss McLeods, Sally Gardens,The Foxhunter’s(Reel).

To see Seanòs Dancing Click on webtv ,then ceol and at the bottom of the page click on the dancing tab
http://www.tg4.ie/webt/webt.htm

sorry its called Steip Damhsa Ón Oireachtas 2006

I know about “sean-nos” dancing too, dinn2, but have never associated it with any particular tunes - these guys will dance to anything , in my experience ! Thanks for your reply and the link. Good luck with the box-playing. That’s a good teacher you’ve got.

The same too you.

sounds suspicously like the first tune here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5kEiE6bDxk

play video

on the cd notes they have it as boys of 25 not much like the tune in this database
https://thesession.org/tunes/4569

“Atk” - the first tune in that set has been discussed here before. It’s “The Milky Way” - a composition of Vincent Broderick, posted here years ago. Strange that Aly Bain didn’t recognise it, as it was recorded by the “Boys Of The Lough” I would think over 30 years ago. However, the man plays so many tunes, he’s never going to be able to remember the names of them all. There are similarities right enough, but the first tune in that video is “The Milky Way” - not “Miss Monaghan”. Neither is it “The Boys Of 25”.

https://thesession.org/tunes/2241

Give it a miss

The setting I posted above is for Scottish pipes. I heard it on the Tannahill Weavers recording. It’s not the standard session version.

I think I got this setting from Sean Potts.

As played by Seamus Tansey on flute :
https://youtu.be/ucDJ88dI4hA

play video

Taken from ‘A Fine Selection of Over 200 Irish Traditional Tunes for Sessions’, compiled by David Speers with a Forward by Matt Cranitch.

This transcription is from the playing of Michael Coleman in August of 1922 (OKeh 4703).

This is how we played it at Irish Music class, Lake School Of Celtic Music, Song & Dance.

transscription inspired by aversion of Paul Brock

Lovely version in Amajor learnt from Nathan Gourley, CD Copley Street. Here is a live version:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wiz0Vq9FoDs

play video

A setting from Leo Rowsome’s 1936 Uilleann Pipes Tutor book.

The PDF from the Irish Traditional Music Archive is here:
https://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/prints.itma.ie/book_pdfs/81225.pdf

Leo Rowsome version

Tunes & Tools
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJKjfGiOt6Y

play video

https://www.tunesandtools.com/

Bodhrán Metronome Playlist
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeBSuVJgG93QKA8HBk0mJVjAmi50G52T7
Drones Playlist
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeBSuVJgG93QgET4g19H-QkC49uOA77wv
10 Essential Exercises For Irish Flute Playing
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xOyp6L0urhw

play video

This is some of what Matt Molloy is doing on the setting of Miss Monaghan on “Music At Matt Molloy’s.”
I think it’s one of the most exciting pieces of Irish flute playing I ever heard, mainly because he keeps bouncing of the low D and playing bars in the low octave, making full use of the flute dynamics.

I slowed it down and discovered quite a lot of variations including “gbfb edB z” which I never heard before here.
( though it does remind me of Maud Miller or Colemans Cross or something ? )

Bar 13 is one I made up myself for this. ( It’s not on the track )

Hope this is useful
Pat

This is the version from The Feis Ceoil collection of Irish Airs (1914) collected from Nicholas Furlong in Wexford and titled The Green Fields to America.