The Foxhunter slip jig

Hello, another newcomer and another fiddle bowing question I’m afraid. Would anyone mind suggesting some bowing for fox hunters to get me started. I’m single bowing the whole tune at the moment and can’t seem to pick up what the others are doing in the session. thanks

Here’s the ABC notation for the version of The Foxhunter’s Jig that appears on Chieftains 2:

BcB BGB ~c2A|BcB BGB A2G|BcB BGB cde|dBG GAB ~A2G:|
|:efe edc Bcd|~e2A A2B cBA|def gfe def|~g2G GAB ~A2G:|

Can be heard as part of the set entitled “The Foxhunt” on Chieftains 2, side 1 track 6. It is played straight after “the Foxhunters jig” and is oh! so similar. They play it fast and not at normal mazurka speed but then again it is part of one of the Chieftains renowned tone-pictures.

They don’t play it at mazurka speed indeed, because it’s a slip jig.
They do play it quite a lick but speeding up a tune doesn’t change it’s time signature.

I checked before I posted this tune, and as far as I could tell, it was not in the database. It is not in the same meter as the Foxhunter’s Jig (already in the database), so I posted it separately, using the mazurka meter.

This tune is part of the Fox Hunt – a programmatic medley of an air and different dance versions of The Foxhunter’s. It maps out something like this:

1. AIR: Fiach an Mhadra Rua
2. “VAMP”: “Sound effects,” with galloping horses on pipes, dogs barking on whistle, hunting horn calls on flute and fiddle
3. SLIP JIG: The Foxhunter’s
4. VAMP: Galloping horses on bodhran, hunting horn calls on pipes and fiddle
5. “FAST MAZURKA”: Flute, with other instruments playing sound effects. Eventually all instruments are playing the fast mazurka.
6. REEL: The Foxhunter’s

The slip jig and mazurka versions in this set sound completely different to me in that the first is in the common 9/8 meter and the latter is in a mazurka 3/4 meter. That’s why I posted this as a separate tune.

On fast slip jigs, see the comment from blarneystar regarding Tommy Hunt’s Jig (https://thesession.org/tunes/2579). I’m still unclear how a fast slip jig played in a meter of 3/4 (1-2 1-2 1-2) should be notated in 9/8 (1-2-3 1-2-3 1-2-3). And I’m particularly interested in what to do in the case of this jig, which (as I mentioned before) is not simply a speeded-up version of The Foxhunter’s Jig already in the database.

OK, I’m up for the challenge. Here is ABC notation for the “fast slip jig” version of The Foxhunter’s in 9/8 meter. It “looks” odd to me – I don’t think I’ve seen such a beast in O’Neill’s (for example) – but I think it parses fine. I wonder, though, whether many users of this Web site would be able to read it “correctly” as readily as the 3/4 version I originally posted.

X:1
T:The Foxhunter’s
M:9/8
L:1/8
R:Slip Jig
K:D
F3 F3/2D3/2 G3/2E3/2|F3 F3/2D3/2 E3/2D3/2| ~F3 F3 G3/2B3/2|A3/2F3/2 D3/2
F3/2 E3/2D3/2:|
B3 B3/2A3/2 G3/2A3/2|B3/2E3/2 E3/2D3/2 G3/2A3/2|B3 B3/2A3/2 G3/2B3/2|A3/
2D3/2 D3/2E3/2 F3/2D3/2:||

So where do I go to claim the Ph.D.?

May I suggest that you listen to some Donegal music and find out what Mazurkas sound like. Also try listening to something other than the Chieftains.

What gives you the impression that I have not listened to Donegal music? What gives you the impression that I do not know what muzurkas sound like? What gives you the impression that I have not listened to something other than the Chieftains?

I’ve learnt this together with Deirdre’s Fancy.

X: 1
T: Foxhunters
R: Slip jig
M: 9/8
L: 1/8
K: D
S: http://www.ellwood.org/slow/teafox.jpg
|: FGF FED G2 E | FGF FED E2 D | FGF FED G2 B | AFD DEF E2 D :|:
B=cB BAG FGA | B2 E E2 F G2 B | ABc dcB ABc | d2 D DEF E2 D :|:
fgf fed g2 e | fgf fed e2 d | fgf fed g2 b | afd def e2 d :|:
gfe dcB AGF | B2 E E2 F G2 B | ABc dcB ABc | d2 D DEF E2 D :|

That’s a more standard setting than the original submission.

As played at PVB session,

X:3
T:The Fox Hunters’ Jig
M:9/8
L:1/8
R:slip jig
K:D
||:“D”(FGF)F2D“Em“G2E|“D”(FGF)F2D“A“E2“D“D|(FGF)F2D“G“G2B|“D”(AFD)D2F“A“E2“D“D:||
||:“G”(B=cB)(BAG)“D”(FGA)|“Em”B2EE2FG2B|“D”(AB^c)“Bm”(dcB)“A”(ABc)|“D”d2DD2G“A“E2“D“D:||
||:“D”(fgf)f2d“Em“g2e|“D”(fgf)f2d“A“e2“D“d|(fgf)f2d“G“g2b|“D”(afd)d2f“A“e2“D“d:||
||:“G”(gfe)(d=cB)“D”(AGF)|“Em”B2EE2FG2B|“D”(AB^c)“Bm”(dcB)“A”(ABc)|“D”d2DD2F“A“E2“D“D:||

X:4
T:Last Night’s Fun
M:9/8
L:1/8
R:slip jig
K:Em
||“D”D2A A2G ABc | D2A AGE “C”G2E | “D”D2A A2G ABc |“G” BAG AGE“Em“ G2E |
|“D”D2A A2G ABc | D2A AGE “C”G2E | “D”D2A A2G ABc | “G”dBG AGE “Em”G2E ||
||“G”BAB dBG “D”ABc | “G”BAB dBG “C”c2A | “G”BAB dBG “D”ABc |“G” BAG AGE“Em“ G2E |
|“G”BAB dBG“D“ ABc |“G” B2c dBG “C”c2A | “G”def“Em“ gfe “G”dBG | BAG “Em”AGE G2E ||

X:5
T:The Rakes Of Westmeath
M:4/4
R:slip jig
K:D
||:“D” d2d dAG“C“ FED |“D” d2d dAF“C“ G2E |“D” ABc dAG“C“ FGA | =cBc E2F G2E :||
||“D” d2g fdf“A“ ece |“D” d2g fdf“A“ g2e |“D” d2g fdf“A“ ece |“C” =cBc E2F G2E |
|“D” d2g fdf“A“ ece |“D” d2g fdf “A”g2e |“D” afd gec“A“ d2B |“C” =cBc E2F G2E || “D”D9|

Key signature: D Major
Submitted on February 18th 2007 by Joe CSS.
https://thesession.org/tunes/6829

R: slip jig
K: D Major
|: FGF F2 D G2 E | FGF F2 D E2 D | FGF F2 D G2 B | AFD D2 F E2 D :|
|: B=cB BAG FGA | B2 E E2 F G2 B | ABc dcB ABc | d2 D D2 F E2 D :|
|: fgf f2 d g2 e | fgf f2 d e2 d | fgf f2 d g2 b | afd d2 f e2 d :|
|: gfe d=cB AGF | B2 E E2 F G2 B | ABc dcB ABc | d2 D D2 F E2 D :|

“Nothing to do with the reel of the same name (as far as I know).
The 3rd part is exactly the same as the 1st, but with double the frequency for each note.
The 2nd & 4th parts seem to do a nice E-minory thing with the c-naturals, which I quite like.”

# Posted on February 18th 2007 by Joe CSS

Here’s the version that appears as Nead Na Lachan Sa Mhuta in Geraldine Cotter’s Traditional Irish Tin Whistle Tutor.

X:1
T:Nead Na Lachan Sa Mhuta
M:9/8
R:Slip Jig
L:1/8
S:Geraldine Cotter’s Traditional Irish Tin Whistle Tutor
K:D
|:F2F FDF G2E|F2F FDF E2D|F2F FDF G2B|
AFD DEF E2D:|:B2B BAG FGA|B2E E2FG2B|
ABc dcB ABc|d2D DEFE2D2:|

Lunasa records this tune in G major on their album Redwood– track 7, “Dublin to Dingle,” second tune. It’s clearly in a 3/4 time signature, and again with only two parts (plus the usual Lunasa variations) instead of the 4 sections that the slip jig has.

Nead na lachan sa mhúta (3x)
’s cuirfidh mé amach ar an guan tú

Curfá:
Haigh dí didil dí didil dí
haigh dí dí dí déro
haighdildí aighdildí aighdildí
haigh dí didil dí déro

Bhéarfaidh mé curach is criú dhuit (3x)
’s cuirfidh mé amach ar an guan tú

Ceannóidh mé slat is dorú dhuit (3x)
’s cuirfidh mé amach ar an guan tú

Cuardóidh mé bean agus spré dhuit (3x)
’s déanfaidh sí steampaí ’gus tae dhuit.

As turophile offers up, a two-parter, this slip jig is still known and played with that limitation, in both G & D, for example as taught by Matt Cranitch in “The Irish Fiddle Book”, and as in the two versions given here:

X: 9
T: Foxhunters
R: Slip jig
M: 9/8
L: 1/8
K: Gmaj
|: B3 B^AB ~c2 A | B2 B BGB A2 G | BcB B^AB c2 e | dBG GAB A2 G :|
|: e3 edc Bcd | e2 A A2 B c2 e | dd/e/f gfe def | g2 G G2 B A2 G :|

X: 10
T: Foxhunters
R: Slip jig
M: 9/8
L: 1/8
K: Dmaj
|: F3 F^EF G2 E | F2 F FD/E/F E2 D | FGF FED GG/A/B | AFD D2 F E2 D :|
|: BB/=c/B BAG F2 A | B2 E E2 F G2 B | ABc dd/c/B ABc | d2 D D2 F E2 D :|

“The Roche Collection of Traditional Irish Music, Volume II”, 1912
“Hop Jigs” ~ pages 24 - 28

X: 11
T: Foxhunters
M: 9/8
L: 1/8
R: slip jig
K: Gmaj
|: B3 BAB c2 A | B3 dBG A2 G | B3 BAB c2 e | dBG G2 B A2 G :|
|: e3 edc Bcd | e2 A A2 B c2 e | def gfe def | g2 G G2 B A2 G :|

Correction for the above ~ Roche II, page 27…

http://www.soundlantern.com/UpdatedSoundPage.do?ToId=23189

The first one in the set, as recorded by Coleman

This one’s pretty much the same as the version in Roche, with a few differences in the second part:

X: 1
T: Foxhunter’s, The
C: Trad.
S: The Fiddler’s Tune-Book; Slip Jigs & Waltzes; p.6, No.22.
M: 9/8
L: 1/8
Q: 280
K: Dmix
|| d/c/ |: B2B BGB c2A | B2B BGB A2G | B2B BGB c2A | d2G GAB A2G :|
|: A2e edc Bcd | e2A ABc BAG | G2g gfe dBd | g2G GAB A2G :|

I like the insistance on F in the first part, and on B and E in the second, that can be interpreted/played as the rhythmic barking and yelping of the dogs. The Mazurca form makes it even more striking.

It’s a hop jig

X: 1
T: The Foxhunter’s
S: Paul O’Shaughnessy & Harry Bradley - …Born For Sport
M: 9/8
L: 1/8
R: hop jig
K: Dmaj
f3 ~f3 g2e|f3 f2d e2d|f3 f2d g2d|a2f d2f e2d:|
|:B3 B2A G2A|B2E E2F G2A|B3 B2A G2B|d2A D2F E2D:|

X: 1
T: The Foxhunter’s
S: Catherine McEvoy, Caoimhin O Raghallaigh & Micheal O Raghallaigh - Comb Your Hair and Curl It
M: 9/8
L: 1/8
R: hop jig
K: Edor
|:B3 B2A ^G2A|B2E E2F G2A|Bcd B2A F2A|d2A D2F E2D:|
|:f3 ~f3 g2e|f3 ~f3 e2d|d2f ~f3 g2b|a2f d2f e2d:|

X: 1
T: The Foxhunter’s
S: Noel Hill - The Irish Concertina 2
M: 9/8
L: 1/8
R: hop jig
K: Gmaj
B3 B2A G2A|B2E E2D G2A|Bed B2A F2A|d2D D2F E2D:|
K: Dmaj
|:f3 ~f2a g2e|~f3 f2d e2f|d2f f2a g2b|a2f d2f e2d:|
%Alternative B-part
|:F3 ~F2A G2E|~F3 F2D E2D|D2F A2F G2B|A2F D2F E2D:|

First part sounds like The Lisheen Slide (albeit in Gmajor): https://thesession.org/tunes/826

Two part version in G. Last tune here: http://source.pipers.ie/Media.aspx?mediaId=4510&categoryId=178

Taken from: ‘Irish Traditional Fiddle Music’ - John Kelly And James Kelly With Michael Crehan And Michael Gavin
thesession.org/recordings/1567

Track 2, from the sleeve notes:
“A piper’s tune played in slow jig time. This grand piece of music is not the common Foxhunter’s Jig, but a version which the piper WILLIE CLANCY introduced to his musician friends around Milltown-Malbay in Co. Clare. Some traditionalists attribute it to GARETH BARRY, the Clare piper, from whom Willie’s father learned so many tunes.”

This fine slip jig is most commonly known, I believe, as the Humours of Derrycrossane. There are three settings and a video under that title.

@karas I find for fiddle if you do a roll/cut on some notes it varies it a bit. I also do slurring on some parts. I mainly use them on crotchet-quaver sections, e.g. FGF FDF G_E. I would slur from the G to the E note.

It’s nice to see some suggested chords in a couple of settings. They seem a little busy. In D, try AGAG, BmEmBmEm,GAGA,DEmF#mGA. Using the IV and V chords give a spacey feel and turning it over for the third part brings it life in a different way.

Here is an excellent rendition at 2:17
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H61w1BaieRU

play video

This a direct ABC of Comhaltas Foinn Seisiún 2. Book 2, Page 37