Episodes

Tuesday Apr 07, 2020
Introduction
Tuesday Apr 07, 2020
Tuesday Apr 07, 2020

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. My memory isn’t the best so in some cases I cheat and find the dots online. In some cases the online versions and the dots inside my head aren't quite the same so there may be a sort of 'average' appearing. I usually play the tunes once through slowly to make them easier to learn, then I have a bit of a run at them to give another view of them. I hope this approach is OK. If anyone has any comments, or tune suggestions, please get in touch (iflute@googlemail.com).
Thanks, Michael Clarkson (Belfast, Luxembourg and on the Dublin-Belfast Aircoach).
Slowing Down Tunes
Just in case the tunes on this site aren’t dull enough, you can slow them down using recent versions of Windows Media Player (I’m sure there are plenty of other ways of doing this too).
In Windows Media player click Now Playing at the top of the screen then pick Enhancements and then Play Speed Settings. There is a nice range of speeds displayed but I can only get the half speed one to work. That’s probably enough to be getting on with in any case.

Tuesday Apr 07, 2020
Clarkson's reel
Tuesday Apr 07, 2020
Tuesday Apr 07, 2020
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.

Wednesday Mar 25, 2020
The Cat in the Corner (jig)
Wednesday Mar 25, 2020
Wednesday Mar 25, 2020
O'Neill's Dance Music of Ireland tune number 129
I probably would have been better getting the cat to play it.

Tuesday Mar 24, 2020
The Day We Paid the Rent (reel)
Tuesday Mar 24, 2020
Tuesday Mar 24, 2020
I play this tune by direct debit.

Monday Mar 23, 2020
The Wren Hornpipe
Monday Mar 23, 2020
Monday Mar 23, 2020
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.

Sunday Mar 22, 2020
The Tongs by the Fire (jig)
Sunday Mar 22, 2020
Sunday Mar 22, 2020
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.

Saturday Mar 21, 2020
Molly What Ails You? (reel)
Saturday Mar 21, 2020
Saturday Mar 21, 2020
Here's tune number 652 in O'Neill's Dance Music of Ireland.
It's the best tune between tunes 651 and 653.

Monday Jun 10, 2019
Jackson's censored Reel
Monday Jun 10, 2019
Monday Jun 10, 2019
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/2E/2D| ~E3F GFEG| Agec dBAF|
D2FD EDFE| DEFD EG ~G2| ABce dBAG| FAEG FDAF||
Here's the uncut version: https://thesession.org/tunes/1665

Saturday Jun 08, 2019
Money in Every Pocket but My Own
Saturday Jun 08, 2019
Saturday Jun 08, 2019
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

Friday Jun 07, 2019
The Church Street polka
Friday Jun 07, 2019
Friday Jun 07, 2019
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

Sunday May 19, 2019
The London Clog
Sunday May 19, 2019
Sunday May 19, 2019
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:

Saturday May 11, 2019
The Milky Way (reel)
Saturday May 11, 2019
Saturday May 11, 2019
This reel was made in space for the flute; sorry this effort isn't as out of this world as the title would suggest.

Friday May 10, 2019
Peg McGrath's reel
Friday May 10, 2019
Friday May 10, 2019
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.

Thursday May 09, 2019
The Whistling Postman - jig
Thursday May 09, 2019
Thursday May 09, 2019
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.

Saturday May 04, 2019
Jack Rowe - reel
Saturday May 04, 2019
Saturday May 04, 2019
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.

Friday May 03, 2019
The Mount Collins Reel (The Girls of Farranfore)
Friday May 03, 2019
Friday May 03, 2019
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

Saturday Dec 10, 2016
Black Pat's Reel
Saturday Dec 10, 2016
Saturday Dec 10, 2016
I've been living in a teeny weeny flat in Luxembourg for the last three weeks and have been afraid to play in case the people in the teeny weeny flats above and beside me objected. I finally got playing last night in a pub at a session with 4 flutes - just like home only the drink was a lot dearer. This tune was mentioned (not by me) but nobody knew it well enough to play it. I've given myself a crash course in playing the tune today in my teeny weeny apartment in this nice little country. I think the first half of the term 'crash course' might be the most relevant here. I'll blame that on my fear of annoying the residents near my little Luxembourgish lodging.
I think Tommy Peoples made this tune up. Best to find a recording of him playing it, or any other tune for that matter.

Saturday Feb 13, 2016
Sweet Biddy Daly (jig)
Saturday Feb 13, 2016
Saturday Feb 13, 2016


Monday Jan 25, 2016
The Gates of Mullagh (reel)
Monday Jan 25, 2016
Monday Jan 25, 2016


Monday Oct 05, 2015
The One Horned Cow (reel)
Monday Oct 05, 2015
Monday Oct 05, 2015
Here's a reel which was included in O'Neill's Dance Music of Ireland in 1907 as 'An Bhó Mhaol / The Hornless Cow' but was recorded by Liam Walsh in 1933 as 'The One Horned Cow'


Monday Sep 21, 2015
The Lonesome Jig
Monday Sep 21, 2015
Monday Sep 21, 2015
Here's a Lonesome Jig. It only has 681 companions on this site so far - no wonder it feels a bit isolated.

Saturday May 16, 2015
The Blarney Pilgrim (jig)
Saturday May 16, 2015
Saturday May 16, 2015


Tuesday Jul 15, 2014
Mama's Pet (3)
Tuesday Jul 15, 2014
Tuesday Jul 15, 2014

Thursday May 08, 2014
The Shamrock Barndance
Thursday May 08, 2014
Thursday May 08, 2014
Here's a tune popular among some fiddle players in Donegal. I'm not sure whether it is unpopular among everyone else in that county but I'll maybe avoid playing it there just to be on the safe side.


Saturday Apr 05, 2014
The Walls of Limerick (Reel)
Saturday Apr 05, 2014
Saturday Apr 05, 2014
Just grabbing a rare moment in the house when not being entertained / attacked (it's a fine line) by children. The first 2 minutes of that moment have been used up by playing this reel. www.tunepal.org told me it is called the Walls of Limerick. I have it on a recording of John McKenna on the flute with Michael Gaffney (I think) on the banjo. The notes at http://tunepal.org/tunepal/show_tune.php?tunepalid=266-hnr2.abc-2-Walls~of~Limerick%2C~The look very like it. I'm sure all will be revealed and explained when 'Imminent' becomes 'Recent' in a while ... http://www.johnmckenna.ie/irish-time/.

Thursday Feb 06, 2014
Down The Meadow - Reel
Thursday Feb 06, 2014
Thursday Feb 06, 2014

Tuesday Jan 14, 2014
Last Night's Joy (reel)
Tuesday Jan 14, 2014
Tuesday Jan 14, 2014
Here's a reel I just heard on a recording of the Donegal fiddle maestro John Doherty.

Friday Jun 07, 2013
Roger's Jig
Friday Jun 07, 2013
Friday Jun 07, 2013
Here's an old, neglected Sligo jig. There's a recording of Paddy Sweeney from Moylough in Sligo playing it on a fiddle in 1937: http://archive.org/details/PaddySweenyRogersJigVillageJig. I like listening to recordings like that of tunes played at a quick pace and then hearing people who extol the virtues of Coleman, Sweeney, Killoran et al, giving off at people for playing too fast when they are playing much slower that their heroes every played. I'm sorry if that was a very clumsily cobbled sentence - I'm not used to the heat - a bit of which has been visited upon us of late. You'll be able to find the tune in squashed tadpole form at http://thesession.org/tunes/11483 and play it at whatever speed you like.

Wednesday May 01, 2013
The Southwest Wind (An Ghaoth Aniar Aneas) - jig
Wednesday May 01, 2013
Wednesday May 01, 2013
Here's a jig from the South West - mar atá Co. Clare. I associate it with Willie Clancy. I'm not sure whether its title refers to the direction the air flowed through his pipes while he played it. I think my flute was more Mecca-wards when I was playing it on this occasion - that would just be a west wind - with slight precipitation towards the end of the tune. For disciples of the dot there's always http://tunepal.org/tunepal/show_tune.php?tunepalid=8445-75.abc-1-Southwest~Wind%2C~The.

Wednesday Apr 10, 2013
Michael Ryan's reel
Wednesday Apr 10, 2013
Wednesday Apr 10, 2013
Here's a Gan Ainm - one of a host of Gans Ainm in Breandán Breathnach's Ceol Rince na hÉireann 2. At least the person BB got the tune from had an ainm - namely Michael Ryan, a flute player from Co. Sligo, so (that's 'so' the conjunction rather than the Sligo 'SO' that you may see on a numberplate in Ballymote) I'll call the tune after Mr. R. Mr. B. gave the reel the rather appealing number 142 in his book.