The Fiddler’s
Companion
© 1996-2008 Andrew Kuntz
_______________________________
HOME
ALPHABETICAL FILES REFERENCES
|
NO |
|
Notation Note: The tunes below are recorded in what
is called “abc notation.” They
can easily be converted to standard musical notation via highlighting with
your cursor starting at “X:1” through to the end of the abc’s, then
“cutting-and-pasting” the highlighted notation into one of the many abc
conversion programs available, or at concertina.net’s incredibly handy “ABC
Convert-A-Matic” at http://www.concertina.net/tunes_convert.html **Please note that the abc’s in
the Fiddler’s Companion work fine in most abc conversion programs. For
example, I use abc2win and abcNavigator 2 with no problems whatsoever with
direct cut-and-pasting. However, due to an anomaly of the html, pasting the
abc’s into the concertina.net converter results in double-spacing. For
concertina.net’s conversion program to work you must remove the spaces
between all the lines of abc notation after pasting, so that they are
single-spaced, with no intervening blank lines. This being done, the F/C
abc’s will convert to standard notation nicely. Or, get a copy of
abcNavigator 2 – its well worth it.
[AK] |
NO CORN ON TIGERT/TYGART [1]. Old‑Time,
Breakdown.
NO CORN ON TIGERT/TYGART [2]. AKA and see “Jimmy Ossington,” “Snakewinder.” Old‑Time, Breakdown.
NO GRAIN, NO PAIN. American, Reel. D Major. Standard tuning.
AABB. Composed by
NO LONGER CAN I STAY (Mi Tig Liom Do Fan Nios Fuide). Irish, Slow Air (3/4
time). D Minor. Standard tuning. AABB. Source for notated version: Chicago
Police Sergeant James O’Neill, a fiddler originally from
X:1
T:No
Longer Can I Stay
M:3/4
L:1/8
R:Air
N:”Slow”
S:O’Neill
– Music of
Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion
K:D
Minor
A/G/
FE|D2 d>e fd|cA GF GA|B2 AG FE|D3:|
|:(3A/B/c/|dd|d2
ef ec|{e}g2 fe dA|G>F DE FG|A3:|
NO LUCK ABOUT THE HOUSE.
See "There's
Nae Luck Aboot the Hoose."
NO MAN'S JIG.
AKA and see "Buttered Peas(e)
[1]," "The Reel of Stumpie,”
“Stumpie/Stumpey." English,
Sword Dance Tune (4/4 time).
X:1
T:No
Man's Jig
M:4/4
L:1/8
K:G
B2d2d2
cB|c2e2 e4|B2d2d2cB|c2A2A4|B2d2d2cB|c2e2e2c2|B4A4|G8:|
|:g2f2e2d2|efg2
d4|g2f2e2d2|ef g2 a4|g2f2e2d2|ef g2d2c2|B4A4|G8:|
NO MISTAKE. American, March (2/4
time). D Major. Standard. AABBCC. The second part shows up as the second part
of the Pennsylvania‑collected "The Old Town Band [1]." Sweet's
note indicates the tune was played by the
NO NAME BLUES.
Cajun, Two-Step(?).
NO-NAME TUNE, THE. Scottish, Reel. D
Major. Standard. AABB. Composed by Scottish fiddler Ron Gonnella. Miller (Fiddler’s Throne), 2004; No. 224, pg.
137.
NO PITCH HOT.
Old‑Time. The title appears in a list of traditional
NO POWER ON EARTH CAN E'ER DIVIDE. AKA and see "Irish Howl." English, Air. The tune
appears under this name in Gay's Beggar's Opera of 1729. It also can be found
in the third volume of Playford's Dancing
Master (c. 1726).
NO SONG, NO SUPPER.
English, Country Dance Tune (6/8 time).
NO SURRENDER. AKA and see “Gates of Derry.” Irish, March (6/8
time). Ireland, Ulster. D Major (Levey): C Major (Howe, Mulvihill): B Flat
Major (O’Neill): A Major (Connolly & Martin). Standard tuning. AB (Howe,
Mulvihill, O’Neill): AABB (Levey): AABB’ (Connolly & Martin). Joyce (1873)
records that this tune was well known in Ulster and was traditionally used for
the marching tune at the yearly celebration of the shutting and opening of the
gates of Derry; “its use has with great probability descended form the period
of the siege itself.” This tune resembles "Over the River to
Charlie," though the American musicologist Samuel Bayard (1981) could not
determine if it is derivative, or whether the original air was altered by
emphasizing some parts or de‑emphasizing others. O’Neill (1922) notes:
“(My) setting of "No Surrender"…was taken from a manuscript volume of
Irish melodies compiled by H. Hudson, 24 Stephens Green, Dublin in the years
1840-41. After the name comes the notation: ‘From Ordnance Survey of
Londonderry, vol. 1, page 197.’ From the remarks accompanying the famous old
march in Dr. Joyce's Ancient Irish Music
(Dublin 1890), we quote:
***
It is printed in the
Ordnance Memoir of Londonderry where,
however, it is
practically inaccessible to the general public, as
that book is very
scarce. It has long been appropriated as the
marching tune of the
yearly celebration of the shutting and
opening of the gates of
Derry.
***
It
may be of interest to add that the siege of Derry occurred in 1689. We may be
pardoned for remarking that Dr. Joyce's arrangement is in the Scale of C although
both settings were derived from the same scarce publication.” Joyce believed
the melody to be well-known to the musicians of parts of Ulster, but seldom
heard in other provinces. Fiddler Séamus Connolly (2002) remarks that the
melody is related to the song “Beidh Ríl Againn,” which he learned in primary
school. Mulvihill indicates the tempo is slow. Source for notated version: Seán
Óg Ó Tuama (originally from Cork City) [Connolly & Martin]. Allan's Irish Fiddler, No. 116, pg. 30 (appears as “Gates of Derry”). Connolly &
Martin (Forget Me Not), 2002; pgs.
82-83. Howe (1000 Jigs and Reels), c.
1867; pg. 19. Joyce (Ancient Irish Music),
1873/1890; No. 81, pg. 83. Levey (The
Dance Music of Ireland, 2nd Collection), 1873; No. 50, pg. 22. Mulvihill (1st Collection), 1986; No. 57, pg. 131.
O’Neill (Waifs and Strays of Gaelic
Melody), 1922; No. 80.
X:1
T:No
Surrender
M:6/8
L:1/8
S:H.
Hudson manuscript 1840-41
Z:Paul
Kinder
R:March
K:Bb
F|BdB
G2 B|FDF F2 G|F2 G B2 c|d2 f edc|
B/2c/2dB
G2 B|FDF F2 G|F2 e dec|B3 B2||
F|B2
d f2 d|g2 e f2 d|B2 d f2 d|e2 c gec|
B2
d f>ed|e>fg f2 e|dBG FBc|dBf edc|
dBG
G2 B|FDF F2 G|F2 G B2 c|d2 f edc|
B/2c/2dB
G2 B|FDF F2 G|F2 e dec|B3 B2||
X:2
T:No
Surrender
M:6/8
L:1/8
R:Jig
S:Levey
– Dance Music of Ireland, 2nd Collection
(1873)
Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion
K:D
dfd
B2d | AFA A2B | AFA d2e | fga gfe | dfd B2d | AFA A2B | d2g fge | d3 d2z :|
|:
dfa (a2f) | (b2g) afd | dfa agf | e2f gfe | dfa (a2f) | (b2g) (a2f) | dAB d2e |
f2a gfe :|
NO USE KICKING MY DOG AROUND. AKA and see “Great Big Taters in
Sandy Land.”
NO WONDER YOUNG MEN. See “Cha’n ioghnadh na gillean.”
NO YOU DON'T.
Irish, Jig. G Major. Standard tuning. AABB. A version of the Irish tune "Indeed! Then You Shan’t/Won't.”
White’s Unique Collection, 1896; No.
37, pg. 7.
X:1
T:No
You Don’t
M:6/8
L:1/8
R:Jig
S:White’s Unique Collection (1896), No. 37
Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion
K:G
g
| gfe (d2B) | cBA Bcd | gfe (e2d) | cBA G2d | gfe (d2B) | cBA GBd |
gbg
d2B | cBA G2 :: G | FGA (A2B) | cBA BAG | FGA (A2B) |
cBA
G2G | FGA (A2B) | cBA BAG | gbg dcB | cBA G2 :|
NOBBER BEYOND.
The title appears in a list of tunes in his repertoire brought by Philip
Goodman, the last professional and traditional piper in Farney, Louth, to the
Feis Ceoil in Belfast in 1898 (Breathnach, 1997).
NOBE'S MAGGOT.
Irish, Slip Jig. D Major. Standard tuning. AB. "'Maggot,' a dram"
(Joyce). Joyce obtained the melody from the Pigot collection. Joyce (Old Irish Folk Music and Songs), 1909;
No. 724, pgs. 360‑261.
X:1
T:Nobe’s
Maggot
M:9/8
L:1/8
R:Slip
Jig
S:Joyce
– Old Irish Folk Music and Songs, No.
724 (1909)
Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion
K:D
d>ed
f2g a3|c2d e2f ecA|dcB AFd F2z|d2z D2E F>ED||
G>AG
B>cd F3|G>FE E>FE F>GF|G>AG B>cd F2z|d2z D2E FED||
NOBLE RACE OF JENKEN, THE. Scottish. The melody appears in the Gillespie Manuscript of Perth, 1768. Probably “Of a Noble Race was Shenkin.”
NOBLE SHRIVE, THE. English, Dance Air (6/4 time). F Major. Standard tuning.
AB. The air appears in a MS of virginal music which Chappell (1859) believes
contains air mostly tracable to the sixteenth century. Supporting this he notes
that the word 'Shrive', which is an old form of 'Shire‑reeve' or Sheriff,
had disappeared by the 17th century. Chappell (Popular Music of the Olden Times), vol. 1, 1859; pg. 126.
NOBLE SQUIRE DACRE.
English, Scottish; Air (6/8 time). England, Northumberland. G Major. Standard
tuning. AABB. "This beautiful air is possessed of that uncommon
characteristic appertaining to some of our oldest and best national melodies,
that is, if played slowly it awakens the emotional feelings of the listeners,
and if played in quick time it appeals as effectively to their saltatory
powers. Sir Walter Scott, in a letter to Mr. John Ball of Gateshead, dated 7th
March, 1816, says: 'The Dowager Lady
Penicuick (a sister of noble Squire Dacre) tells me that when any of the
family was buried the bag‑piper played that tune at the funeral, as they
play the family lament to this day in the Highlands.' There is no doubt that
the Dacres, like the other noble families of the district, maintained their
family minstrels; and Sir Walter Scott utilized, in an appropriate and happy
spirit, the information he received from lady Penicuick, in his poem of 'The
Lay of the Last Minstrel,' canto IV., stanza 14:‑‑
***
Lord Dacre's billmen
were at hand—
A hardy race, on Irthing
bred,
With kirtles white and
crosses red,
Array'd beneath the
banner tall,
That streamed o'er
Acre's conquered wall,
And minstels, as they
marched in order,
Played 'Noble Lord
Dacre, he dwells on the Border.
***
It
is very probable, from the title given to this tune, that a song or ballad set
to it was at one time in existence; but, so far as we know, it has disappeared"
(Bruce & Stokoe).
Bruce
& Stokoe (Northumbrian Minstrelsy),
1882; pg. 161.
X:1
T:Noble
Squire Dacre
M:6/8
L:1/8
S:Bruce
& Stokoe – Northumbrian Minstrelsy (1882)
Z:AK/Fiddler’s
Companion
K:G
BA>G
G>FG|G>AB A2G|c>BA A>BA|c>ec efg|B>AG G>AG|
G>AB
A2G|c>ec def|g2B A2G:|
|:BG/A/B/G/
d2G|BG/A/B/G/ d2G|cA/B/c/A/ e2A|cA/B/c/A/ efg|
BG/A/B/G/
d2G|BG/A/B/G/ dcB|cec def|g2B A2:|
NOBLEMAN'S WEDDING, THE. Irish, Tune (4/4 time). F Major. Standard. One part. "This
pretty ballad was a favourite in my father's house, from whose singing I
learned it in my childhood. More than half‑a‑century ago I gave it
to Dr. Petrie, who published the air in his 'Ancient Music of Ireland', p. 180.
He gives three versions, the third of which is the one given by me (not the
first, as he states by an oversight). Instead of the peasant words, however, he
has given a ballad by William Allingham, founded on the original. Patrick
Kennedy has also given the ballad in his 'Banks of the Boro' (p. 194): but this
version has been largely constructed by himself. I give here from memory the
very words of the peasant song; and they will be found nowhere else. The air, I
must observe, has been republished in several settings‑‑including
my own‑‑in the Stanford‑Petrie collection" (Joyce).
Joyce (Old Irish Folk Music and Songs),
1909; No. 413, pg. 224.
NOBLE'S. English?, Hornpipe. F
Major. Standard. AAB. Harding’s All Round
Collection, 1905; No. 33, pg. 10.
X:1
T:Noble’s
M:C
L:1/8
R:Hornpipe
S:Harding’s All Round Collection (1905),
No. 33
Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion
K:F
C2|F3G
AGAc|defd cAGF|G^FGA BABc|d2g2g2G2|F3G AGAc|
defd
cAGA|F2f2 cAGF|A2F2F2::c2|f2a2 gece|f2a2 gece|
bgbg
afaf|e2g2g2 fg|a^gaf g^fge|defd cAGF|F2f2 cBAG|A2F2F2||
NOBODY CARES FOR ME.
Irish, Air (6/8 time). A Minor. Standard. AB. "Not intended for a jig.
Taken down from Michael O'Hannigan, piper, 24th April, 1853, at Mr. Curry's
(i.e. the great Irish scholar, Eugene O'Curry)" {Joyce}. Joyce (Old Irish Folk Music and Songs), 1909;
No. 808, pgs. 392‑393.
NOBODY'S BUSINESS.
Old‑Time, Song and Breakdown. Recorded in 1928 for Brunswick/Vocalion by
West Virginia string band duo the Cumberland Mountain Entertainers (Sam
Caplinger and fiddler Andy Patterson {1893‑1950}). Later the duo moved to
Akron, Ohio, and formed the Dixie Harmonizers, who recorded for Gennett. Carryon Records 002, "Ace Weems & the Fat Meat
Boys."
NOBODY'S JIG.
AKA and see "My Lady
Winwood's Maggot." Related to "No Man's
Jig." English, Country Dance Tune (2/2 time). G Major. Standard. AABB.
Merryweather (1989) states the tune dates from the 17th century when the term
‘jig’ meant any spirited dance tune, rather than the 6/8 time dance (as in
Irish jig) form familiar to us in modern times. Barnes (1986) for some reason
dates it to 1721. In fact, it appears in the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book (c. 1650?), and was later published by
John Playford in his English Dancing
Master from the edition of 1679 and subsequently. The tune seems related
to, at least structurally, to "No Man's Jig," a morris-dance version
of “Buttered Peas.”
***
Implied
in the title is a double meaning that has been a kind of joke from the Middle
Ages to the present. ‘Nobody’s Jig’ can refer to a jig that no-one has laid
claim too, but also could be taken to mean it belongs to (a person named)
Nobody. This dual meaning was extent at the time. Reginald Nettle, in his book
Sing a Song of England (1954), says that Thomas Weelkes, referring to the
Shakespearean actor, dancer and performer Will Kemp, set the following words to
the tune in his Ayeres or Phantasticke
Sprites (1608):
***
Since Robin Hook, Maid
Marian, and Little John are gone-a,
The hobby-horse was
quite forgot when Kemp did dance alone-a.
***
Nettles
believes the tune to be a variant of the Helston Furry Dance melody. Barnes (English Country Dance Tunes), 1986.
Karpeles & Schofield (A Selection of
100 English Folk Dance Airs), 1951; pg. 18 (appears as "My Lady
Winwood's Maggot"). Merryweather (Merryweather’s
Tunes for the English Bagpipe), 1989; pg. 42. Raven (English Country Dance Tunes), 1984; pg. 23.
X:
1
T:
Nobody's Jig
M:4/4
L:1/8
Q:160
S:Playford
O:Manuscript
A:English
K:F
g2|f2
d2 d2 ef|g2 G2 G2 g2|f2 d2 defg|g6 ag|f2 d2 d2 ef|
g2
d2 d2 c2|B4 A4|A6::cB|c2 e2 e2 ec|Bc d2 d2 cB|
c2
e2 e2 dc|b2 d2 d2 B2|cBcd edef|g2 d2 d2 c2|B4 A4| g6:|
NODLOG
MEIDREAC.
AKA and see "(A) Merry Christmas."
NOEL HILL’S.
AKA and see “Foxhunter’s
(Reel) [2],” “Mary McMahon,” “Micho Russell’s (Reel) [4],”
“The Sister’s Reel.” Irish, Reel. D
Major. Standard. AABB. Breathnach, (CRÉ
II), 1976; No. 269 (appears as “Gan ainm”/Untitled). Shanachie 78005, De Danann – “Hibernian Rhapsody.”
X:1
T:Noel
Hill’s
R:Reel
Z:Adrian
Scahill
M:4/4
L:1/8
K:D
fAeA
dAAG|FGAB =cAGB|Add2 efed|(3Bcd ef g2ag|\
fdec
dAAG|FGAB =cAGB|Add2 efed|cAGE D4:||\
f3g
a2fa|abag fede|f3g a2fa|bfaf g2ag|\
f3g
a2fa|abag feda|bfaf gfed|(3Bcd ef g2ag:||
NOEL HILL’S FANCY.
Canadian, Reel. Canada, Cape Breton. C Major. Standard. AABB. Composed by
fiddler Jerry Holland (Inverness, Cape Breton) in honor of Irish Anglo concertina
player Noel Hill. Cranford (Jerry
Holland’s), 1995; No. 68, pg. 20. Fiddlesticks
cass., Jerry Holland - “Fathers and Sons” (1992).
NOEL'S WALTZ.
American (?), Waltz. G Major. Standard. AB. Private collection (circulated
among contra-dance musicians).
NOGGIN OF CREAM,
THE. AKA and see "The Munster Rake,"
"The Swaggering Jig [1],"
"The Drunken Gauger [1],"
"Welcome the Piper," "The
Silly Old Man [1]," "Girls take care how you marry,"
“Give Us a Drink of Water
[2],” "Just
at/in the height of her bloom," "Tiggit along the Room,"
"Taim in Arreir dTigh an Oil,"
"Taim in Arrears," “The old woman's consort."
Irish, Slip Jig. G Major. Standard. AABCCD. A noggin is a unit of measure used
in Ireland, about ¼ of a pint. O'Neill (O’Neill’s
Irish Music), 1915; No. 226, pg. 121.
X:1
T:Noggin
of Cream, The
M:9/8
L:1/8
S:Slip
Jig
S:O’Neill
– O’Neill’s Irish Music (1915)
Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion
K:G
BAG
GEG GEG | BAG GEG A3 | BAG GEG GEG | AGA BGE D3 :|
Bdd
BdB BAG | Bdd BdB BAG | Bdd BdB BAG | AGA BGE D3 |
Bdd
BdB BAG | Bdd Bde g3 | gfe fed edB | AGA BGE D3 |: BAG EFG EFG |
BAG
EFG A3 | BAG EFG EFG | AGA BGE D3 :| Ggg ged BAG | Ggg ged e3 |
Ggg
ged BAG | AGA BGE D3 | Ggg ged BAG | Ggg ged e2f | gffe fed edB | AGA BGE D3 ||
NOININ CONNACHTACH, AN (The Connaught Daisy {from Coady}). Irish, Air (3/4 time).
G Minor. Standard. AB. Editor O'Sullivan (1983) thinks the piece a harp-melody
rather than a song air. He chooses to print Bunting's MS version rather than
the one printed in his 1840 collection (from Hugh Higgins, the harper, noted in
1792); the versions are not similar except for some resemblances in title,
meter, rhythm and phrase lengths. The Higgins version O'Sullivan thinks related
to "An Bonnain Bui."
Source for notated version: Bunting noted the tune from James Coady the piper.
O'Sullivan/Bunting, 1983; No. 114, pgs. 164-165.
NÓIRÍN BÁN. Irish, Air (3/4 time).
D Minor. Standard. AAB. Source for notated version: “From Mrs. Close” [Petrie].
Petrie (Complete Collection), 1905;
No. 1068, pg. 271.
X:1
T:Nóirín
Bán
M:3/4
L:1/8
R:Air
S:Stanford/Petrie
(1905), No. 1068
Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion
K:D
Minor
FG/A/|B2B2
B>c|B4 A>G|A2c2f2|A4 {A/}GF|BGAFGD|F4 GA/B/|
A>F
D2D2|D4:||AG|F2A2c2|f4 ef|defedc|{B/}A3 BAG|F2A2c2|
f4
ef|d2 df eg|f3 edc|B2B2 B>g|B4 {B/}AG|A2c2f2|A4 {A/}GF|
BGAFGD|F4
GA/B/|A>F D2D2|D4||
NOIRIN MO MHILE STOIRIN ("Noirin/Nora My Thousand Treasures). AKA - "Noreen Ma
Villa Storeen." Irish, Air (3/4 time). D Minor. Standard tuning. AABB.
Source for notated version: The index to the Irish collector Edward Bunting's
1840 collection indicates the tune was noted at Galway in 1802.
O'Sullivan/Bunting, 1983; No. 28, pg. 46.
NOISY CURLEW, THE. AKA and see “Jack
McGuire’s Reel.” The curlew is a large brown-streaked wading bird that
emits haunting cries and a bubbling trill song (related to courtship, but heard
in all seasons). It winters on the coast of Ireland, mainly on the coast and in
estuaries, although sometimes inland, but during nesting season may be found in
numerous habitats, including upland moors, grassy or boggy open areas in
forests and damp grasslands and traditionally managed hayfields particularly in
river valleys.
***
The Curlew.
***
Nimbus
Records, Seamus Egan & Eileen Ivers – “Dear Old Erin’s Isle.”
X:1
T:Noisy
Curlew
M:C
L:1/8
Q:224
S:Eileen
Ivers & Seamus Egan
D:Dear
old Erin´s Isle, Eileen Ivers + Seamus Egan;
D:Corner
House
K:D
|:
DF ~F2 DG ~G2 | DF ~F2 E2 FE| DF ~F2 ABde | fdAF GEFE|
DF
~F2 DG ~G2| DF ~F2 E2 FE | DF ~F2 ABde| fdAF GEFE :|
|:
fgaf (3ggg ag | fgaf gf e2 | fgaf g2 fa
| gdAF GE D2 |
fgaf
(3ggg ag | fgaf gf ea | gdAF G2 a2 | gdAF GE D2 :|
NOLAN THE SOLDIER
(Ua Nuallain An Ceatarnac). AKA and see "The Wicklow's March," "The Miners of Wicklow," "Paddy O'Flynn," "The Lass(ie) of Gowrie." Irish,
Jig. D Major. Standard tuning. AB. The tune is a quickstep tune for the fife,
according to Francis O'Neill, who named the melody after Nolan, who had been a
fifer in the Confederate army during the Civil War. O'Neill learned the melody
in Edina, Missouri, where he lived for a time in the 1870's, and where Nolan
and his son (who played the drums) would "give free exhibitions of their
skill on the public square at Edina to enliven the evenings while the weather
was fine" (O'Neill, Irish Folk Music).
See also the related “Seán Buí.” O'Neill (Music
of Ireland: 1850 Melodies), 1903/1979; No. 726, pg. 135.
X:1
T:Nolan
the Soldier
M:6/8
L:1/8
R:Jig
S:O’N