Annotation:First of May (1)

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FIRST OF MAY [1], THE (An Cead La Bealteine). AKA - "1st of May (The)." AKA and see "Mayday Hornpipe (The)." Irish, English, Scottish; Hornpipe. A Dorian/Mixolydian (O'Neill/1915, Phillips, Raven, Taylor): A Mixolydian (Emmerson, Roche, Stanford/Petrie): A Major (Kerr, O'Neill/1850). Standard tuning (fiddle). AB (Stanford/Petrie): AABB (Allans, Emmerson, O'Neill, Raven, Roche, Taylor): AA'BB' (Kerr, Phillips). The first of May was traditionally a day for romance and was important in ancient times as the date of the festival of La Bealtaine (the day of the mouth of the fire), one of the most important Celtic celebrations. During Bealtaine ceremonial fires would be lit on either side of a path and cattle driven up the middle to purify them for the coming year and to help protect them against disease and insure their health. Philippe Varlet says the tune was quite popular during the 78 RPM era and was recorded by Tom Ennis, Packie Dolan, and the Flanagan Brothers, among others. O'Neill (1913, pg. 132), Bayard (1981) and Emmerson (1971) all say this double hornpipe is either a derivative, a variant, or development from a common ancestor of the jig tune known as "Fágamaíd Súd Mar Atá Sé" (Let us leave that as it is), or "Galbally Farmer (The)," "Get Up Early," "Rakes of Kildare (The)," "Old Barndoor Jig (The)," "Barndoor Jig (The)." The group Téada recorded the tune as "Mayday Hornpipe (The)." Don Meade points out the melody was the air of several songs, including "The Little Skillet Pot." See note for "Arthur's Seat (2)" for another association to the first of May.

"The First of May" also shows up in Ireland as the first tune in a medley of flings called "The Four Provinces."

The title is among those mentioned in Patrick J. McCall's (who co-edited the 1914 Feis Ceol Collection) 1861 poem "The Dance at Marley," the first three stanzas of which goes:

Murtagh Murphy's barn was full to the door when the eve grew dull,
For Phelim Moore his beautiful new pipes had brought to charm them;
In the kitchen thronged the girls - cheeks of roses, teeth of pearls -
Admiring bows and braids and curls, till Phelim's notes alarm them.
Quick each maid her hat and shawl hung on dresser, bed, or wall,
Smoothed down her hair and smiled on all as she the bawnoge entered,
Where a shass of straw was laid on a ladder raised that made
A seat for them as still they stayed while dancers by them cantered.


Murtagh and his vanithee had their chairs brought in to see
The heels and toes go fast and free, and fun and love and laughter;
In their sconces all alight shone the tallow candles bright -
The flames kept jigging all the night, upleaping to each rafter!
The pipes, with noisy drumming sound, the lovers' whispering sadly drowned,
So the couples took their ground - their hearts already dancing!
Merrily, with toe and heel, airily in jig and reel,
Fast in and out they whirl and wheel, all capering and prancing.


"Off She Goes," "The Rocky Road," "The Tipsy House," and "Miss McLeod,"
"The Devil's Dream," and "Jig Polthogue," "The Wind that Shakes the Barley,"
"The First o'May," "The Garran Bwee," "Tatther Jack Welsh," "The River Lee," -
As lapping breakers from the sea the myriad tunes at Marley!
Reels of three and reels of four, hornpipes and jigs galore,
With singles, doubles held the floor in turn, without a bar low;
But when the fun and courting lulled, and the dancing somewhat dulled,
The door unhinged, the boys down pulled for "Follow me up to Carlow."

Source for notated version:

Printed sources: Allan's Irish Fiddler, No. 98, p. 25. Cole (1000 Fiddle Tunes), 1940; p. 48 (reel setting). Emmerson (Rantin' Pipe and Tremblin' String), 1971; No. 96, p. 168. Kerr (Merry Melodies), vol. 4; No. 269, p. 29. Köhlers’ Violin Repository, Book 1, 1881-1885; p. 41. O'Neill (O'Neill's Irish Music), 1915 No. 346, p. 170. O'Neill (Krassen), 1976; p. 199. O'Neill (Music of Ireland: 1850 Melodies), 1903; No. 1708, p. 318. O'Neill (Dance Music of Ireland: 1001 Gems), 1907; No. 899, p. 154. O'Neill (1913), p. 132. Phillips (Traditional American Fiddle Tunes), vol. 2, 1995; p. 50. Raven (English Country Dance Tunes), 1984; p. 159. Roche (Collection of Traditional Irish Music, vol. 2), 1913; No. 200, p. 7. Ryan's Mammoth Collection, 1883; p. 76 (reel setting). Stanford/Petrie (Complete Collection), 1905; No. 404, p. 102. Taylor (Where's the Crack?), 1989; pg. 26. White's Unique Collection, 1896; No. 49, p. 9.

Recorded sources: Rounder 0215, James Bryan - "The First of May" (198?).

See also listings at:
Jane Keefer's Folk Music Index: An Index to Recorded Sources [1]
Alan Ng's Irishtune.info [2]

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