Annotation:Miss Monaghan's Reel
X:1 T:Miss Monaghan M:C L:1/8 R:Reel B:Stephen Grier music manuscript collection (Book 2, c. 1883, No. 72, p. 15) B: http://grier.itma.ie/book-two#?c=0&m=0&s=0&cv=14&z=91.7172%2C252.8733%2C3304.128%2C1328.6073 N:Stephen Grier (c. 1824-1894) was a piper and fiddler from N:Newpark, Bohey, Gortletteragh, south Co. Leitrim. Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion K:D A,|D2 FE/D/ FAAF|G2 BG FABc|dcdB Acef|gfed cBAF| D2 FE/D/ FAAF|G2 BG FABc|dcdf edcB|AGFE E2D2:|| a2 ab afdf|gfed cBAF|G2 BG F2 fa|gfed ce A2| dfag afdf|gfed cBAF|G2 BG F2 AF|A,B,CE D2D2| agag afdf|gfed cBAF|GABG FGAf|gfed ce A2| d/e/f/g/ af bgeg|afdf ecAF|G2 BG F2 AF|A,B,CE D3||
MISS MONA(G)HAN('S REEL) {"Ingean Uí Muineacan," "Iníon Uí Mhuimhneacháin" or "Ingean Ni Muineacain"}. AKA and see "Barrow Castle (The)," "Blea-Berry Blossom (The)," "Connacht Lasses," "Connacht Star (The)," "Dandy Girl (The)/Dandy Lass (The)/Dandy Lasses (The)," "Four Courts of Dublin (The)," "Green Fields to America," "Jackson's Welcome to Cork (1)," "Johnny Shooting in the Glen," “Kerry Star,” “Lamont’s Reel,” “Mel Roddy’s Tune,” "Music Club (The)," "O'Connell in Clare," “Shannon’s Shores,” "Stormy Weather (1)," "White Haired Piper (The).” Irish, Reel. D Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). ABC (O'Neill): AABB (most versions): AA’BB’ (Armagh Pipers): ABCDEF (Breathnach). “Miss Monaghan’s” is one variant of a large family of inter-related tunes that share melodic themes (see alternate titles) and general contour. The earliest appearance of the tune under this title is in at least two entries in Church of Ireland cleric biography:James Goodman’s (1828-1896) mid-19th century music manuscript collection. Goodman, an Irish speaker and uilleann piper, collected in tradition in County Cork and elsewhere in Munster, although he also obtained tunes from manuscripts and printed sources. A fragment of the reel appears as "Miss Manahan's [sic] Reel" in Volume 5 of the Goodman manuscripts, in a section of pipe tunes. Goodman also printed a version of the tune as "Dandy Girl (The)." "Miss Monaghan's Reel" also was entered into vol. 2 of the c. 1883 music manuscript collection of County Leitrim piper and fiddler biography:Stephen Grier (c. 1824-1894). Fintan Vallely, in his book Blooming Meadows (1998), relates that the famous piper and collector Séamus Ennis particularly relished playing this tune (and recorded it several times), as his mother was from County Monaghan.
Some see similarities between this reel and the American tune “Johnny Don't Come Home Drunk.” “Connaught Lasses,” "Belles of Tipperary (2),” and “New Policeman (1) (The),” are related to this large tune family.
The first sound recording of "Miss Monaghan" was by uileann piper Patsy Touhey, on home cylinder recordings made by Captain Francis O'Neill, 1902-1904.