Annotation:Sporting Paddy (1)

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X:1 T:Sporting Paddy [1] M:C L:1/8 R:Reel B:Stephen Grier music manuscript collection (Book 2, c. 1883, No. 144, p. 31) B: http://grier.itma.ie/book-two#?c=0&m=0&s=0&cv=30&z=-294.2747%2C113.9261%2C3441.5318%2C1763.862 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:Ador EAAB GABG|EA AB/A/ G2 ED|EAAB GABA|1 Bgge d2 BG:|2 Bgge d2 ef|| ge eg/e/ dBBf|gee f/g/ a2 af|gee g/e/ dBBA|Bgge d2 ef| ge eg/e/ dBBf|gee f/g/ a2 af|ggge dddf|efge d2 BG||



SPORTING PADDY [1] (Pádraic Spóirtiúil). AKA and see “Harvest Moon (1) (The),” "Irish Pat," "Rolling on the Ryegrass (2)," "Sporting Pat (2)," "Turf Bank (The)." Irish, Reel or Highland (cut time). A Dorian. Standard tuning (fiddle). AB (Breathnach, Harker/Rafferty, Moylan, O'Connor, O’Malley): AABB (McNulty). "Sporting Paddy" was collected by County Leitrim piper and fiddler biography:Stephen Grier (c. 1824-1894) and entered in Book 2 of his large c. 1883 music manuscript collection. It is also contained in the early 20th century ms. collection of south County Armagh/County Louth cleric Luke Donnellan (1878-1952), although Donnellan may have only been the possessor, not the originator of the collection[1]. In County Donegal the melody is very popular played as a Highland, modified from the reel form which is found in other parts of Ireland. The title in O’Neill’s Waifs and Strays of Gaelic Melody (1922) is “Irish Pat.” See also cleric James Goodman’s mid-19th century Munster-collected version, “Rolling on the Ryegrass (2).” Johnny O’Leary played this tune paired with “Hare's Paw (1).”


Additional notes
Source for notated version : - accordion player Sonny Brogan (County Sligo/Dublin, Ireland) [Breathnach]; accordion player Johnny O’Leary (Sliabh Luachra region of the Cork-Kerry border) [Moylan]; New Jersey flute player Mike Rafferty, born in Ballinakill, Co. Galway, in 1926 [Harker].

Printed sources : - Breathnach (Ceol Rince na hÉireann, vol. I), 1963; No. 133, p. 54. Rev. Luke Donnellan, “Oriel Songs and Dances" (Journal of the County Louth Archaeological Society), vol. II, No. 2, 1909; No. 4. Harker (300 Tunes from Mike Rafferty), 2005; No. 156, p. 48. McNulty (Dance Music of Ireland), 1965; p. 14. Moylan (Johnny O’Leary of Sliabh Luachra), 1994; No. 201, p. 116. O'Connor (The Rose in the Gap), 2018; No. 16, p. 33. O’Malley (Luke O’Malley’s Collection of Irish Music, vol. 1), 1976; No. 66, p. 33. Prior (Fionn Seisiún 3), 2007; p. 11. Susan Songer with Clyde Curley (Portland Collection vol. 3), 2015; p. 202.

Recorded sources : - Compass 7 4377 2, Lunasa - "Kinnity Sessions" (2004). Compass 7 4399 2, Sharon Shannon - "Each Little Thing" (2005). Green Linnet SIF=104, Joe Burke & Michael Cooney = "The Celts Rise Again" (1990). Green Linnet SIF=1069, Joe Burke & Michael Cooney = "Happy to Meet & Sorry to Part" (1986). Shanachie SH78041, Solas – “The Hour Before Dawn” (2000).

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



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  1. Donnellan researcher Gerry O'Connor believes the collection was the work of was the work of "an unknown, able, traditional musician, probably a fiddle player, transcribed over the musician's lifetime."