Annotation:Dunmore Lasses (The)

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 DUNMORE LASSES (Gearrchailiú an Dúin Mhóir). AKA - "Dunmore Lassies." AKA and see "Morrison's Reel (1)," "Road to Knock (The)." Irish, Reel. E Minor. Standard tuning (fiddle). AB (Breathnach): AA'BB' (Flaherty). O'Sullivan (1983) notes a relationship between this tune and "My Love is in America;" one is nearly a mirror of the other, though in the same key and transposed down one step. Related tunes are "Custom Gap (The)," "Mills are Grinding (1)," "Porthole of the Kelp" and "Tuttle's Reel," certainly in the 'A' part though the 'B' parts differ somewhat. Fiddler Paddy Carty recorded the tune as "Morrison's," perhaps named for flute player Tom Morrison (1889-1958) who recorded the tune on a 78 RPM in New York in September, 1927 (in a medley with "Manchester Reel [3]" and "Castlebar Traveller"). Morrison was originally from Whitepark, near Glennamaddy, North County Galway, write Varlet & Spottswood (1992), and emigrated to New York in 1909. The name Dunmore means 'the big fort', from the Celtic dun mor.  Sources for notated versions: flutist Éamonn de Stabaltún (Ireland) [Breathnach]; flute player James Murray (b. 1947, Ougham, near Tubbercurry, Co. Sligo) [Flaherty]. from the playing of piper Séamus Ennis (Dublin), who learned them from his father, a piper taught by Nicholas Markey who in turn had been taught by the renowned piper and pipemaker Billy Taylor of Drogheda and later Philadelphia [Breathnach].  Printed sources: Breathnach (Ceol V, No. 2), 1982. Breathnach (The Man and His Music), 1997; No. 6, p. 73. Breathnach (CRÉ I), 1963; No. 189, p. 74. Flaherty (Trip to Sligo), 1990; p. 164.  Recorded sources: Green Linnet SIF 1040, Touchstone - "The New Land." Island ILPS9432, The Chieftains - "Bonaparte's Retreat" (1976). Rounder CD-1087, Tom Morrison - "From Galway to Dublin" (1992. Reissue of 1927 original). Shanachie 79006, Mary Bergin - "Feadóga Stáin."  See also listing at: Alan Ng's Irishtune.info Jane Keefer's Folk Music Index Alan Snyder's Cape Breton Fiddle Recordings Index

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