Annotation:Lady Wrixon
X:1 T:Lady Wrixon M:6/8 L:1/8 R:Air Q:"Allegro" B:P.M. Haverty – One Hundred Irish Airs vol. 1 (1858, No. 74, p. 31) Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion K:E c|(B2E) (G2E)|(B2E) (Bc=d)|(A2=D) (F2D)|[F2A2]=D (FG).A| (B2E) (G2E)|(B2E) (Bc=.d)|(A2F) =d2.F|(E/F/G).E [G,2E2]:| |:B/4c/4d/|e2e (fd).B|=d2d (ce).c|=d3 B2d| (ce).c (B=d).B|(Ac).A (GB).G|(FA).F (F=d).F|(E/F/G).F .E2:|]
LADY WRIXON (Pleraca Beantigearna Rigson). AKA and see "Planxty Lady Wrixon." Irish, Planxty (6/8 time). E Mixolydian. Standard tuning (fiddle). AB (Stanford/Petrie): AABB (Complete Collection, Haverty). Composed by blind Irish harper Turlough O'Carolan (1670-1738). The melody was printed by Dublin publishers John and William Neale c. 1721 in their volume of the compositions of O'Carolan, the exact title of which is unknown. Although the tune was known to have been published in the volume, it appears on a page that has been lost from the only extant copy of the book. '
Collector George Petrie was of the opinion that the air, while not among O'Carolan's best compositions, is nevertheless "scarcely one [that is] more thoroughly Irish in its structure and tone of sentiment. In this, we have no inequalities in the time of the parts; and none of the ambitious, wandering imitations of the Italian gigas, so common in his compositions of that class." Petrie identifies the person of the title as the wife of Benjamin Wrixon, Esq. of Ballygibblin, County Cork. O'Sullivan finds the identification problematic, but could not find an alternative person by that name. He does conclude that, if it is indeed Benjamin's wife, that she would have been "Mrs. Wrixon" and that no titled Lady Wrixon existed.
