Matt Cunningham is internationally recognised as one of Ireland’s finest exponents of Irish traditional music today. Born in Headford, County Galway, multi-talented, multi-instrumentalist Matt’s reputation extends from Ireland across Europe to America and even to as far away as isolated parts of the Carribean Islands.
Matt, whose traditional music is animated by a deep understanding of the dance, has championed the art of dance music. His recordings The Dance Music of Ireland series are an extensive and invaluable resource for dancers at home and abroad and in their own way have helped lead to the dissemination of Irish set and céilí dancing. This book offers you, the reader, the chance to become more intimate with the dance tunes. Each one has been transcribed exactly from The Dance Music of Ireland recordings, numbers 1 to 10 and has had chords added so that an accompanist can easily join in with the melody player.
From an early age Matt had a quest to play the accordeon like many a child of that age might have to ride a bike. Matt always showed a capacity to take a tune from the radio (the greatest resource in those days) with a seemingly great ease and then regurgitate it by way of performing it on the accordeon. At the humble age of 9 or 10, the fiddle became a vehicle for musical expression for Matt. At the age of 14, Matt sustained a broken wrist. The confinements and limitations of this steered him away temporarily from playing fiddle and accordeon and he began playing the tin whistle, this being as much a means of keeping his performance of the music alive as it was a form of exercise for his broken hand.
The biggest influences on Matt’s unusual life were his father and grandfather; in those days, music was not always a favoured pastime and especially not a considered option as a profession. For some time, Matt’s music was very much a closet thing, his grandfather often arriving with an accordeon covered in a brown paper bag so as to avoid the risk of people noticing what unpopular pastimes the Cunningham family delved into. The legacy that Matt has gained is testimony to the great love his father and grandfather had for Irish music. This too is exemplified in the fact that the accordeon most commonly being played at any night’s entertainment or on any album of matter is a Hohner ‘Club’ model II, (approximately 140 years old at the time of going to print) inherited by way of his father from Matt’s grandfather.
After a period in Matt’s life where music had been a much-loved pastime and a kind of pseudo profession as a backdrop to other interests, in 1965 Matt joined the Western Céilí Band, travelling Ireland extensively for 7 years. It was in 1972 though that Matt took music on board as a full-time profession, forming his own band and growing a reputation both at home and abroad. 1984 was in itself a very significant year for Matt, being the year he was to make his first recording and also the year that he begun teaching music.
With 14 albums and 3 videos to his credit, 16 years of teaching experience with many fine young musicians bearing the fruits of his talent, Matt has celebrated and surpassed his 25th year in the music business and having played in myriad parts of the world for thousands of enthusiasts — including Pope John Paul II and the illustrious Kennedy family — Matt Cunningham has passed all tests as a household name. He is a true ambassador of Irish traditional music.
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Reels
Ah! surely All around the world Anderson’s Banshee, The Billy Brocker Bird in the bush, The Blackberry blossom, The Boil the breakfast early Boyne hunt, The Boys of Ballisodare, The Brendan Mulhaire’s Bucks of Oranmore, The Christmas eve Come west along the road Controversial, The Cooley’s Craig’s pipes Creamer’s Crosses of Annagh Dawn, The Doon, The Down the broom Drunken landlady, The Dublin, The Easy Club reel, The Fisherman’s lilt, The Five mile chase Flower of the flock Foxhunter’s, The Cottage in the grove, The Galway rambler, The George White’s favourite Gladstone’s Glen Allen, The Green mountain, The Heather breeze Humours of Tulla, The Humours of Westport, The Jackson’s John Stenson’s no. 2 King of the clans Lad O’Beirne’s Liffey banks, The Longford collector, The Lord McDonald’s Love at the endings Lucky in love Macroom lass Maid of Tullyknockbrine, The Mason’s apron, The Master McDermott’s Merry blacksmith, The Miss Burke’s Miss McLeod’s Miss Monaghan Molly’s nightcap Monaghan twig, The Morning star, The Mountain road, The Mountain top, The Moving clouds Mullingar races Music in the glen My love and I in the garden New mown meadows O’Keeffe’s Over the moor to Maggie Paddy’s trip to Scotland Phil Cunningham’s Phoenix, The Plough and the stars, The Primrose lass, The Reel of Rio, The Rolling in the rye grass Sailor on the rock, The Sally gardens Scholar, The Shamrock Hill Silver spear, The Skylark, The Sligo maid, The Soldiers’ joy St. Anne’s Star of Munster, The Tear the calico Tim Mulloney Tinker’s daughter, The Tom Billy’s Tom Ward’s downfall Touch me if you dare Trip to Durrow Un-named reel Wind that shakes the barley Jigs and Slides Andy McGann’s Athole highlanders Behind the haystack Bill Collins’ Blarney pilgrim, The Boys of Tandragee, The Boys of the town, The |
Brian O’Lynn Broken gold ring, The Bundle and go Butchers’ march, The Castle, The Cat in the corner, The Ceol an mala Cherish the ladies Clancy’s dream Connaughtman’s rambles Conway’s Daniel of the sun Danny Ab’s no. 1 Dan the cobbler Delaney’s drummers Denis Murphy’s Denny Mescall’s East at Glendart Eavesdropper, The Eric Cunningham’s Father Kelly’s Flowers of spring, The Frost is all over, The Handsome young maids Happy to meet and sorry to part Haste to the wedding Have a drink with me Haunted house, The Hearty boys of Ballymote, The Hughie Travers’ Humours of Drinagh, The Humours of Kesh, The Jackson’s morning brush Jimmy Ward’s Katie’s fancy Kilcummin, The Kings of Kerry Kinnegad slashers, The Knights of St. Patrick, The Lark in the morning, The Leg of the duck, The Lilting fisherman, The Lisheen, The Maid in the meadow, The Maid on the green, The McCormack’s Merrily kiss the quaker’s wife Mist-covered mountain, The Moate hunt, The Monk’s, The Nightcap, The Off she goes! Old favourite, The Old Joe’s Old man Dillon Old woman’s purse of money Oró a bhuachaillín Out on the ocean Paddy’s resource Pay the reckoning Peacock’s feather Rambler, The Rathawaun Returned Yank, The Rose among the heather, The Sergeant Cahill’s favourite Ship in full sail Sixpenny money Smash the windows Sports of Multyfarnham, The Sweet Biddy Daly Sweets of May, The Tomaisín a rí Tongs by the fire, The Top of the Cork road Tripping upstairs Trip to Kilavel Trip to the cottage Un-named Jig Un-named jig Un-named jig Wandering minstrel Weavers, The Wedding feast, The Wee Johnny Westering, The When sick, is it tea you want? Wi’ a hundred pipers Flings and Hornpipes Boys of Bluehill, The Boys of Youghalarra, The Cooley’s Cuckoo, The Denis Murphy’s Frank McCollum’s Golden eagle, The Green grow the rushes-o Harvest home, The Honeysuckle, The Humours of Tuamgraney, The Keel row, The Kitty’s wedding |
Leslie’s Love, won’t you marry me? Macroom fling, The McMahon’s Moniemusk Off to California Plains of Boyle, The Showman’s fancy, The Stack of barley, The Stack of wheat, The Thames, The Un-named fling Un-named hornpipe Waltzes and Mazurkas Belltable waltz Jacqueline’s waltz Margaret’s waltz Marino waltz, The Mockingbird Hill Mrs Kenny’s waltz Shoe the Donkey Sonny’s mazurka St. Bernard’s waltz Veleta, The Vincent Campbell’s mazurka Marches Centenary, The Irish rover, The Lass of Bon-Accord, The Mountain high, The Séan South Polkas Aileen Bonner’s All the ways to Galway Astley’s ride Ballydesmond no. 3, The Ballyhoura mountains, The Barren rocks of Aden, The Bill Sullivan’s Blue ocean, The Camptown races Cobbler, The Dan Mac’s Dark girl Denis Doody’s Denis Murphy’s no. 4 Dingle wren, The Finnegan’s wake Freedom for Ireland From Billy to Jack Gallope, An Gin I were where Gadie rins Girl I left behind me, The Green cottage no. 3, The Guillane, The Harvest fair polka no. 3 Hills of Connemara, The I have two little yellow snipe Jack Ó Riain Jim Doyle’s John Egan’s no. 2 Johnnie, I do miss you! Johnny Leary’s John Ryan’s John Walsh’s no. 1 Kenmare, The Kerry no. 1, The Knocknaboul no. 1, The Knocknaboul no. 2, The Lakes of Sligo, The Little diamond Little Lisdoonvarna, The Mack’s rambles Maggie in the wood Maids of Ardagh Mary Ann Maurice Manly’s Munster bank Newmarket, The Not for Joe Oh! the britches full of stitches Peg Ryan’s Rambling sailor, The Rose tree, The Siobhán Hurl’s Sliabh Luachra, The Sonny Sweeney’s Spanish lady St. Mary’s Sweeney’s Terry Teahan’s Timmy O’Connor’s Tralee gaol Tripping to the well Un-named polka Un-named polka Un-named polka Un-named polka Wallace’s Cross Wren, The |
