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My Wild Irish Rose
(1899)
Words and Music: Chauncy Olcott
Arranged by Ruth Randle
With St. Patrick's Day around the corner, we thought a
bit of Irish music might be appropriate for our March
selection. This is not one of those sprightly jigs
or sad airs from old Erin. Many might call My Wild
Irish Rose an American-Irish tune, and so it
is.
Chauncy Olcott (1858-1932) was born in Buffalo, NY of
Irish parentage, and became one of the most popular Irish
singers and actors of his time, both in vaudeville and
on the stage. As a composer, he wrote only a few
songs, although he collaborated with others as a
lyricist. This selection was from one of his shows
entitled A Romance of Athlone, and has since
become a favorite of barbershop quartet singers in
America.
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Ruth did this arrangement from a copy of the original
sheet music, published by M. Witmark & Sons (of New York
and Chicago) with a copyright date of 1899. As a
special feature, she has included seldom-heard verses,
as well as the chorus. Readers will note that the entire
song contains no sharps or flats in the melody, although
there are three color chords where the G# is used.
Ruth was so taken by the beauty of this song that she
decided to arrange an extra "harmony" version of the
chorus. This may be played as an accompaniment by a
second dulcimer, if desired, or played solo as an
accompaniment to singing the melody. Separate MIDI
sound files are available for both versions of the
chorus, plus the combination of the two.
This music sounds best when fingerpicked slowly; using
inward strums on chords and melody notes. It is,
after all, a love song.
♫♫♫
My Wild Irish Rose_Melody.pdf
My Wild Irish Rose_Harmony.pdf
My Wild Irish Rose_Melody.MID
My Wild Irish Rose_Harmony.MID
My Wild Irish Rose_2 Parts.MID
My Wild Irish Rose_Text.pdf
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Danny Boy
(1913)
Music: Old Irish Harp Song
Lyrics : Fred E. Weatherly (1848-1929)
Arr: Merv Rowley
Few pieces of folk music have received more
attention or have been researched more thoroughly than
this one. Over 100 different titles have appeared with
this music, including such others as Londonderry Air
and Would God I Were a Tender Apple Blossom. This
supports the opinion of many historians that the music
itself is some of the most beautiful ever written.
To date, the best reliable information identifies the
melody as a piece of ancient Irish harp music, entitled
Aislean an Oigfear (Young Man’s Dream), dating to
the 17th or 18th century. Fred
E.Weatherley, the lyricist of Danny Boy, was an
English lawyer/composer. A more complete biography and
summary of the history are given on the link listed
below.
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The melody and chords
are, of course, diatonic. The tune covers nearly two
octaves, and requires all the I, IV, V and V7 chords, as
well as the minors (Em, F#m and Bm). This is another
arrangement that should be played by soft finger picking
with inward strums. You should try to learn to play
this one by heart, without the tab, so that you can
concentrate on clarity and expression. Folks will want
to sing along, no doubt.
Erin go Braugh.
♫♫♫
Link to historical info:
http://www.standingstones.com/dannyboy.html
♫♫♫
DannyBoy.pdf
DannyBoy.MID
DannyBoyText.pdf
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