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"Chief O'Neill's Favourite", in Gaelic "Roga an Taoisaig Uí Niall", also known as
"Chief O'Neill's Fancy", "The Flowers of Ardigne" or "The Flowers of Adrigole" is an
Irish hornpipe in D Major (Moylan, Mulvihill) or D Major/D Mixolydian (Brody, Cranitch,
Williamson). The parts are played AABB.
Captain Francis O'Neill was Chief of Police of Chicago in the early years of the 20th Century, and a flute player who compiled several extremely important collections of tunes from the Irish immigrant population who lived and visited the city. He obtained this tune from Edward Cronin, a fiddler originally from County Tipperary, who had no name for it and christened it after the Chief. O'Neill admired Cronin, who was a weaver and a machinist as well as a musician and composer and obtained many tunes from him, including two originals ("The Bantry" and "Caroline O'Neill's Hornpipe") that he printed in Music of Ireland (1903). Some modern versions feature an 'f' and 'c' natural note in the second part, and it is played this way by older musicians in County Kerry. It was printed in Brody's Fiddler's Fakebook (1983), Cotter's Traditional Irish Tin Whistle Tutor (1989), Cranitch's The Irish Fiddle Book (1996), Martin & Hughes' Ho-ro-gheallaidh (1990), Moylan's Johnny O'Leary (1994), Mulvihill's 1st Collection (1986), O'Neill's O'Neill's Irish Music (1915), Krassen's O'Neill's Music of Ireland (1976), O'Neill's Music of Ireland: 1850 Melodies (1903), O'Neill's Dance Music of Ireland: 1001 Gems (1907), Peoples' Fifty Irish Fiddle Tunes (1986), Taylor's Music for the Sets: Yellow Book (1995) and Williamson's English, Welsh, Scottish and Irish Fiddle Tunes (1976). It was recorded by Willie Clancy on The Pipering of Willie Clancy Vol. 2 (1983), Sean Keane on An Fhidil Sraith II, Garrai Eoin II Ceili Band on Irish Music: The Living Tradition, vol. 2, Andy Cahan on Melodic Clawhammer Banjo, Sean McGuire on Ireland's Champion Traditional Fiddler, The West Orrtanna String Band on An Orrtanna Home Companion (1978), Dave Swarbrick on Swarbrick 2, Paddy Glackin on In Full Spate and Brendan Begley et al on Music for the Sets: Pay the Piper (1987). |