Irish Traditional Music Tune Index
Tune ID# 1631 (Rabbit in the Field)

RhythmBars8-bar phrase structureMode
Double jig32AABBG Major
Transcription of first 2 bars of Rabbit in the Field
 about these two bars

These two bars are the start of my transcription of how this tune was played – the first time through – on the recording BMc (details in the Discography below).

Where do you get the tune titles?
Titles given to this tune in the sources listed below (plus notes of mine about this tune):
Rabbit in the Field (composed by Billy McComiskey)
What do the "track#tune" codes mean?

cd Discography

Here are all recordings of this tune considering only the indexed recordings. I have discovered by careful listening that these sources are in fact musically the same tune, regardless of the tune titles they use, key changes, retuning, etc. They are listed in order of when they were recorded.

Year
Recorded
Track
#Tune
[Album code] Artist. Title. Primary musicians (instruments). Album details
and contents
~19812#2[BMc] Billy McComiskey. Makin' the Rounds. Irish Traditional Music. Billy McComiskey (accordion).View album details
~19925#3[CTL 3] Cherish the Ladies. The Back Door. Mary Coogan (guitar, banjo), Siobhan Egan (fiddle, bodhrán), Eileen Golden (feet), Winifred Horan (fiddle, dance), Maureen Doherty Macken [Mary Rafferty] (accordion, flute), Joanie Madden (flute, whistle), Cathie Ryan (vocals), Linnane Wick (dance).View album details
~999939#1[0] various. Alan's personal digital recordings.

Bibliography

According to my research, there are zero transcriptions that sound very similar to this tune anywhere in the indexed books, regardless of tune title. Try my recommended links to other indexes if you need a transcription. To learn to play this tune, simply learn it from another musician or study the recording(s) listed above. See also: Tips for Learning Irish Traditional Music.

Year of the oldest source for this tune, considering the recordings and transcriptions listed above (note that I concentrate on sources after 1900): 1981