Irish Traditional Music Tune Index
Tune ID# 2035 (Wandering Minstrel)

RhythmBars8-bar phrase structureMode
Double jig48AABBCCD Major
Transcription of first 2 bars of Wandering Minstrel
 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 SE 3 (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):
Wandering Minstrel, The / Wandering Minstrel / An Ceoltóir Fánach / The Dandy Scholar / Jackson's / Michael Coleman's / The Fair Maidens / Merry Maiden / Willy Walsh's (compare Willy Walsh's; compare 1st 2 parts with Wandering Minstrel #4882; compare 1st part with 1st part of The Merry Maiden included here)
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
~19741#1[SE 3] Séamus Ennis. The Wandering Minstrel. Seamus Ennis (pipes).View album details
~197413#1[GP] various. The Gentlemen Pipers. Classic Recordings of Irish Traditional Piping. View album details
~198113#1[BMc] Billy McComiskey. Makin' the Rounds. Irish Traditional Music. Billy McComiskey (accordion).View album details
199021#1[MLIIA] various. The Boston College Irish Fiddle Festival - My Love Is in America. View album details
199111#3[Ch AIE] The Chieftains. An Irish Evening. Live at the Grand Opera House, Belfast. Martin Fay (fiddle), Seán Keane (fiddle), Kevin Conneff (bodhrán, vocals), Matt Molloy (flute), Paddy Moloney (pipes, whistle), Derek Bell (harp, tiompán, keyboards).View album details
199312#1[CTL 4] Cherish the Ladies. Out and About. Joanie Madden (flute, whistle, vocals), Mary Coogan (guitar, banjo, bouzouki), Maureen Doherty Macken (accordion, whistle), Winifred Horan (fiddle), Siobhan Egan (fiddle, bodhrán), Cathie Ryan (vocals).View album details
~199410#2[EI 1] Eileen Ivers. Eileen Ivers. Traditional Irish Music. Eileen Ivers (fiddle, mandolin, rainstick).View album details
~199512#2[Whr] Paddy Glackin and Robbie Hannan. The Whirlwind. Paddy Glackin (fiddle), Robbie Hannan (pipes).View album details
~199819#1[KHe] Kevin Henry. One's Own Place - A Family Tradition. Kevin Henry (flute, whistle, pipes, vocals).View album details
19992#1[CrssCl] Seamus Glackin, Brendan Begley, Michael O'Brien, Mary Corcoran, Mick Gaynor. Crossroads Céilí. Seamus Glackin (fiddle), Brendan Begley (accordion), Michael O'Brien (flute), Mary Corcoran (piano), Mick Gaynor (drums).View album details
~200010#1[LLPQ 1] The London Lasses and Pete Quinn. The London Lasses and Pete Quinn. Bernie Conneely (banjo), Elaine Conwell (fiddle), Karen Ryan (fiddle, whistle), Sharon Whelton (flute, whistle).View album details

Bibliography

Here are all transcriptions of this tune under any title whatsoever – considering only the indexed books – listed in chronological order. I have discovered by careful comparison that these are very similar to this tune as played on the recordings listed above.

As tune #104 in volume 3 of [R] Francis Roche. The Roche Collection of Traditional Irish Music. 3 vols. [available]
On page 42 of [RM] Randy Miller and Jack Perron. Irish Traditional Fiddle Music. [available]
As tune #7 in [A] Hugh McDermott. Allan's "Irish Fiddler." [available]
As tune #36 in [CRE 1] Breandán Breathnach. Ceol Rince na hÉireann 1.
As jig #84 in [MM] Martin Mulvihill. First Collection of Traditional Irish Music.
As tune #187 in [JOL] Terry Moylan. Johnny O'Leary of Sliabh Luachra. Dance Music from the Cork-Kerry Border. [available]
On page 115 of [M] Phil Rubenzer. Midwestern Irish Session Tunes. 3rd Edition.
As tune #82 in [DM 3] Dave Mallinson. 100 Evergreen Irish Session Tunes. [available]
On pages 194-195 of [M2] Phil Rubenzer. Midwestern Irish Session Tunes. Millennium Edition.
As jig #160 in [Cobb] Dan Cobb. Cobb's Music of Ireland. [available]

If you are considering using the above transcriptions to help you learn this tune, I invite you to check these practical Tips for Learning Irish Traditional Music. See also: So why do you bother indexing books and abc?

Year of the oldest source for this tune, considering the recordings and transcriptions listed above (note that I concentrate on sources after 1900): 1927