Update, January 2021: As we go into another near lockdown, Dónal has taken up his whistle once again to cheer us up. Click here for Quarantunes 2.0.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, club vice-captain Dónal has been keeping our spirits up by posting a daily tune on Facebook. (He’s also showcasing his seemingly endless collection of rowing-related T-shirts!)
For those worried he’ll run out of tunes, he assures us he has enough for a few years (though he’s “only” committed to doing 100):
Tune of the Day number 100: The Harvest Home /Ode to Joy. “Well 
Days but 107 Tunes in total. Thanks for listening and commenting, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed playing them. Hopefully normality will resume soon enough.”
Tune of the Day number 98: Dunford’s Fancy
Tune of the Day number 97: The Frieze Breeches aka Cúnla
Tune of the Day number 96: The Rambling Pitchfork. “Short and sweet today.”
Tune of the Day number 95: Brian Boru’s March. “Brian Boru was High King of Ireland when on April 23rd 1014, Good Friday, he defeated the combined Viking and Leinster Armies at Clontarf, which at that point was outside Dublin. Unfortunately for Brian while he was praying in his tent after the battle he was killed by one of the fleeing Vikings by the name of Brodir.”
Tune of the Day number 94: The Lark in the Morning
Tune of the Day number 93: Gerry’s Beaver Hat
Tune of the Day number 92: Calliope House
Tune of the Day number 91: Langstrom’s Pony
Tune of the Day number 90: O’Carolan’s Quarrel with the Landlady. Posted on 19 June. “Today is the 350th Birthday of the Great Harpist Turlough O’Carolan 1670-1738 so what better way to celebrate than with one of his tunes.”
Tune of the Day number 89: The Golden Keyboard
Tune of the Day number 88: An Irishman in Brittany
Tune of the Day number 87: Gan Ainm
Tune of the Day number 86: The Old Torn Petticoat
[Video to come]
Tune of the Day number 85: The Drunken Tinker
Tune of the Day number 84: The West Clare Polka
Tune of the Day number 83: The Sligo March
Tune of the Day number 82: Sweeney’s Polka
Tune of the Day number 81: The Gold Ring
Tune of the Day number 80: Haste to the Wedding
Tune of the Day number 79: Lady Anne Montgomery
Tune of the Day number 78: The Old Copperplate
Tune of the Day number 77: The Broken Bridge
Tune of the Day number 76: Ryan’s Favourite
Tune of the Day number 75: Kilfenora No. 1
Tune of the Day number 74: Martin Wynne’s
Tune of the Day number 73: Fr Kelly’s – “A little more sedate than yesterday’s.”
Tune of the Day number 72: Rathlin Island/Sporting Paddy
Tune of the Day number 71: Cooley’s
Tune of the Day number 70: Garret Barry’s. “Well Day 70, this is going on for longer than I expected.”
Tune of the Day number 69: Paddy Clancy’s
Tune of the Day number 68: The Blarney Pilgrim
Tune of the Day number 67: Si Beag Si Mór. “This is another Turlough O’Carolan tune from late 1600s or early 1700s. Sí means Fairy so the translation is Little Fairy, Big Fairy. However it is thought that Sí is derived from the Medieval Irish Síod meaning Fairy Hill. This makes it Little Fairy Hill Big Fairy Hill.”
Tune of the Day number 66: The Tar Road to Sligo
Tune of the Day number 65: The Monaghan Jig
Tune of the Day number 64: The Fáilte Reel
Tune of the Day number 63: The Frost is All Over
Tune of the Day number 62: Tom Friel’s
Tune of the Day number 61: Tommy McMahon’s
Tune of the Day number 60: Old Maids of Galway
Tune of the Day number 59: The Luck Penny Jig
Tune of the Day number 58: The Ships in Full Sail
Tune of the Day number 57: Coleman’s Cross
Tune of the Day number 56: The Cook in the Kitchen
Tune of the Day number 55: An Tiocfaidh tú abhaile liom (Will you come home with me)
Tune of the Day number 54: Out on the Ocean
Tune of the Day number 53: The Fairy Dance. “This is taken from the Scottish Tradition and was composed for the Fife Hunt Ball of 1802. It was then collected by Nathaniel Gow in 1809.”
Tune of the Day number 52: The Trip to the Cottage
Tune of the Day number 51: The Stack of Wheat
Tune of the Day number 50: O’Neill’s Cavalcade
Tune of the Day number 49: The Gander in the Pratie Hole
Tune of the Day number 48: An Staicín Eorna
Tune of the Day number 47: The Shores of Lough Gowna
Tune of the Day number 46: The Shepherd’s Daughter
Tune of the Day number 45: The Kid on the Mountain
Tune of the Day number 44: The Bluebell Polka. “A Scottish tune by the legend that was Jimmy Shand. To go with my Bluebells from yesterday.” Peter added this comment: “Watched a documentary many years ago with accordianist and musician Phil Cunningham (who lives around here by the way). He was meeting with his hero Jimmy Shand in Jimmy’s back garden. Phil spoke about the ‘Bluebell Polka’ and said to Jimmy,’I’m never sure what style to play it’. Says Jimmy, ‘Jist you play it the way I wrote it son and ye’ll no gaun far wrong’.”
Tune of the Day number 43: The Humours of Tulla
Tune of the Day number 42: O’Connell’s Trip to Parliament
Tune of the Day number 41: Gan Aimn. “One of the most common names to an Irish tune. It means ‘no name’.”
Tune of the Day number 40: O’Carolan’s Concerto. “Dating from the late 1600s or early 1700s this tune was written by Turlough O’Carolan as a result of a challenge. Italian Musician Francesco Geminlani said that O’Carolan couldn’t write music in the European style, so O’Carolan came up with this.”
Tune of the Day number 39: Fiddlers Fancy
Tune of the Day number 38: The Highland Reel
Tune of the Day number 37: John Brennan’s Reel
Tune of the Day number 36: The Maid Behind the Bar
Tune of the Day number 35: The Mist Covered Mountain. “A new rowing-related T-shirt.”
Tune of the Day number 34: The Sailor on the Rock
Tune of the Day number 33: The Mountain Top
Tune of the Day number 32: The Cow That Ate The Blanket. “Another in the list of strange names for a tune.”
Tune of the Day number 31: The Lilting Fisherman. “Such a glorious day I decided to take it outdoors.”
Tune of the Day number 30: Dan O’Keefe’s Slide
Tune of the Day number 29: Cronin’s Hornpipe
Tune of the Day number 28: The Bucks of Oranmore. “A month in I thought I’d bring out one of my favourite tunes.”
Tune of the Day number 27: St Patrick’s Day. “Short and sweet.”
Tune of the Day number 26: Tobin’s Jig. “Quarantine Haircut 😊😊”
Tune of the Day number 25: Báidín Fheilimí – “A nice sedate tune about a man called Phelim and his little boat. Unfortunately it didn’t end well, as on his way to Toraigh Island his boat sank.”
Tune of the Day number 24: The Copper Plate No. 1
Tune of the Day number 23: The Foggy Dew
Tune of the Day number 22: Easter Sunday (Jig)
Tune of the Day number 21: Banish Misfortune
Tune of the Day number 20: Inis Oírr – “I learnt this tune from a Latvian Lady in Galway in the 1990s.”
Tune of the Day number 19: The Mug of Brown Ale
Tune of the Day number 18: Donnybrook Fair
Tune of the Day number 17: Dingle Regatta
Tunes of the Day number 16: The Miller of Glanmire /The Kesh Jig
Tunes of the Day number 15: Humours of Glendart /Connacht Man’s Rambles. “Yesterday it was pointed out to me that I played Tripping up the Stairs so here is the Tune I meant to play”
Tunes of the Day Number 14: The Blackthorn Stick/Tripping up the Stairs
Tune of the Day Number 13: Leitrim Jig/Saddle the Pony
Tune of the Day Number 12: Merrily Kiss the Quaker’s Wife
Tunes of the Day Number 11: Kerry Polka/Ryan’s Polka
Tune of the Day Number 10: The Butterfly
Tune of the Day Number 9: Munster Buttermilk – “This is a short one”
Tune of the Day number 8: Tabhair dom do Lámh (Give me your hand). “This tune was written by a Musician by the name of Ruairi Dáll Ó’Catháin (1570-1650). It is as if this tune has been asked to be played today as all I’ve heard on the Radio this morning is this tune and Planxty who made it famous.”
Tune of the Day Number 7: Over the Moor to Maggie
Tune of the Day number 6: Fanny Power – “This tune was written in the early 1700s by the Great Irish Harpist Turlough O’Carolan for the daughter of his benefactors, her name was Frances Power”
Tune of the Day number 5: Sally Gardens
Tune of the Day number 4: Dunmore Lassies
Tune of the Day number 3: “Today’s Tune of the Day by the request of Stevie is Rocky Road to Dublin.”
Tune of the Day number 2: The Rights of Man
Tune of the Day number 1: “I have decided to play a tune a day during this crisis to raise spirits. Today’s tune is King of the Fairies.”