The Golden Keyboard reel

This is a great reel by Martin Mulhaire.

On the fiddle, there’s a lot of jumping between strings but with a bit of practice, it can be mastered fairly quickly.

I like to ornament this one with triplets. For instance, in the second part, I play the high E’s as a triplet instead of two seperate notes.

The New York Sligo fiddlers frequently play this followed by the Hunters House.

I know “The Golden Keyboard” as a jig. I think the jig version is the one recorded by Andrea Beaton and Beolach. Buddy MacMaster has also recorded it.

Anna, I think this is the one, which is known as “Contentment is Wealth” in Irish sessions: https://thesession.org/tunes/1662

I love this tune, but what is a good tune to go before and/or after it? Thanks.

Matt Molloy & Sean Keane play Mayor Harrison’s Fedora after it on “Contentment Is Wealth”, you could try that.

is from the playing of Joe Burke:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MftCvIpa5YU

play video

I’ve heard this tune played at sessions with more ‘swing’ and at a slower tempo as a hornpipe, and it works very well -
I’m sure I’ve seen
it listed as a hornpipe in some fiddle tune collections?

Composed by boxplayer Martin Mulhaire. I believe this is the original key. Very nice on the B/C, and feels lighter in F.

Nice version, Thady. Thanks for sharing it! It’s not in F, though, but in D dorian (all Bs are natural).
Interesting that this version sounds lighter in this key on your instrument; on my DADGAD-tuned guitar, it comes off a good deal darker than the E dorian versions. I wonder how it sounds on other instruments?

https://youtu.be/m6GzxQ0LRFk

play video

A variation from the playing of fiddler Seamus Creagh on his album, “Tunes for Practice.”

So good to see so many versions of Golden Keyboard. The version we play of this great tune is similar to others here but I’ve written it out in G as we play a C natural in the third measure of the 2nd & 4th line here where when written in Edorian, the note is played as a C#.

Also, when I write out music to share I include the composer whenever I can but there doesn’t seem to be a way to credit the composers here except in the comments. My music includes; by Martin Mulhaire, Eyrecourt, East Galway. If anyone has any different information I’d be glad to hear about it.

I learned this tune from a wonderful fiddler and all around musician, Joel Mabus, when we were playing for a dance at our Michigan Dance Heritage Fall Camp in the early years. We’ve since recorded it on “Michigan Summer” (Ruffwater Stringband). We medleyed it with “Far From Home” (G)/Golden Keyboard (Em)/Hobart’s Transformation (Am)". It really goes with many tunes and is especially nice following a jig in a dance. The dancers love it.

Original by Martin Mulhaire:
==> https://www.mulhairemusic.com/the-golden-keyboard

Taken from my (tenor banjo) session version, based largely upon (and with apologies to) that of Tony Linnane on his first album with Noel Hill.

transcription from Brendan’s playing on his Ceili House album

Easy to play on concertina