Details ABC Sheetmusic Comments

Kathleen Hehir's

slide

Key signature: Dmajor

Submitted on June 25th 2001 by OrganicPeatCreature.

This tune has been added to 61 tunebooks.

Also known as Catherine Hehir's, Cathleen Hehir's, Coolea, Hehir's, Kathleen Hehir's, Rural Felicity.

Recordings of a tune by this name:

Bruach An TSuláin by The Abbey Céilí Band
De Danann by De Danann
Foinn Seisiun 3 by Ennis/Dublin Session Group
Like The Wind (Ar Nos Na Gaoithe) by John Wynne
Passing Through by Rig The Jig
The Clare Shout by Bobby Gardiner
The Natural Bridge by Ben Lennon And Friends
They Sailed Away From Dublin Bay by Liam Farrell And Joe Whelan

Details ABC Sheetmusic Comments

X: 1
T: Kathleen Hehir's
M: 12/8
L: 1/8
R: slide
K: Dmaj
|dcd e2d c2E EFG | ~B3 BAG F2D DFA |
dcd e2d c2E EFG | ABA GFE D DFA :|
|:F2A d3 c2B G3 | ABA G2E B2A F3 |
DFA dz2 c2B G2F | EFG ABc d3 d2A:|
|:ddd d2e f2d A3 | ~f3 fed c2d ecA |
ddd d2e f2d A2F |1 EFG ABc d3 d2 A:|2 EFG ABc d3 dfg||
|:a2f f2d Adf agf | g2e e2c Bcd efg |
a2f f2d Adf agf | gec ABc d3 dfg:||

Details ABC Sheetmusic Comments

Kathleen Hehir's

I got this tune from De Danann's first album - haven't heard it elsewhere. I usually play it on whistle, which has determined where I have written in the rolls. For example, in place of the repeated high D's in the 3rd part. Also the long C# in bar 4 of the 3rd part (long C#'s are always awkward on whistle and flute) could be rolled on fiddle.

# Posted on June 27th 2001 by OrganicPeatCreature

Please note, I have altered the abc so that it is now written as a slide, in 12/8.

# Posted on January 31st 2005 by OrganicPeatCreature

A couple of two-parters - - -

http://www.thesession.org/tunes/display.php/4162

& in the comments to this one...

# Posted on January 31st 2005 by ceolachan

Origins

This comes from the sleeve notes of Ben Lennon's "Natural Bridge" CD.

"This tune is in print in a two-part version in Roche's collection under the title "Rural Felicity". The four-part version played here is a mosaic put together by Jackie Small in 1974 for "De Danann's" first album. Parts 1 and 2 were played on the harpsichord by the composer and arranger Sean O'Riada, and parts 1 and 4 were played by the accordion player Joe Cooley. The third part was assembled from a catchy song in a French film "Les Enfants du Paradis" . The tune was named by "De Danann" after a wonderful lady from Connemara who was one of the group's most devoted fans and patrons at the time."

# Posted on April 30th 2005 by Kenny

Wasn't Cooley in O'Rioda's ensemble? O'Rioda also traveled to France and composed there at some point. maybe it all comes from him. I think it goes really well in C (down a whole step).

# Posted on February 5th 2006 by Why Bother?

Kathleen Hehir's

The 2nd part of this tune seems to be a rendition in 6/8 of the B music "The girl with the blue dress on", and the 4th part similarly resembles a 6/8 version of the B music of "Smash the Windows".

# Posted on March 2nd 2006 by pipheath

i think the song was rather "The tourbillon de la vie" from Jules et JIm by François Truffaut...

# Posted on August 27th 2006 by paul95

Kathleen Hehir´s (Slide)

The first three parts of this tune are indeed from the song "Le Tourbillon de la Vie" as sung by Jeanne Moreau in the film´s soundtrack.
Used to be played a lot on France-Inter in the 60s.

# Posted on January 25th 2007 by murfbox

"Rural Felicity" / "Kerry" ~ just the two parts

Key signature: D Major
Submitted on February 23rd 2008 by Robert Jones.
http://www.thesession.org/tunes/display/8291

# Posted on February 23rd 2008 by ceolachan

"The Kishkeam Lasses" / "Knocknagree" ~ 2-parts

Key signature: D Major
Submitted on February 13th 2007 by Dan the Man.
http://www.thesession.org/tunes/display/6802

# Posted on February 23rd 2008 by ceolachan

"Rural Felicity" / "Kerry" ~ just the two parts ~ alas went "POOF!"

Key signature: D Major
Submitted on February 23rd 2008 by Robert Jones.
~ /tunes/display/8291

Gone in a haze of digital smoke...

# Posted on February 23rd 2008 by ceolachan

"Rural Felicity" ~ 1912 ~ before any member of DeDanaan was born

As Kenny has offered us just above ~ "Kathleen Hehir's" was and is a collage of melodies recorded by 'De Danann' that includes this 2-part slide as the first two parts... This tune, 2-parts, has an earlier existence and is also to be found in "The Roche Collection of Irish Traditional Music, Volume 2", Francis Roche, 1912, page 23, tune #248, as "Rural Felicity"...

Fiddler's Companion ~ Andrew Kuntz
http://www.ibiblio.org/fiddlers/
http://www.ibiblio.org/fiddlers/RP_RZ.htm#RURAL_FELICITY_[2]

While this was yet another another repeat attempt of someone to add this simple 2-part slide to this database, I'd hoped it might have finally earned itself a place of its own. But, alas, it was deleted ~ "POOF!" ~ and it is again moved to the 'comments' here for "Hehir's". The 2-part is an earlier seed and as you can read, predates DeDanaan's modern arrangement, assemblage, collage of melodies, "Hehir's". But, having been recorded by one of the Irish 'supergroups' of the past 'DeDanaan' it has been burned into the memory of many people who came under their influence. They had swallowed this lovely two-parter into that mix.

It is the two-part tune I was most familiar with, but later, every time I started it, it was dragged into "Kathleen Hehir's". It just seemed, outside of Sliabh Luachra and a few other musicians, that everyone had taken on "Hehir's" as gospel, and it had to be played that way, all 4 parts. I even have some painful memory of someone having at least one other part for it, as a 5 or 6 part tune. It isn't the only tune that has been affected by escalating influences. We have recently had in discussion "The Mason's Apron", similarly suffering from extensions, and consequently often neglected, passed over.

Previous contributions of these two parts, which as repeated ~ are older than the 'DeDanann' collage ~ have been axed or if caught soon enough, moved. I would have thought that this take on the earlier tune deserved a place of its own, with the links given to connect it to its relatives. Alas, it was not to be, so I've moved the bits here, more to follow...

# Posted on February 23rd 2008 by ceolachan

"Rural Felicity" ~ played in the keys of G, D & A Major

Here are another few basic takes on this 2-part slide.

This was collected long before I came across Hehir's, back in the mid to late 70s, as "gan ainm". Later it meant me facing DeDanaan devotees, enamoured with their 64 bar "Hehir's", and constant imposition of that on top of this lovely little 2-part slide, 32 bar tune. It sometimes left me wondering which came first as I was constantly told I had it either wrong or incomplete. I should have checked my copy of the Roche collection... :-/ People kept pushing the full 64 bars from the DeDanaan recording and I wasn't left with any choice... 32 bars was definitely the precursor to the modern behemoth, "Hehir's"...

I'd originally collected and played this in both G and D Major and have also known it in A Major:

# Posted on February 23rd 2008 by ceolachan

"Rural Felicity" ~ in-D-eed

# Posted on February 23rd 2008 by ceolachan