Happy March! The month where everyone can be Irish, and we sing, dance and raise a pint to the music of the Emerald Isle.
The Galway Piper is one of those great Irish tunes that is fairly easy to play slowly, but can also be played at a breakneck tempo (but evenly please!) to entertain your friends on St. Patrick's Day (March 17th) and to get a great finger workout while you're at it.
FYI, Galway is a county in the west of Ireland and a Galway Piper would be playing the Irish Uilleann pipes, which is different than the Scottish bagpipes, as you pump air into the bag under your arm instead of blowing into it. You can see a leprechaun Uilleann (pronounced "eel-lian") piper on the left in the embroidery pictured above (the bag is under his left arm).
I am demonstrating The Galway Piper two ways: 1- As written, and 2- With a double time left hand for more advanced players. Notice that each section is repeated, and these tunes get played at least 3 times through (with the repeats) in an Irish pub (I didn't repeat in my demonstrations, but you should!)
The Galway Piper - as written:
2. The Galway Piper - a suggestion for adding rhythm, for the intermediate player. Notice that I play the 5th below the G-chord (D) with my LH finger-5 to add interest. You can play it this way, or play the chords as written if you prefer:
I hope you enjoy St. Paddy's Day with its lilting Irish tunes, and yummy Irish Soda Bread and Corned Beef and Cabbage - don't forget to wear green! And enjoy the dawn of spring with new growth and a rejuvenated spirit.
In case you didn't know, I offer free video piano lessons to accompany every page in my Upper Hands Piano, BOOK 1on a wonderful online platform called Sixty and Me. You can watch my lessons here (I've recorded many lessons - you can join at any time) and if you haven't already, you can print my sheet music for The Irish Washerwoman (another great song for strengthening fingers and increasing dexterity) here (bottom left).
Happy St. Patrick's Day!
“May green be the grass you walk on,
May blue be the skies above you,
That pure be the joys that surround you,
May true be the hearts that love you.”
-An Irish Blessing
With love and music, Gaili
P.S. I have written a series of piano method books for older adults called Upper Hands Piano: A Method for Adults 50+ to Spark the Mind, Heart and Soul, and a series for young adults and teens called Piano Powered: An Innovative New Piano Method to Power the Brain and Feed the Soul. I also have written many collections of songs for beginners to intermediate (Songs of the Seasons) and intermediate to advanced (The Music Remedy). Please check them out on my website, or on Amazon! Thanks for supporting my free music giveaways with your purchases 💚