Hornpipe, D Major, Traditional Irish
Also known as Chief O’Neill’s Favourite

Recordings
- Video – Chris Smith: Chief O Neill’s Favorite/Kitty’s Wedding – from the album Coyotebanjo, Irish Traditional Music from America, Chris Smith with Roger Landes and Randal Bays. Played on tenor banjo and fiddle with bouzouki backing.
- Video – Enda Scahill: Chief O’Neill’s Favourite Hornpipe on Irish Tenor Banjo
- Video – Tunes From Doolin (Charles Monod): Chief O’Neill’s Favourite (Hornpipe) – played on concertina
Dots (Music Notation)
As always for traditional tunes, the musical notation and chords do not indicate the “right” way to play the tune, but are a useful reference. The version here is simplified, with ornamentation removed — to play it well, be sure to add triplets and other ornamentation.

Play from the Dots
Sets
Examples of sets that include this tune.
- Chief O’Neill’s Favourite / Kitty’s Wedding
- The Rights of Man / Chief O’Neill’s Favourite
References and Resources
For those who want to dig deeper, here are some other resources.
- More Recordings
- Audio – Fiddlehead: Chief O’Neill’s/Kitty’s Wedding – from the album The Pure Drop.
- Audio – Castlerock (Slowplayers): Chief O’Neil’s Favorite – played at a slow tempo on flute and fiddle. From the album Session Tunes volume 1 by Castlerock. Angeline LeLeux (fiddle) and William Bajzek (flute), who produced the album under the name “Slowplayers” later renamed their duo “Castlerock.” (Mt. Vernon, Washington, USA)
- Video – The Dubliners: Chief O’Neill’s / Cork Hornpipe – played on tenor banjo by Barney McKenna. From the album The Dubliners.
- Video – The Irish Mandolin (Aidan Crossey): Chief O’Neill’s Favourite – recorded for The Mandolin Cafe’s Song-A-Week Social Group, 4 October 2021
- Audio – Stephen Ducke: Chief O’Neill’s Favourite (Hornpipe) – played on tin whistle. From the book Irish Music – 400 Traditional Tunes
- Video – Michael Eskin: “Chief O’Neill’s Favourite” Hornpipe on B/C Box – video of melody played on button accordion; sheet music displayed at the end of the video
- Books
- Book – Stephen Ducke: Irish Music 400 Traditional Tunes
- Book – Shannon Heaton: Oil for the Chain, Traditional and Original Irish Music – with audio tracks of the tunes played on flute; no chords.
- Lessons
- Lesson – Enda Scahill: Chief O’Neill’s Favourite – The Ultimate Irish Banjo Hornpipe? – introduction to the tune and to the lesson. (Full lesson requires subscription to Enda Scahill’s Patreon account.)
- Lessons – Online Academy of Irish Music – lessons on fiddle and flute. Requires subscription to OAIM.
- Additional Resources
- Webpage – Tunes from Doolin: Chief O’Neill’s Favourite – sheet music, ABC notation, video and more
- Webpage – The Session: Chief O’Neill’s Favourite Hornpipe – crowdsourced sheet music, comments and more.
- Webpage – The Irish Traditional Music Tune Index: Chief O’Neill’s Favorite – curated & archival information about the tune