The Cúil Aodha Slide

Slide, D, traditional Irish
Also known as Connie Walsh’s, The Cúil Aodha, The Coolea

A flowing and sparkling traditional slide from Ireland’s mountainous Sliabh Luachra region.

About the Tune

About the Title
Cúil Aodha (pronounced kool-AY) is the name of a townland and village in County Cork. The name is anglicized as Coolea. Aodha is a man’s name, commonly pronounced “AY-uh” (rhymes with “play-uh”), and was likely the name of a local chieftain or landowner. Cúil refers to a secluded place. Altogether, Cúil Aodha means something like “Aodha’s place.” (Note that there are two other tunes, a jig and a polka, also named “The Cúil Aodha.”)

Learning the Tune
With its upward and downward melodic flow, ample use of repeated phrases, and short length, this tune is relatively easy to learn and play.

About the Illustration
The River Sullane forms near the village of Cúil Aodha, its waters tinted and softened by the peat-rich, mossy slopes of the Derrynasaggart Mountains. It is home to brown trout, along with perch and pike, and begins here a journey that will eventually carry its waters to the River Lee, Cork Harbour, and the Celtic Sea.

In the illustration, the trout move beneath the surface currents while a white swan glides above—recalling the legend of the Children of Lir, in which Aodh and his siblings were transformed into swans and set to wander Ireland’s waters for nine hundred years.

Recordings

• Video – Mossie Martin: Slides: Paudie Scully’s / Lep the Table / The Cúil Aodha – from the album Humours of Derrynacoosan. (The Cúil Aodha starts at time 1:50 in this recording.)
• Video – Hooley: Put The English On It / Patrick O’Keeffe’s / Connie Walsh’s – from the album Cuts From the Turf. (Connie Walsh’s starts at time 2:39 in this recording.)
• Video – Johnny Connolly: Kiely Cotter’s / The Bridge of Athlone / The Cúil Aodha Slide (feat. Steve Cooney) – from the album Drioball Na Fáinleoige. (The Cúil Aodha starts at time 1:45 in this recording.)

Sheet Music

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.

Sets

Examples of sets that include this tune.

• The Cuil Aodha Slide (D) / Nelly Mahoney’s (D)
• The Cuil Aodha Slide (D) / The Brosna Slide (G)

References and Resources

For those who want to dig deeper, here are some other resources.

• More Recordings
  • Video – The Whistler: Connie Walsh’s [The Cúil Aodha] (Slide) – audio recording of the tune played on tin whistle
  • Audio – The Yanks: The Haybarn / Connie Walsh’s / Wallop the Cat / The Tanglony – from the album Haymaker. (Connie Walsh’s starts at time 0:39 in this recording.)
• Books
  • Book & audio – Dave Mallinson: 100 Enduring Irish Session Tunes – book with CD
• Lessons
  • Lesson – Aidan Crossey (The Irish Mandolin): Connie Walsh’s – a slide in D Major tabbed for mandolin – video with on-screen sheet music and tablature
• Additional Resources
  • Web page – The Session: The Cuil Aodha (Slide) – crowdsourced sheet music, comments, and more
  • Web page – Irishtune.info: Cúil Aodha – archival information about the tune, curated by Alan Ng
  • Article – Wikipedia: Cúil Aodha – a brief article about the townland and village of Cúil Aodha (or Coolea).