The Earl’s Chair

Reel, D, Irish, attributed to Patrick Moloney

The Earl’s Chair is an elegant and sturdy tune that is very popular in session playing. As a D Major tune that doesn’t start or end on D, it serves as a good connector between other tunes in a set.

The composition of the tune is attributed to Patrick (“Pakie” or “Patto”) Moloney, of Woodford, East Galway, in the 1940s or 1950s. The tune is said to be named for a rock formation called Earl’s Chair, in Derrycrag Woods, County Galway, Ireland.

Recordings

• Video – The Bloomers: Earl’s Chair / Frank’s Reel – played on flute and fiddle with guitar backing.
• Audio – Comhaltas: Earl’s Chair – session recording from the album Foinn Seisiún Volume 1
• Audio – Stephen Ducke: The Earl’s Chair (Reel) – played on tin whistle. From the book Irish Music – 400 Traditional tunes

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.

Sets

Examples of sets that include this tune.

• Dunmore Lasses Reel Set: Dunmore Lasses (Em) / The Earl’s Chair (D) / The High Reel (A Mixolydian)
• Silver Chair Reel Set: The Silver Spear (D) / The Earl’s Chair (D) / The Musical Priest (Bm)
• The Earl’s Chair / Frank’s Reel
• The Earl’s Chair / Rolling In The Ryegrass / Palmer’s Gate
• The Earl’s Chair / The Pigeon On The Gate / The Four Kisses
• Jenny Picking Cockles / The Earl’s Chair

References and Resources

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

• More Recordings
  • Video – Liz Carroll: The Silver Spear/The Earl’s Chair/The Musical Priest (Reels) from the album Lost in the Loop.
• Books
  • Book & Audio – Matt & Shannon Heaton: In Harmony 
  • Book – Foinn Seisiún, Volume 1 — Published by Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann
  • Book – Irish Music 400 Traditional Tunes – by Stephen Ducke
  • Book – 100 Essential Irish Session Tunes, by Dave Mallinson (Mally Productions)
• Lessons:
  • Lesson – MandoLessons: The Earl’s Chair – full mandolin lesson taught by Baron Collins-Hill. Taught by ear, with sheet music, tab, chords and play-along tracks. (Free, with option to contribute or purchase tracks.)
  • Lesson – Kevin Burke: The Earl’s Chair – partial lesson for playing the tune on fiddle. Full lesson requires subscription to Fiddlevideo.
  • Lessons – Online Academy of Irish Music: The Earl’s Chair – lessons for accompanying the tune on guitar and bouzouki; virtual pub-session and play-along tracks. (Requires subscription to OAIM.)
• Additional Resources
  • Web page – The Session: The Earl’s Chair Reel – crowdsourced sheet music and information
  • About the Earl’s Chair stone formation:
    • Video – Martin Fahy Ballinakill Heritage: Local History Video No. 10. The Earl’s Chair. The Gamble Line. The Amber Neckace
    • Blog post – Jason Keane: The Earl’s Chair in Derrybrien – a first-hand visitor’s description with photos.