The Rambling Pitchfork

Jig, D, Traditional Irish

The title of this cheerful Irish jig may seem at first to be completely whimsical. But “rambling pitchfork” is an expression that refers to an itinerant farm laborer — one who works from farm to farm, with a pitchfork being a common and simple tool of the trade.

Recordings

• Audio – Comhaltas: The Rambling Pitchfork – session recording. From the album Foinn Seisiún Volume 1
• Video – Kevin Burke & Ged Foley: The Rambling Pitchfork – played on fiddle with guitar backing. From the album In Tandem. (The Rambling Pitchfork, in D Major, begins at time 2:47 in this recording.)
• Audio – Stephen Ducke: The Rambling Pitchfork (Jig) – played on tin whistle. From the book Irish Music – 400 Traditional Tunes.

Sheet Music (Dots)

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.

• Rambling Rogue Jig Set: The Rambling Pitchfork (D) / The Black Rogue (D) / The Blackthorn Stick (G)
• Jerry’s Beaver Hat / Kesh / Rambling Pitchfork
• Tatter Jack Walsh / The Rambling Pitchfork
• The Rambling Pitchfork / The Sporting Pitchfork
• Connaughtman’s Rambles / The Rambling Pitchfork

References and Resources

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

• More Recordings
  • Video – Shannon & Matt Heaton: Sept 26 Virtual Guided (Slow) Session – The Rambling Pitchfork – played on flute with bouzouki accompaniment. (The Rambling Pitchfork starts at time 27:00 in this video.)
  • Video – Séamus Egan: Tatter Jack Walsh / The Rambling Pitchfork – played on tenor banjo & harmonica. From the album In Your Ear. (Portland, Oregon, USA. The Rambling Pitchfork starts at time 1:29 in this recording.)
  • Video – Chris Smith: The Rambling and Sporting Pitchforks – 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.
  • Audio – Castlerock: – Jig: Rambling Pitchfork – played slowly on flute and fiddle. From the album Slowplayers: Session Tunes volume 1. (Castlerock is William Bajzek and Angeline LeLeux, Mt. Vernon, Washington, USA)
  • Video – Shane Farrell: The Rambling Pitchfork Jig. Irish Tenor Banjo Music – played on tenor banjo, with variations.
• Books
  • Book – The Portland Collection, Contra Dance Music in the Pacific Northwest, Volume 2, by Susan Songer with Clyde Curley.
  • Book – Foinn Seisiún, Volume 1 — Published by Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann
  • Book & Audio – Grey Larsen: 150 Gems of Irish Music for Tin Whistle – with audio tracks of the tunes played on tin whistle
  • Book & Audio – Stephen Ducke: Irish Music 400 Traditional Tunes – with audio tracks of the tunes played on tin whistle
• Lessons
  • Lesson – Pat Barton: How to play ‘The Rambling Pitchfork’ – jig on Irish b/c Accordion – demonstration video of the tune played slowly on button accordion
  • Lessons – Online Academy of Irish Music: The Rambling Pitchfork – lessons for fiddle and flute. (Requires subscription to OAIM.)
  • Lesson – James Finnegan (The Banjo Buddy): The Rambling Pitchfork & Right Hand Technique – Traditional Irish Music Tutorial – tenor banjo lesson
  • Lesson – Niall Murphy (Fiddlevideo): The Rambling Pitchfork (Jig) – Trad Irish Fiddle Lesson – video lesson & sheet music. (Requires a subscription to Fiddlevideo.)
• Additional Resources
  • Webpage – The Session: The Rambling Pitchfork (Jig) – crowdsourced sheet music, comments, and other information about the tune
  • Webpage – Slowplayers: The Rambling Pitchfork (D) – background information, audio tracks, and sheet music for the tune