The Star of Munster on the tin whistle

An Irish reel for a D whistle, 59 notes. Press play to hear it on Penny's whistle, then learn it one note at a time.

59 notes. Press play, or Next note to go one at a time.

E+

Top five holes covered, blow a little harder.

The notes

Each box is one bar. A + means the high octave: same fingers, blow a little harder. A longer line under a note means hold it longer.

1. high E
2. high D
3. C natural
4. A
5. C natural
6. B
1. G
2. B
3. A
4. G
5. E
6. F sharp
7. G
8. E
1. D
2. F sharp
3. E
4. A
5. A
6. B
7. C natural
8. B
1. C natural
2. high D
3. high E
4. high A
5. high A
6. high F sharp
7. high G
8. high F sharp
1. high E
2. high D
3. C natural
4. A
5. C natural
6. B
1. G
2. B
3. A
4. G
5. E
6. F sharp
7. G
8. E
1. D
2. F sharp
3. E
4. A
5. A
6. B
7. C natural
8. high D
1. high E
2. high D
3. C natural
4. A
5. B
6. G
7. A

Fingers for each note

D
E
F sharp
G
A
B
C natural
high D
high E
high F sharp
high G
high A

About the tune

The Star of Munster is an Irish reel. It is tune 1218 in O'Neill's Music of Ireland (1903), a book of 1,850 pieces collected by Francis O'Neill, then head of the Chicago police. The notes here are the first part of the tune as it is printed there (a scan of the book), set for a D whistle, with the ornaments left out.

Francis O'Neill learned it from James O'Brien, a County Mayo piper who visited Chicago in 1876. The Sligo fiddler Michael Coleman recorded it in New York in 1922. Source: The Traditional Tune Archive

How hard is it

Level: In between
Notes: 59
Range: D to A+
High notes: 14 of 59
C natural: 8 times. Cover only the second and third holes.

Keep going

All 18 tunes The full finger chart

Every tune here also plays in Typing Meadow, our free typing music game for kids.