Thursday 12 January 2023
Tune of the Day: The Butchers' March
Traditional Irish tune
The earliest known appearance of this tune is in O'Farrell's Pocket Companion for the Irish or Union Pipes, published in London in 1806. Collector Francis O'Neill recorded in 1913 that the tune was associated with a tradition of butchers performing a long dance on May Eve (April 30), an ancient festival which used to mark the beginning of summer.