Egan's (The Kerry Polka) — Banjo & Mandolin Tab, Sheet Music

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About Egan's (The Kerry Polka)

Egan's (The Kerry Polka) is a two-part Irish polka in D major — beginner-friendly, running from A to a and staying in first position on banjo, mandolin and fiddle.

Type: Polka, two parts, each usually played twice
Key: D major · 2/4
Range: A to a · first position
Notes used: D E F♯ A B
Level: Beginner-friendly

Egan's (The Kerry Polka) — sheet music

D major · 2/4

The notes

Letter names, bar by bar · capitals up to C in the third space, lower case from the D on the 4th line

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Egan's (The Kerry Polka) — tab

Tenor banjo · mandolin · fiddle · guitar · ukulele — tap one to open it

Egan's (The Kerry Polka) — Tenor banjo tab

G D A E (Irish tuning) · open position

E|-2-------|-2-------|---0-2-|-0-------|
A|---0-2-0-|---0-2-0-|-5-----|---5-2-0-|
D|---------|---------|-------|---------|
G|---------|---------|-------|---------|

E|-2-------|-2-------|---0-2-|-0-----|
A|---0-2-0-|---0-2-0-|-5-----|---5-5-|
D|---------|---------|-------|-------|
G|---------|---------|-------|-------|

E|-2-5-2-0-|-0-------|---0-2-|-0-------|
A|---------|---5-2-0-|-5-----|---5-2-0-|
D|---------|---------|-------|---------|
G|---------|---------|-------|---------|

E|-2-5-2-0-|-0-------|---0-2-|-0-----|
A|---------|---5-2-0-|-5-----|---5-5-|
D|---------|---------|-------|-------|
G|---------|---------|-------|-------|

Numbers are frets. Tenor banjo sounds an octave below the written notes.

Egan's (The Kerry Polka) — Mandolin tab

G D A E · open position

E|-2-------|-2-------|---0-2-|-0-------|
A|---0-2-0-|---0-2-0-|-5-----|---5-2-0-|
D|---------|---------|-------|---------|
G|---------|---------|-------|---------|

E|-2-------|-2-------|---0-2-|-0-----|
A|---0-2-0-|---0-2-0-|-5-----|---5-5-|
D|---------|---------|-------|-------|
G|---------|---------|-------|-------|

E|-2-5-2-0-|-0-------|---0-2-|-0-------|
A|---------|---5-2-0-|-5-----|---5-2-0-|
D|---------|---------|-------|---------|
G|---------|---------|-------|---------|

E|-2-5-2-0-|-0-------|---0-2-|-0-----|
A|---------|---5-2-0-|-5-----|---5-5-|
D|---------|---------|-------|-------|
G|---------|---------|-------|-------|

Numbers are frets. Same strings as the fiddle, so the same notes fall in the same places.

Egan's (The Kerry Polka) — fiddle fingering

G D A E · first position — finger numbers

E|-1-------|-1-------|---0-1-|-0-------|
A|---0-1-0-|---0-1-0-|-3-----|---3-1-0-|
D|---------|---------|-------|---------|
G|---------|---------|-------|---------|

E|-1-------|-1-------|---0-1-|-0-----|
A|---0-1-0-|---0-1-0-|-3-----|---3-3-|
D|---------|---------|-------|-------|
G|---------|---------|-------|-------|

E|-1-3-1-0-|-0-------|---0-1-|-0-------|
A|---------|---3-1-0-|-3-----|---3-1-0-|
D|---------|---------|-------|---------|
G|---------|---------|-------|---------|

E|-1-3-1-0-|-0-------|---0-1-|-0-----|
A|---------|---3-1-0-|-3-----|---3-3-|
D|---------|---------|-------|-------|
G|---------|---------|-------|-------|

0 = open string · 1–4 = finger · L = low (half step back), H = high.

Egan's (The Kerry Polka) — Guitar tab

E A D G B E · open position

e|-2-------|-2-------|---0-2-|-0-------|
B|-----0---|-----0---|-3-----|---3-0---|
G|---2---2-|---2---2-|-------|-------2-|
D|---------|---------|-------|---------|
A|---------|---------|-------|---------|
E|---------|---------|-------|---------|

e|-2-------|-2-------|---0-2-|-0-----|
B|-----0---|-----0---|-3-----|---3-3-|
G|---2---2-|---2---2-|-------|-------|
D|---------|---------|-------|-------|
A|---------|---------|-------|-------|
E|---------|---------|-------|-------|

e|-2-5-2-0-|-0-------|---0-2-|-0-------|
B|---------|---3-0---|-3-----|---3-0---|
G|---------|-------2-|-------|-------2-|
D|---------|---------|-------|---------|
A|---------|---------|-------|---------|
E|---------|---------|-------|---------|

e|-2-5-2-0-|-0-------|---0-2-|-0-----|
B|---------|---3-0---|-3-----|---3-3-|
G|---------|-------2-|-------|-------|
D|---------|---------|-------|-------|
A|---------|---------|-------|-------|
E|---------|---------|-------|-------|

Numbers are frets; the bottom line is the low E string.

Egan's (The Kerry Polka) — Ukulele tab

G C E A (high G) · open position

A|-9-0-2-0-|-9-0-2-0-|-5-7-9-|-7-5-2-0-|
E|---------|---------|-------|---------|
C|---------|---------|-------|---------|
G|---------|---------|-------|---------|

A|-9-0-2-0-|-9-0-2-0-|-5-7-9-|-7-5-5-|
E|---------|---------|-------|-------|
C|---------|---------|-------|-------|
G|---------|---------|-------|-------|

A|-9-12-9-7-|-7-5-2-0-|-5-7-9-|-7-5-2-0-|
E|----------|---------|-------|---------|
C|----------|---------|-------|---------|
G|----------|---------|-------|---------|

A|-9-12-9-7-|-7-5-2-0-|-5-7-9-|-7-5-5-|
E|----------|---------|-------|-------|
C|----------|---------|-------|-------|
G|----------|---------|-------|-------|

Numbers are frets; the top line is the A string, the bottom line the high G.

More polkas and tunes like it

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This setting is a community transcription from thesession.org. The tune itself is traditional. Tabs and letter names worked out by The Music Arcade.