It is generally perceived that, since traditional music is an aurally transmitted culture, musicians did not regularly use standard written musical notation to record, teach or transmit their art. James O’Neill’s gift for transcribing tunes is well-known, but it was probably not as rare as is generally thought. Clearly his father John (1837 – 1883) was musically literate as Francis O’Neill recorded that James had several volumes of manuscript music compiled by his father (Irish Folk Music, Francis O'Neill, Chicago 1910, page 52).

In County Down many fiddle players from the mid 1800s were recording their music in their own hand-written manuscripts e.g.;