Mick O’Brien, Emer Mayock, Aoife Ní Bhríain @ Tradition Now

Mick O’Brien, Emer Mayock, Aoife Ní Bhríain @ Tradition Now

Sunday, 20 June 2021, 5.00pm

Mick O’Brien (Uilleann Pipes/Flute/Whistle), Emer Mayock (Flute/Whistle) and Aoife Ní Bhriain (Fiddle/Viola) are three well known Irish traditional musicians who focus on exploring the music collected by James Goodman (1828-96) in the southwest of Ireland in the mid-nineteenth century.

The manuscripts, held at Trinity College Dublin and now published in two volumes by the Irish Traditional Music Archive are of great significance because they preserve much of the traditional music of the south of Ireland as it was sung and played in the years before traditional culture there was devastated by the Great Famine of the 1840s.

Comprising music that could easily have disappeared from the repertory, the manuscripts provide unique insights into the evolution of Irish traditional music. From these manuscripts, Mick, Emer and Aoife have chosen music ranging from unusual versions of tunes in the modern repertoire to those apparently unique to the collection.

In 2014 they received a TG4 Gradam Cheoil award for their collaborative work in exploring this varied and intriguing repertoire.

With two CD recordings, the trio present a captivating approach to the arrangement and interpretation of these historical musical materials, at times enlarging the instrumental palette and adding layers or conversely paring things right back. The resulting sound, having continued to develop through live performance for a number of years now and always displaying a sense of stylistic individuality, is as compelling as ever.

The concert will be available to tickets holders for a week following the performance.

Tradition Now is an initiative of the Arts Council and the National Concert Hall.

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Published by Journal of Music on 14 June 2021

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