Íoslódáil (PDF) - Comhaltas Archive

Emigrant traditions made a strong
showing, with as many as half the
competitors in some disciplines
coming from the United States or
England. Stephen Prosol, a 21 year old
accordion player, came from
Cambridge, England, for his
third Fleadh, but blames a
case of nerves for stopping
him from placing in the
competition. His mother,
who is also his teacher,
emigrated from Ireland; she
called out encouragingly,
'We thought you would
bring home that cup
this year:
Mr Prosol said the trip to
Listowel was his fifth to
Ireland this year and that he
had made many friends in
both Ireland and England
through his music.
That strong connection
with second and third
generation Irish emigrants is
apt, Mr 6 Murchu said,
because Irish emigrants
helped preserve traditional
music in the late 19 th and
early 20 th centuries, when
musicians here were
unappreciated and had few
outlets to perform.
Emigrants in the United
States were the first to put ancient
tunes onto 78 rpm records, which
came to Ireland and reintroduced a
new generation of tunes that had
been forgotten.
The health of Irish music is perhaps
best exemplified by Isaac Alderson, a
Chicago native with no Irish roots. He
started playing the uilleann pipes at
13, drawn in by his local Irish scene
and the 'very flowing, very natural'
feel of the music, he said. Traditional
Irish music is unlike other classical
and folk forms, Mr Alderson said,
because it allows musicians to
develop and express a personal style
in an unique way.
There's nothing like the rhythm and
the way the music flows: he said. 'In
Irish music, you create compleXity out
of a very simple melody:
Now 19 and a sophomore at Sarah
Lawrence College, Mr Alderson was
the only one to win three competitions
this year, in uilleann pipes, concert flute
and tin whistle. As he walked back to
his tent at the Fleadh campsite.
passers-by who saw his three silver
trophies stopped and stared and asked
about his musical heroics.
The Fleadh helps sustain ancient
traditions, musical and verbal, since
experienced musicians tend to
introduce each song with the history
of its composition and its Significance,
which usually means a folk tale or a
brief eulogy for a deceased virtuoso
who passed the tune on.
Despite Comhaltas's desire to
uphold Irish culture. Mr 6 Murchu
said. musicians do gradually cause
the tradition to evolve. 'It's not fair
to ask them to play in the style of 80
years ago; he said. That's not a living
art form:
Just after winning the uilleann pipes
competition for 'slow airs: a genre of
ancient Irish song, Thomas Johnston
said he did not think of the Fleadh or
his playing the pipes as an effort to
maintain Irish culture. Now 19, he
started playing the tin whistle at 7 and
has been coming to Fleadhs his entire
life. 'It's just my life; it's what I do: he
said 'It's just music. music, music.'
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