ENNIS FLEADH NUA - Comhaltas Archive

made it. I could have listened all day tohim talking learnedly of the numbers ofcoats of varnish you needed on a fiddle,of how you had to rub it down with"wet an' dry" after the third coat -you need soft wood for the soundboard - Maple and Swiss Pine for thefront, belly and neck ..... the makings ofjigs and cramps ...Jim has travelled all over Europeand can discourse interestingly on anytown between Bruges and Venice - buthe is ever avidly on the look-out forsome added 'wrinkle' which might improvehis act. He showed me proudlyan invention which the Germans hadtaken great interest in at the HamburgBeer Festival. In essence it was a footlongstick which had been sawn up themiddle for about 4" - into this cleft hadbeen slotted a long fruit-serving spoon.Either side of this were placed anothertwo similar spoons - and a bolt passedthrough the 'tout ensemble' holding alltogether. Now we have all seen ladsplaying the spoons in a pub or on adoorstep maybe, at the fleadh, but threespoons at the one time!!! now that'ssomething to relish. He has now 'goneelectronic' he tells me - he has a taperecorderwhich leaves him free to playseveral more instruments as well asworking the wonderful contraptionwhich has seven puppets executing intricatejigs and tattoos at the tap of hisshoe. One of the puppets lacks a foot -but this didn't prevent it bravely rappingout its own "ninety-nine - bonk"rhythm Oar leath chos' and the wholegroup glare sinisterly out at a world thathoots laughter and hilarity at theminstead of preserving a proper decorumfor their jerking and lurching. I do hopeJim doesn't take them into the tentwith him at night - they terrify me,especially the blonde with the provocativecurl down over one eye. She's thegirl would put manners on you - if youmade so bould!I had, perforce to leave him,under his large, striped umbrella,fiddling away, stamping on the drumpedal with one foot and kicking thedancers into life with the other andblowing like hell into the mouthorgansuspended by wire about the head. Ihad earned the privilege of having myphoto taken with him, for I too hadjoined that select and chosen bandwho once pushed his pram up thesteep bank leading into Listowel - onmy own, for Jim is constantly beinggreeted from the side of the road byold friends and well-wishers and he gallopsoff over to shake hands - leavingyou to endure the curses of the lorrydriversand banked-up traffic behindyou. I felt like Boadicea myself,leading some sort of lunatic rabble inan attack on the town. My 'troops'glared back at me from the top of thepram and the 'fear a' leath Chos'waved a stump from under the fiddle.Beannacht ort, Jim! your likesare too few in this grey world. Goneirigh do Bhothar leat.EO. O'NEILL of Dunmore, Co. Kilkenny ,proudly displays his Comhaltas medals whichhe has won for his playing of the mouthorganand ballad singing. He was photographed byMICHAEL FrTZPATRICK of Gorey at theregional finals of Ceol an Gheimhridh thisyear in Moneenroe, CastIecomer, Co.Kilkenny.The All-Ireland Finals of the 1988 Ceol anGheirnhridh will be held in Thurles onSaturday, March 19.MARION CRAVEN of Rcnrnore, Co. Galway,is a busy young lady. She has won twelve A11-Ireland titles for music and song and graduatedfrom U.e.G. with a B. Corn. Hon. Degree.Maith tht., Marion.40