Ennis NS presents Swinging Strings in Concert

 I was very proud of my beginner violin students at Ennis NS yesterday. Following their first term of weekly violin lessons, they gave a splendid concert in Ennis NS Hall for mams and dads. We were honoured to have Sean McDermott, founder of the school band there. I was delighted to see my cousin Anne White and husband Aidan in the audience.  Here is my report posted on the dedicated website

Swinging Strings: Ennis NS presents Swinging Strings in Concert: Ennis National School proudly presents Swinging Strings Ensemble 2011 with Ennis NS Band A lunchtime recital at the Halla on Wednesd...

When Jolie Met Christie at Glór Ennis

Christie Hennessy, Aonghus McAnally, Al Jolsen

It is said that of all the performers of national and international standing that performed in Glór, the only one that a local enclosed order of nuns invited to tea in their parlour was Christie Hennessy who delighted the sisters with a selection of  hits.  There was a good crowd gathered in Glor Ennis  tonight (Mon) for When Jolie Met Christie, a new musical theatre piece inspired by the life and music of the late Tralee born, singer songwriter,  whose songs have been recorded by numerous Irish artists. I wasn't quite sure what to expect from this tribute show but this was a multi layered and highly entertaining presentation . 

The show is based on the premise that Christie Hennessy and Al Jolsen meet in heaven and the iconic jazz singer Jolsen becomes in effect the narrator who charts Christie's jouney through life, punctuated by Christie's songs .  A similar device was used in  the Avignon OFF production of Beethoevn Ce Manouche where the plot is built around a celestial meeting of Beethoven and Django Reinhardt.  Here McAnally's  monologues are a central part of the production rather than just  a device to move from one number to the next. There were resonances also in Sandy Kelly's retelling of the  Patsy Cline biography at this venue.

Aonghus McAnally, well known as a broadcaster shod in blue suede shoes demonstrates an impressive dramatic and vocal  range as well as skillful guitar playing and portrays the egotistical Jolson and the mild mannered Christie with equal facility  The story is a heart warming and compelling one, that of an orphaned illiterate emigrant, turned travelling troubadour who despite terrible travails gradually achieves 'stardom' .  There are many noteworthy elements  to the production directed by Ray Yeates. The set  designed by Robert Ballagh is  effective, the  taut beautifully written script  by Sean McCarthy sustains the pace throughout .  McAnally who delivers a compelling performance, is well supported on stage by musicians Nuala Ni Chanainn  on  violin, vocals , percussion and pianist Ivan McKenna.  The amplification mercifully is unobtrusive and the colour of the string timbres is not distorted.

The show opens and closes with 'I am a Star' (Rolling Back the Clouds) and the closing number was greeted by a  standing ovation by the  audience .  In Ennis the show attracted a relatively senior audience. McAnally who seemed positively energised by his experience on the Glor stage spoke to me about the role. You can hear the passion and enthusiasm for his subject in this interview following the show.  Nearing the end of an extensive tour, a few opportunities  remain to see the production in Castlebar, Leitrim, Drogheda and Bray. It is well worth a visit.




Aonghus McAnally talks about his role -foyer interview

Peggy Seeger in Clare

I am ambivalent generally about one man (or woman)  performances of any description but we had an inkling that we would hear something extraordinary when legendary folk singer Peggy Seeger was a guest of Sixmilebridge Folk Club County Clare. The intimate Courthouse venue was crammed  with circa 120 or so  which for  a midweek evening, even with a star of Seeger's renown is a feat of good marketing and PR work by the astute Brendan Walsh and the hard working committee members.  We arrived too late to hear Tommy Sands but in time for a cup of tea before Seeger took to the small stage. She was introduced by Cork based promoter John Nyhan who referred to encountering the Seeger siblings legendary recordings in trips to Crowleys Music Shop in Cork. Even for the uninitiated the Seeger name has a resonance following decades of collecting, recording and composing. 

 Wearing no make up and and with cropped grey hair, Seeger is a striking and commanding presence and looked elegant  in a simple black and white ensemble.  This is after all, the face which inspired  one of the great love songs of the 20th century.  With a matronly concern she advised her capacity audience to stretch their legs and get some fresh air before launching her set in the packed  intimate Courthouse venue.

Peggy's Box

Over the course of an hour or so she performed on a diverse collection of folk instruments and also accompanying herself very adroitly at the piano.  The songs range from simple unaccompanied ballads,  to witty comic turns and hard hitting protest songs.  Her consort of instruments included an Applachian Dulcimer rarely seen on this side of the Atlantic, the familiar concertina, banjo, guitar and autoharp. I particularly liked the soft gut string munitions box lute. At interludes she read some humourous quotations from a folder of clippings.

She spoke warmly about her upbringing in an musically  accomplished  household.  I was reminded of Andy Irvine both in the references to the parental musical influence in other genres,  the enduring  enthusiasm for the road despite maturity,  and intellectual rigour underpinning the performance .  Her song Bringing it Home  towards the end of the evening was for me the highlight of a wonderful  entertaining evening. 

Munitions Box Lute

Packed Courthouse

My only quibble is that the flourescent lighting was too bright  and militated aginst a soiree ambience. Following the performance Peggy Seeger retired to the back room to meet and greet and to attend  to the post concert commercial * end of the evening 
What wonderful energy, emotion and wit she brought to her performance at this intimate venue. Bravo Peggy!  A memorable and delightful musical evening!

*( Although an important part of the procedings, I do feel the promoter or host might make someone available to help with the business end  leaving the star performer free to sign and chat without the mundane task of finding 'change of a twenty')

De Dannan in Tulla

Frankie Gavin is my favourite of the high profile Irish fiddlers.  I like his eclectic choice of repertoire, his enthusiasm for embracing other styles and genres  and I love  his refreshing  lack of pomposity. While I had heard Gavin in Ennis  recently with the high priest of trad,  Tony McMahon, conditions on that occasion were less than ideal and I had never heard De Danann (or De Dannan ) live so I made a bee line for Tulla when the long lived super group played at  Minogue's on Saturday night  as a guest of Frank Hayes' Island Music Club.  

Gavin's virtuosity was mesmerising and sitting close to the stage gave us a good vantage point to view the incredible fluidity of his bowing and fingering technique.The band were joined  by singer Michelle Lally who had a  charming stage presence and gave interesting and thoughtful introductions to her numbers which added something fresh to the performance of familiar material.  In relation to the band she was a tad overamplified for the relatively small space . She was most sympathetically accompanied by the band with Gavin content to add lovely understated accompaniment figures often on viola gracefully making way for Cunningham's florid flute lines to soar over the vocals in jazz infused rhythms and Galvin's bluesy chord selection .  While we enjoyed the De Danann hits, with a brand new singer with her own style it was time we felt for less of  the  back catalog and a new set of songs.

There was much to enjoy in the two sets and one couldn't but be impressed with the individual members's musicianship and versatilty . All the signature De Danann  features were present. At the core is the violin and accordion  duet ,  either player never content to merely double a line  plus a quirky song selection  and  an infusion of other genres . Looking very smart in crisp white shirts and black waistcoats, De Danann don't claim to push out the frontiers of Irish traditional music but in a quest to entertain they strike me as being just as ground breaking as some of the more high profile fusion acts on the scene.   Galvin's guitar accompaniments were never overly percussive as with many guitarists accompanying in the trad idiom but always subtle and supportive. Cunningham doubling on percussion and flute/low whistle was a match for Gavin and there was a lovely sense of ensemble between the four players all genuinely seeming to enjoy the collaboration.

A high point for me was Gavin talking about his experience of playing with  Grapelli and attending his funeral before playing a set associated with his collaboration with the legendary jazz fiddler. How lovely it would have been  to have heard some more anecdotes from Gavin's other collaborations and long career but somewhat inexplicably with a mine of stories only he could have told, one of the best fiddle players in the world chose  to tell corny jokes.

Maybe it was the jokes that had us looking at our watches and noting that the set finished at 12.45 which is rather late I suggest for punters and band members travelling after the gig.  If a listing states that the gig will begin at 9, is it not reasonable to expect that it will begin not much later than 9.30. Afficionados in the audinece included Maeve Donnelly  a virtuoso fiddler herself and it was good to see the venue packed for this hard working outfit who were looking fresh despite being near the end of  32 county tour.  I note the band are off to tour the States. Go n'eirí an bóthar libh.

Summer Music Galway in Ennis

Beethoven Violin Concerto

The staff and senior students of Summer Music in Galway, the  long established summer music school gave a terrific concert at Danlann, Ennis Co Clare on Monday night.  The main work offered was Beethoven's Violin Concerto with David Stewart as soloist. The concert master of Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra appeared to really relish the performance and was well served by the orchestra under Paul Ezergalis.  I was struck by the prominent role of principal bassoon and Michael Dooley did justice to the numerous duet moments in the work. Michael was also credited with a chaming arrangement of an Irving Berlin medley.  The strings were a liitle over emphatic  for my taste and might have aimed for a more relaxed feel for this 1930's popular repertoire. There was a selection of operatic arias by Mozart and Rossini  from a quartet of singers,  including Sarah Ellen Murphy and  Helen Houlihan, the context set  in amusing introductions by  soprano, Edel O'Brien.  There was rare treat in an arrangement of a piece called Cousins featuring a rich and warm duet combination of cornet and trombone.

Regrettably for such a high calibre of musical treats,  the audience number was roughly the same as the number in the orchestra. I think it is very difficult to gather an audience for a one off event unless it is hooked to another group or is publicised as part of an overall festival or sequence of events. I think there is some scope for a number of groups to pool their advertising resources and market Ennis as a multi faceted music hub and promote  their events in a combined effort . Come for Willie Clancy Week  and stay on for Summer Music.  Leaving that aside with two music schools and numerous choral groups in Ennis, it should be possible without too much advertising, to bring in larger audiences than are usual at classical events in Ennis. Musicians themselves I believe have a certain responsibility not only to perfrom but also to form an audience for fellow performers and to encourage our students in this regard. Although I still comb the local papers for news of events, I tend to look now online for information which I would not have done a year ago.   In fact, it was a text message that brought me along on this particular evening as I had missed seeing the printed advertising .

The next event in this venue will be  a  youth opera , Deep Waters  8pm Thursday 11th August .

Ger Wolfe at the Market Tavern Miltown Malbay



 



Shaken by low sounds Kevin Murphy on cello

Three generations of Malones at the Market Tavern

Paul Frost's Airline Friendly Bass

There was a mellow vibe to the set offered by Ger Wolfe and his quartet at the intimate space of Sean Malone's Market Tavern, Miltown Malbay, Co Clare  in Friday night .  Essentially  backed by a string band with the unusual low string combination of cello and double bass ,Wolfe himself on guitar made  occasional forays on fiddle. Richard Lucey on accordion  leavened the string sound .   There were occasional solo dance tunes on accordion and fiddle but just enough to give respite to the voice and it was songs we had come to hear delivered in Wolfe's distictive Leeside  tones.  Paul Frost on bass added solid rhythmic support and Kevin Murphy on cello added sympathetic understated   accompaniment to the songs.  It was a winning combination with the tempos and metres nicely varied.  With a cello in the line up , solo  opportunities might have been exploited more. In this environment it would have been as welcome to hear a slow air as reels and slip jigs and the former would have served just as well to give vocalists a breather.

The Market Tavern  on the mainstreet of Miltown Malbay offers a convivial performing space for visiting acts  and attracts a loyal band of regulars to the historic building  in a village whose name is synonomous with traditional music. The stage backdrop is an impressive  mud  brown cast iron structure which Sean informs me is some form of weighing scales from market days of old  offering  a  pleasing resonance with the past.

Tommy Fleming at Glór Ennis

Set List                                                                           Second half
Going Home
Dream a Little Dream                                                     Isle of Hope
Sand and Water                                                            Danny Boy
You raised me up                                                           Solitaire
The Boxer                                                                       Vincent
The Contender                                                                 All I want is you
Bright Blue Rose                                                               Carousel When You Walk
Halcyon Days                                                                    Will Ye Go Lassie Go
Christmas 1915                                                                  Hard Times
                                                                                            Encore Smile

The car park was full to overflowing when I arrived at Glór indicating a  full house for this popular entertainer and I gather he usually packs this venue on his tours here in  recent years.   I had never heard Tommy Fleming  live and my first recollection of hearing him was in an interview with Gay Byrne  following a comeback after a car accident which must have been some time ago now. So I was curious to see what sort of live performer he was and what  factor drew his consistently large audiences.

Winter Music Weekend, Sixmilebridge

Fiach McHugh PR WMW, me  and troubadour  Jimmy Crowley

Jimmy Crowley
Sliabh Notes
Poit Dubh
Georgia Cusack Patrick Groenland 

We arrived   late to the Saturday night accoustic gig  at the Courthouse  in Sixmilebridge for the Winter Muisc Weekend ( http://www.wmw.ie/) and it was standing room only to hear a plethora of acts . Unfortunately we missed Colum Sands, who by all accounts was brilliant and Scottish  group,  Poit Dubh with their line up of two fiddles, guitar and cello were working their way through a pleasant set of Scots Gallic songs and polkas.  Chanteuse Gergia Cusack accompanied by Patrick Groenland offered effortless understated vocals  with a nicely varied selection with a Latin American vibe reminiscent of Diana Krall.

Andy Irvine at Glór

Travelling Troubadour Andy Irvine

There is something timeless about Andy Irvine  who appeared in Glór last week; a travelling troubadour with a collection of lute like stringed instruments  to support his voice , his penchant for singing to drone accompaniment creating  a wire strung  accoustic  soundworld that would not sound out of place in another century  alongside say  a 17th  century English balladeer like  John Dowland, (leaving aside occasional interludes on harmonica evoking folk giants Guthrie and Dylan).

Limerick Chorale Union Christmas Baroque Favourites 2010

 Limerick Choral Union and Orchestra 



'Your 5 minute call ladies' .

 Conductor Malcolm  Greene 

Hungarian Cello Duo Livia and Peter

   Soprano Mary O'Sullivan
 Mezzo Soprano Pauline Frizelle
Bass Eunan MacDonald

Vivaldi Magnificat
Bach Cantata 140 Wachet Auf Bach
Vivaldi Magnificat
Handel Zadok the Priest
Handel Arrival of Queen of Sheeba
Bach Jesu Joy
Handel Halleluia Chorus

Limerick Choral Union gave its' annual Christmas performance at UCH Limerick last week on 9th December.  It was a warm and convivial evening and there was  the usual full house for the annual Christmas offering of this large choir. I always enjoy playing for this well organised outfit and the choir sounded well.  I most enjoyed playing the Bach canata   a work I knew well as it was on  my school music syllabus  back in 79 ( Who can forget Leo McKern and the Lloyds Bank TV ad; yes, the one with the black 'horse outside'! ) I have not had much opportunity to play a complete cantata and the music is glorious. More of these Malcolm please! The soloists are splendid and husband and wife team Eunan and aptly named Mary, clearly expecting a happy event add a Nativity air to the proceedings

The oboe section shine tonight , Peter and young Lucas who I remember  hearing in a youth orchestra about 5 years ago when he must have been about 10 or 11 and being impressed by. I was glad to meet John Daly of the eponymous Big Band who was on timps tonight. Livia on continuo  is the lynchpin of the string section for this repertoire and  Oonaghs solo violin obligato    aound  soprano and bass vocal lines in the third movement  aria of the cantata is beautiful .
An exciting year ahead, it seems for the LCU with plans to play with Karl Jenkins and I am looking forward to Mendelssohn's Eli,jah in April.


Viola duo Me and Joacim



                                                   Cello Warm Up Exercises
 

Oboe Duo Peter and Lucas





Oboe warm up exercises



John O'Conor at Glór

Haydn                       Sonata in b minor Hob XVI no 32
Beethoven                 Sonata in c minor Op 13 'Pathetique'
 Field                         Three Nocturnes  no 5 in B flat ; no 6 in E; no 18 'Le Midi'


Chopin                        Berceuse in D flat op 57
                                   Barcarolle  Op 60
Ginastera                    Argentinian Dances

John O Conor gave a solo piano recital at Glór tonight. The auditorium was respectably full  and it was encouraging to  see a row of youngsters towards the front of the auditorium. In the absence of programme notes, the soloist gave very interesting and humourous spoken introductions to each set of pieces and this was added much to the enjoyment of the repertoire and demonstrated his excellent  communication skills.

The programme was laid out cronologically and one had a sense of the excitement of the new sound possibilities of  the romantic  piano  released by the Romantic composers,  Field and Chopin  following the briskness of the Classical  Haydn sonata.

The audiuence included many Ennis  cognoscenti, including Kieran and  Breda O Gorman of Clare Music Circle,  soprano Maret O Hehir, Archie Simpson of Lismorahan Singers and tenor Peter O Donoghue,  Mary Ellen Nagle of Clare Music Makers  , Marie Corley of Ennis Cathedral Choir and Terence Mangan  Governer General of the Lions Club  and his wife Maureen . I was delighted to meet my neighbours Veit and Rania Kuhn of Penguin Pianos who tuned the piano for the performance .


I do like it when performers come front of house to meet and greet patrons .  I believe John O Conor did greet many of the younger audience members  backstage but I believe  this very important aspect of the evening might be better  taking  place  front of house in the foyer or the red room. There were quite a few people hovering in the foyer who would like to have met the artist and reluctant to find  the route backstage,

John O Conor's  personal remuneration package has been under some scrutiny in the press this week and while his rather plummy D4 tones do rather set my culchie teeth on edge, I was impressed with him tonight  and enjoyed the performance rather more than I thought I might.  I think John O Conor , as one of the country's most successful performers and teachers ought to be well remunerated.

One quibble, as TV sitcom character Frazier might say, a  tee shirt is an undergarment, I feel a proper shirt collar is required for a  performance, but hey, call me old fashioned .

Fame at UCH Limerick

Alice and I enjoyed Fame the musical at UCH Limericktonight . Tickets were good value at €20 .  A list of about four names were read out at the beginning so I am not quite sure who was playing who tonight.  Certainly all the characters seemed well cast, and convincing.
The characters playing Romeo and Julliet were very charming and gave nicely understated performances.  The strength  of the production was in the energetic ensemble

Imagine Festival in Waterford

The Imagine Festival team have put together a very attractive range of arts events to brighten the late October scene in Waterford. The French film line up looks impressive. I can highly recommend Le Concert a film combining comic farce and virtuoso violin playing . You will hear Kalinka as you've never heard it before and orchestra managers will love it for the pivotal role.

Sandy Kelly /Patsy Cline at Glór

Sandy Kelly brought a bit of sparkle to the Glor last Thursday with her homage to Patsy Cline. Her outfits were stunning and she looked fabulous . I loved the fiddle player who looked liked he was really enjoying himself and made it look effortless.

Phil Coulter at the West County Ennis

I am listening to Phil Coulter being interviewed by Ivan Yates on the radio and I am reminded that I saw him back in July at the West County Hotel, Ennis.

Irish Chamber Orchestra at Glór

One of the outstanding events of the musical calendar in Ennis in the year to date was the visit by the Irish Chamber Orchestra to Glor in Ennis on Thursday 30th September. The orchestra performs regularly at their base in UCH Limerick but a performance in Ennis is a rare treat. The ensemble consisted of 18 string players and directed this evening by violinist Catherine Hunka.

La Jolla Chamber Chorus from San Diego at Glór

Opportunities to hear top notch choral singing in Ennis aren't that frequent despite the town's healthy choral scene. Last Saturday afternoon's programme offered by the La Jolla Chamber Chorus from San Diego will surely rank as one of the musical highlights of this year's musical calendar. The choir, which was over 50 strong, performed for free to the audience that assembled in Glór.

Paul McCartney RDS Dublin June 12th

Just back in Ennis after the pilgrimage to hear one of the legends of popular music perform at the RDS.
McCartney appeared on stage around 8.30 looking trim and dapper. I had some misgivings about the venue and they were soon realised with quite a significant time delay between the lips and sound arriving at back of arena detracting a little from the feel of the live gig. It was some consolation that the celeb balcony bearing Tubridy et al was at the same remove.
McCartney opened with some Wings numbers proving he could rock with the best of them but I suspect many of the concert goers breathed a sigh of relief when he sat at the piano for The Long and Winding Road. While you couldn't but admire his staying power and effort, one couldn't ignore that some of the songs were very banal, worthy of Eurovision entry even and yes Paul we know you can lep up and down, but that doesn't mean you have to. The audience noticeably warmed up with a charming version of George Harrison's 'Something in the Way She Moved' Paul accompanying himself on ukelele.
The pyrotechnics for Live and Let Die although anticipated, were impressive .
On the way out we spotted PeterMcMenamin General Sec TUI singing away to Yesterday. Lets hope he wasn't thinking of the Croke Park agreement.
There was time for a post show nightcap with my friend and former colleague Pat Morris before boarding the excellent Kavanagh's Midnight bus to the West.