The Irish Traditional Music Archive (ITMA) is committed to providing free, universal access to the rich cultural tradition of Irish music, song and dance. If you’re able, we’d love for you to consider a donation. Any level of support will help us preserve and grow this tradition for future generations.
We continue to explore the unique Redican, Davis and McMahon collections donated to ITMA in recent years.
I hope you all had an enjoyable summer playing or listening to music around the country or abroad.
We continue to explore the unique Redican, Davis and MacMahon collections donated to the ITMA in recent years.
Aggie Whyte was one of the few well-known and highly regarded female musicians of the 1950s and 1960s and we feature Aggie playing a set recorded in the Piper’s Club, Dublin around 1957.
Across the Atlantic, in a recording from the Redican collection made in the 1950s, Larry himself plays both fiddle and banjo with interesting versions of well-known tunes, The Boyne Hunt and The beauty spot.
The late Liam O’Flynn continues to be a major influence for young (and not so young) pipers. Liam was a frequent guest and supporter of the Tradition Club, Capel Street, Dublin, a focal point for great music and song from the 1960s to the 1980s. Tom Davis was there in 1973 to capture Liam playing two of his favourite jigs.
We return to the recording made of an outstanding concert held in University of Limerick in 1995, of Eileen O’Brien, Paddy Canny, Larry Gavin and Deirdre McSharry. Also from the MacMahon collection, we have the legendary sean-nós singer, Meaití Jó Shéamuis Ó Fátharta, from the early 1990s.
Tony MacMahon and Noel Hill were a formidable duo on accordion and concertina over many years playing both in concert venues and informal settings including a famous recording in Knocknagree. On this track, from the early 1990s, Tony and Noel are in mighty form in the Crosses of Annagh, near Miltown, Co. Clare, blasting out four reels.
Enjoy,
Pádraic Mac Mathúna
If you enjoyed this playlist, you might consider making a donation to ITMA.
Every year ITMA receives a vast number of unique and important private collections, much like the ones included in this playlist. However, due to limitations within our current funding model, making these materials accessible beyond our physical location in Dublin will be delayed for many years without new sources of funding.
In 2024, a private U.S. foundation has generously pledged to match every donation we receive up to €100,000. This means that every donation we receive this year will be doubled.
Your donations will assist us in offering free, universal access to ITMA’s materials, preserving and growing Irish traditional music around the world. ITMA is a registered charity in Ireland and is eligible for 501(c)(3) donations from U.S.-based donors.
