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.
Joe Burke of Kilnadeema, Loughrea, Co Galway, will be forever remembered as one of the most influential accordion players of his time. His lifelong passion for Irish traditional music was infectious to anyone who had the good fortune to speak or play with him.
As well as being an outstanding traditional musician, he was extremely knowledgeable about all aspects of the music, its history and development. In addition to the release of many outstanding recordings, his long and productive career included performance, teaching, and the presenting of concerts and programmes on both radio and television.
Renowned for his humour and wit, Joe was excellent company.
Speaking to him on the phone earlier this week, the conversation ranged from Michael Coleman to Fritz Kreisler to Albert Einstein and we were even interrupted at one point by a barking Patsy Touhey —Joe’s pet dog!
Liam O’Connor, ITMA Director, February 2021
Ever generous, Joe in recent months worked with ITMA on making previously unreleased private recordings of Michael Coleman available to the public. His acetates were digitised, preserved and shared with the public on Valentine’s Day 2021. On the RTÉ Radio 1 Rolling Wave programme on 14 February, Joe spoke about his relief and excitement at having delivered on one of his final musical ambitions.
I have treasured these recordings all these years. The release of these highly rare recordings is a dream come true for me and I am very happy to be a part of it.
Joe Burke, February 2021
