Dublin fiddle player Paul O’Shaughnessy, also a whistle and flute player and an occasional composer, has been playing fiddle since his childhood, and has long been recognised as a leading traditional musician in the city. Learning at first there from his mother Pearl McBride, a fiddle player from a musical Donegal family, and Cavan fiddle player Antóin Mac Gabhann, he was also influenced by Sligo flute player John Egan. From Artane on the north side of Dublin city, he was one of a number of outstanding contemporary players who were members of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann branches in the area, his playing partner whistle player Denis O’Brien among them. In later years he spent time in Donegal, learning from source-players such as Con Cassidy and the Campbell family.

Paul has been appearing on Irish radio and television since the late 1970s, but became more widely known in the 1990s as a member of the Donegal-based group Altan and the Dublin-based group Beginish, and toured thoughout the world with them. He is to be heard on their recordings and on a wide variety of others, including his solo album Stay Another While (POSCD 0001), and his duet albums with flute players: Within a Mile of Dublin (SPINCD1000) with Paul McGrattan and Born for Sport with Harry Bradley (BFS001). He has recently completed a doctorate in Irish-language dialect studies.

The Irish Traditional Music Archive video recordings of Paul O’Shaughnessy featured here were recorded in no 63 Merrion Square, Dublin 2, by ITMA staff in November 1993.

With thanks to Paul O’Shaughnessy for permission to reproduce these video recordings below and on the ITMA YouTube channel here.

Nicholas Carolan & Treasa Harkin, 1 December 2013