J 1 - Comhaltas Archive

A COSTLY HOR-NPIPE
By E.P. Sherry
How an Irish hornpipe was preserved
for 'posterity at the expense or the loss
of a field of hay, is revealed
in an interview with a well known
Clonesman, Mr. Patrick O'Kane, P.C.,
who is a father figure in politics,
commerce and traditional Irish music.
In the volumous annals of the Irish
musical story, the dedication of Paddy
O'Kane and his former Cavan cohorts
must be unique in the protracted struggle
to perpetuate our tuneful links with the
past.
It was a pleasant experience to chat
with the versatile Paddy O'Kane at his
comfortable home where he resides with
his daughter, Maureen, at Legar Crescent,
Clones. He enhanced his genial hospitality
with a masterful performance on the tin
whistle and during the interludes gave me
a colourful ' insight into his early
efforts to become proficient in the
role of the Irish minstrel.
He said : "I have always taken a deep
interest in Irish traditional music. My
uncles on both sides of the family were
prominently identified with
Irish music. One of my uncles on my
mother's side could sing up to 200
traditional Irish songs but unfortunately
in his day the revival of Irish music was
not as far advanced as it is today so
that most of the old songs died with
him.
"My first attempts at playing an
instrument was on the piccolo or wooden
flute but in later years I changed to the
tin whistle. A school pal of mine
brought me to a local farmer named John
Donohoe, Lavey, Co. Cavan, who taught
us our first tunes on the piccolo. We
compensated him for his music lessons
by helping him on the farm in the digging
and gathering of potatoes, working at
hay and the making of turf in the bog.
"I remember learning a hornpipe from
John Donohoe which was then popularly
known as the "Blanchardstown Hornpipe"
but which was much akin to the
"Cork Hornpipe." It took about ten
lessons for me to get the tune reasonably
correct and one bright sunny day I went
back to Donohoe on a Friday afternoon,
convinced that I had at last mastered
the tune. John was busy in a field of hay
which was ready for 'rucking'.
"He said to me, 'How are you getting
along with the hornpipe. Have you been
able to master it'
I replied that I thought I had and he
asked me to play it over until he would
hear it. I did so and Donohoe said there
were still a couple of notes not coming
true. He brought me over to his house,
leaving the hay to take care of itself, and
we spent an hour so that I could get the
hornpipe perfected. While we were
inside it started to rain and it rained
almost continuously for a whole
week afterwards with the result that the
field of hay was lost. As he was a small
farmer, Donohoe had to go out to the
market in the Springtime to buy hay.
ONe day I met him coming from town
with a load of hay and in the course of
conversstion I asked him what price was
hay in the market. Without any rancour
in his voice, for he was a dedicated
musician, he replied 'It was the price of
the Blanchardstown Hornpipe'.'
To illustrate his unusual story, Paddy
O'Kane then took down his tin
whistle from a shelf beside the fireplace
and gave an expert rendering of
'The Blanchardstown Hornpipe.'
Reverting to his early youth in a rural
community, Paddy O'Kane said there
were very few organised dance bands in
the country at the time so he played his
piccolo, doubling with the tin whistle,
in local dance halls and schools, but he
finally settled for the tin whistle, which
he found to be the most tuneful instrument,
and the partnership has remained
ever since. When Cornhaltas Ceoltoiri
Eireann was formed in Clones he joined
the organisation with enthusiasm and at
the first of the big Fleadhanna in Clones
he was appointed local publicity officer.
As the movement went from strength
to strength he was appointed
treasurer of Monaghan County Board
CCE, a position which he still holds and
last year was elected Vice-Chairman of
the Ulster Council CCE.
THE VALUE OF COMMUNITY
ENDEAVOUR
"Community endeavour is the only thing
that stands between us and a totally
materialistic society." This was stated by
Labhras 0 Murchu, when he spoke at a
meeting in Cashel recently.
"The importance of community organisations
- cultural, sporting, charitable -
should not be under-emphasised," he said.
"Through their perceptiveness and selflessness
these community bulwarks prevent
the erosion of time-honoured standards
of living, concern and sociability. It is
true that numbers involved may be small
but by regular and constant example they
provide an ideal to be emulated and they,
at least, balance the destructiveness of the
cynic.
"Ireland was always noted for the concern
of neighbour for neighbour; for the
ready hands of a "meitheal" at harvest
time ; for the attentive ear when troubles
were unbearable; for the cheerful giver of
alms; for the open-door when
"cuairtaiocht" was fashionable. Times
have changed through progress - more's
the pity in many ways. If society had more
time for the individual there might be
-less nervous stress and a happier community
all round.
"The community organisations play an
important role in filling the vacuum
created by the changing times. Rural and
urban bodies through their activities bring
people together in a spirit of dependence,
self-reliance and mutual co-operation.
They provide a forum for sharing
problems; they encourage initiative; they
dissipate apathy; and above all they help
in the proper formation of young characters
- one of the greatest investments
in a community's future."
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