sligo for all-ireland? - Comhaltas Archive

ancient walls of Dublin were echoingand re-echoing as the string and drumsfrom the Orchestra joined in the session,woodwind, horns and trumpets allswung into an amazing fmal 64 bars.The fmal note echoed for a full halfminute as the crowd roared theirappreciation. The lads looked as if theyhad just scored three goals in the fIrstminute on All-Ireland day. " Some Ceil{Band" said my teenage neighbour inreluctant admiration!THE RHYTHM AND SWINGFor the next forty minutes or so we. had a most unusual mixture. Orchestralarrangements of such tunes as "Mna nahEireann", " Skibbereen", "Only ourrivers run free" , "Cuaich{n GhleannNeiflll" alternating with the reels, jigsand the evergreen and beautiful setdance"The Blackbird" in exuberantand memorable arrangements combiningthe Comhaltas band and the Orchestra.I will have to say, in all fairness, that Ihave never heard an Orchestra of artmusicianswork so hard and so successfullyat getting the rhythm and swing ofIrish traditional music. One selection inparticular stands out in memory led byEoin Kenny, piping brilliantly as he wasjoined in turn by flutes, by the remainderof the group and then by the entireOrchestra, with the pipes emerging againand again in brilliant solo pieces beforethe final breath-taking schemozzle . Fairplay, Eoin, you did us proud."GILE MEAR"The shades of night were falling asJames Last announced a wonderful songin Gaelic - " Gile Mear" and SeamusMacMathuna stepped up to the mike asthe pipes played a bold marching intro."Mo Ghile Mear" is a powerful, spiritedsong and piper and singer attacked itwith a vengeance. With each succeedingverse and chorus the build up rose untilfor the final two verses there wascreated an unforgettable crescendo withtrumpets and strings resounding andharmOnising to the words."Seinntear stair ar c1airsigh ceoilIs liontar tainte cairt ar bard"Voices from the group and from thethrong joined in the final chorus of 'Semo laoch mo ghile mear' and I thoughtto myself that the heart of our Dublinis sound yet when sixty or seventythousand people can listen to an oldGaelic song and scream their appreciation.All too soon the Comhaltas stalwartswere on their feet, taking a fmalbow, some looking slightly dazed at theextent of the reception they hadreceived, but all obviously as high as themoon, shook hands with James Last andslipped into the darkness of the wings.James Last and the Orchestra launchedinto their fmal arrangement of tunes,and the crowd loved every minute of itbut for me the most lasting memories ofa wonderful evening will be the range. and lift of the pipes in that brilliant reelsession and the words of an 18thcentury Gaelic song ringing out overDublin's Fair City.MUSIC IS KEY TO OUR NATIONALITY, ,LABHRAS 0 MURCHU" Some of the major world powersmeasure their strength and influence bythe number of people who speak theirlanguage worldwide. In fact , many suchcountries spend millions of pounds eachyear promoting their native language inother countries." This was stated byLabhras b Murchu, Ard stiurthoir ' ofComhaltas when he officially openedthe 1986 Munster Fleadh Cheoil inTipperary Town. Continuing he said :Ireland's appeal abroad is based on thefact that we did not seek to oppressother countries and our record is one ofmissionary zeal and scholarship. Ourlifestyle with its emphasis on traditionalvalues is becoming more and more amodel for other countries who aresuffering the effects of unbridled materialism.It is interesting to note that thenative music of Ireland - a most potentlanguage of friendship - has thousandsof admirers and exponents worldwide.Our music has become the key for manypeople to our uniqueness as a nation. Itis a natural asset which is deserving 'ofmuch more official recognition. This6music is co mparable with any of thegreat art collections in the world but ithas the added attraction that instead ofbeing confined. to a city based repositoryit has the whole country as agallery.In surveys carried out on the tastesof tourists to Ireland, Irish traditionalmusic has a very high priority rating. Itis, therefore , difficult to understandwhy the 14 years old highly successfulNational Entertainment Scheme ofComhaltas 'was axed by the ArtsCouncil. Our movement is perplexedand concerned that our native artformscould be treated thus under a nativegovernment.Our native music has a huge appealfor young people. There are thousandsof boys and girls now playing Irish traditionalmusic-much more than at anytime in Irish history. This phenomenoncould prove very significant in harnessingthe energies of young people to thetask of revitalising our confidence toovercome the many economic, politicaland social problems which beset ustoday.