What's Sligo Fiddling?
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By Denise Foley
When fiddler Tony DeMarco performs at The Irish Center on May 19 (2006), he’ll be playing in what’s known as “Sligo style.” In early spring 2006, Peadar O’Loughlin brought his tuned-down, Clare-style fiddling to the same venue. Which begs the question:
Isn’t fiddling just fiddling?
Not in Ireland, where fiddling has a regional dialect. You’re just as likely to be tapping your foot no matter who’s playing, but you might burn more calories listening to a Sligo fiddler, whose music is bouncy and intricate, with so many twists and turns, dips and whirls, that it’ll remind you of driving on Irish roads, but without the sheep.
It’s probably the style most familiar to Americans because Sligo musicians (names like Michael Coleman, Paddy Killoran, James Morrison, and John Frank Vesey) brought it with them to New York’s Irish dance halls, then sent recordings back home in a kind of musical reverse immigration. This is “you make me feel like dancin’” music.
Get a little taste of some Tony DeMarco tunes now, then come out to find out how a guy who looks like an extra on The Sopranos (he’s Irish on his mother’s side) can really fiddle around.
Uilleann Pipes: No Spit!
First, the pronounciation. Like many Irish words, most of the letters are silent. They’re “iIlen” pipes, an Irish invention that allows the player to save his breath for more important things, like singing or shouting out insults to the audience. The bag is inflated, not by huffing and puffing, but by a small set of bellows that lies around the waist and is operated by the right arm.
Disputed legend has it that uilleann is an ancient Irish word that means “elbow.” They’re quieter, sweeter, and have two more octaves than Irish war pipes or Highland pipes, the kind you see in parades. The uilleann pipes are normally played sitting down indoors. Anyone who has listened to Highland pipes indoors (having become, prematurely, a candidate for a Miracle-Ear) knows why they’re rarely played under a roof. Uilleann pipes, on the other hand, will barely ruffle your ossicles. And ah, it’s a lovely sound.
Come out use those ossicles to hear Dublin-born Ivan Goff on May 19, as he joins fiddler Tony DeMarco at the Irish Center for what’s going to be a fabulous concert. Get a too-small dose of pipes at these two sites, which have sound clips.
Then make plans to attend the concert of County Leitrim uilleann piper Brian McNamara on June 17 at the Coatesville Traditional Irish Music Series. You can hear a few of Brian’s sound clips here.
Tickets are only $15, and there’s a workshop in the planning stages for all you would-be uilleann pipers. For more information, call (610) 486-2220.
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