Contents - ICTM Ireland

Spéis
BULLETIN OF THE INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL FOR TRADITIONAL MUSIC IRELAND
Welcome to the first volume of Spéis – the online
bulletin of the International Council for Traditional
Music, Ireland. The bulletin will be published twice
a year and will contain lots of up to date information
on the research activities and interests of ICTM
members as well as highlighting upcoming events
and opportunities. As with all the activities of ICTM
Ireland, we encourage you to become involved in
this publication by keeping us informed of your
work on a regular basis.
I’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone
who attended and who contributed to the success of
the recent ICTM conference (Ensemble: Playing
Together) in Limerick. There has been lots of ICTM
activity since then – work is progressing on the online journal which will be launched towards the end
of the year, plans are underway for participation in
the Festival of World Cultures in July, and a number
of research groups are compiling information for the
website www.ictm.ie. Thanks to all the committee
members and sub-group members for their
continued commitment; a big thanks to Thomas
Johnston who has done a great job on designing and
developing Spéis.
MAY 2010
Images from the ICTM Ireland
Annual Conference 2010
Contents
Conference / Festival of World Cultures
2
An Insight Track
3
Young Researcher Project
4
Research in Ireland
5
Remember, ICTM Ireland is for and about you, the
members, so please do come forward with any
suggestions as to how to make it into the valuable
resource and network it has the potential to become.
ICTM Ireland Member Events Listings
6
Recent & Forthcoming Publications
8
Recently Completed Theses
10
Upcoming Conferences / Funding
11
Liz Doherty, Chair ICTM Ireland
Call for Contributions to Spéis
12
!
Compiled and Edited by
Thomas Johnston and Liz Doherty
Contact Spéis at [email protected]
Spéis
Recent and Upcoming Activities of ICTM Ireland
ICTM Ireland 5th Annual Conference 2010
A selection of images from the annual ICTM Ireland Conference held on the 26th-28th February at
Mary Immaculate College, University of Limerick. This year’s conference theme was ‘Ensemble:
Playing Together’. Our Keynote Speaker was Professor Tim Cooley, (University of California, Santa
Barbara), Editor of the SEM Journal Ethnomusicology and Author of key research text "Shadows in
the Field" (2008). He was introduced by Professor Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin (Irish World Academy of
Music and Dance) at our keynote event held at the Georgian House, Pery Square on, Saturday Feb
27th. The keynote was followed by a conference dinner and session at Dolan's, Limerick. We were
also joined this year by distinguished scholars Professor Marcello Sorce Keller (Musical
Anthropology of the Mediterranean) & Dr Britta Sweers (Electric Folk: The Changing Face of English
Traditional Music) who will contribute towards and review our proceedings. For further images and
details of the 5th ICTM Ireland Annual Conference visit
Dr. Catherine Foley & Dr. Steve Coleman
Prof. Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin
Shannon Burns & Prof. Marcello Sorce Keller
Prof. Tim Cooley & Dr. Britta Sweers
ICTM Ireland at the Dun!Laoghaire Festival of World Cultures
This year, for the first time, ICTM Ireland will have a presence at
the Dún Laoghaire Festival of World Cultures, which takes place
on July 23rd-25th. (see: http://www.festivalofworldcultures.com/).
This is the largest 'world music' event in Ireland, and has grown in
popularity since it began 10 years ago.
This year ICTM Ireland have been invited to hold a public
discussion forum event at the Kingston Hotel, Dun Laoghaire on Saturday
24th July. A panel of ICTM Ireland members are invited to present their
research and answer questions regarding their work. At the Festival of
World Cultures event we aim to strike a balance between research
carried out within and outside Ireland and we will encourage visiting
musicians to sit in and respond to the presentations.
If you would like to participate in this discussion at the Festival of
World Cultures send an outline of your research presentation (100 word)
by 1st June to Tony Langlois at: [email protected]
2
ICTM Ireland
16
OCTOBER
SATURDAY
in association with
DANCE RESEARCH FORUM IRELAND
THE
present
INSIGHT TRACK
hosted by
The Irish World Academy of Music and Dance
University of Limerick
ICTM Ireland in association with Dance Research Forum Ireland this year invite
postgraduate students involved in study and research in the disciplines of music,
song or dance in Ireland to attend and participate in The Insight Track, a one day
event taking place in the new Irish World Academy of Music and Dance building at
the University of Limerick on Saturday 16th October.
The Insight Track is an event where experienced facilitators will deliver workshops
designed to support researchers in various interrelated areas of their research and
working lives. Participants in this year’s The Insight Track workshops will be
introduced to the Alexander Technique and its benefits in terms of some of the
most common difficulties experienced by research students from the anxiety often
associated with performing, presenting, and public speaking, to the discomfort of
sitting in front of a computer for many hours. Another workshop will focus on ways
of improving one’s writing skills and strategies, finding satisfaction in engaging in
regular and productive writing, and integrating writing into one’s working life. There
will be much opportunity for discussion, reflection, playing, singing and dancing
throughout the day. Full details of the event, including information on registration,
schedule etc. will be available soon at www.ictm.ie and
www.danceresearchforumireland.com
For further information on The Insight Track contact ICTM Ireland student
representative Thomas Johnston ([email protected]) or DRFI Student
Representative Breandán de Gallaí ([email protected]).
3
16/10/10
HOSTED BY
IRISH WORLD ACADEMY OF MUSIC AND DANCE
UNIVERSITY OF LIMERICK
STARTS Keep up to date with The Insight Track at: www.ictm.ie
10:30 AM
and www.danceresearchforumireland.org
Spéis
Upcoming Activities of ICTM Ireland
This year ICTM Ireland invite post-primary music teachers and their
students to participate in Listen Local, the ICTM Ireland Young Researcher Project 2011. Listen Local
will focus on ‘listening’ through post-primary music curricula. The project is open to all music students
in all years and ideal for Transition Year and Leaving Certificate Applied students. Listen Local will
provide an opportunity for students to develop their listening and research skills as well as knowledge
of music in their community. Any music teachers who are interested in taking part in Listen Local
please can contact Avril McLoughlin at [email protected]. Participating music students will become
members of a dedicated website where they can upload materials relating to their projects and discuss
their projects with participating students from other schools. Each student group will work towards
submitting aspects of their projects at the end of each stage (see below: What is involved?).
THE INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL FOR TRADITIONAL MUSIC, IRELAND
invite you and your music students to participate in the ICTM Ireland
YOUNG RESEARCHER PROJECT
What is ICTM Irel
and?
2011
The Internationa
l Council for Tradit
ional Music is one
largest and most
of the
international org
anisations for the
study of
traditional music
and dance in cultur
e. ICTM Ireland
33 National Com
is one of
mittees of ICTM and
as such, brings a
focus to the activit
local
ies of ICTM. While
Irish traditional
at the very core of
mu
sic is
ICTM Ireland, the
wide range of mu
played, studied, and
sic
researched on the
island of Ireland
particular releva
has a
nce for the organi
sation.
What is the Young Researcher Pro
ject?
• The focus of the 2011 Project is ‘Liste
ning through the post-primary music
curricula’
• Students develop their listening and
research skills, as well as knowledge
of
music making in their community
• The project is open to ALL years
• It is particularly suitable as a Trans
ition Year project
• Students work in groups and produ
ce a poster for the chance to prese
nt their
project at the 2011 ICTM Ireland
Annual Conference (date & venue
TBC)
What is involved?
• Listen Local will take place over 12-we
eks where YOU choose which days
to work on the
project with your students. The
project will be divided into three
stages:
1. Learn to Listen, Listen to Learn
(4-weeks pre-Halloween mid-term
2010)
2. Research Skills for the Beginner
Researcher (4-weeks post-Hallow
een mid-term 2010)
3. Poster Preparation (4-weeks post-C
hristmas 2011)
What support do I get from
ICTM Ireland?
• Dedicated ICTM Young Researcher
website where
your students can discuss their proje
cts with
participating students from other
schools
• Teacher section with resources uploa
ded every week
• Telephone support to occur at vario
us intervals over
the course of the project
4
Contact Avril McLoughlin at:
[email protected] for further
information or if you would like to take
part in the ICTM Ireland
Young Researcher Project 2011
Visit www.ictm.ie
Spéis
Research in Ireland at www.ictm.ie
In each edition of Spéis we focus on the research
interests of one of ICTM Ireland’s members who will be
included in the Research in Ireland section of the ICTM
Ireland website. To give you a preview of this information
portal, we are thankful to Deirdre Ní Chonghaile for
providing the following abstract of her paper which she
presented at the British Forum for Ethnomusicology
Conference, Oxford University on the 10th April 2010.
“No man is an island”: some ethical challenges of
doing fieldwork at home in a small community
In this paper, I reflect on the experience of researching and
representing the indigenous musical life, past and present,
of a small and, indeed, marginalised community to which I
belong. The physical, economic and cultural
marginalisation of this small community is important
because it makes locals protective of what many of them
view as an endangered way of life. This attitude of
protectionism affects my fieldwork when locals censor the
musical knowledge, or knowledge about music, that they
share with me and with my recording machines. However,
this paper is more concerned with the way in which I find
myself censoring my representations of local musical
knowledge.
The protective reflex that causes me to censor my
representations stems not just from my interest in protecting
and promoting music that interests and stimulates me; it
also stems from my identity as a member of the local
community. This identity means I share many of the
concerns locals have for their way of life. It also means
that, as a local and as a resident, I am subject to local
social mores. I find, therefore, that this identity has a major
effect on how I represent local music and musicians. The
impulse of self preservation is strong: I have neglected to
reveal some uncomfortable realities of local life because to
do so, while others keep up appearances, could potentially
lead to my being ostracised for undermining the community.
In this paper, I consider the ethical dilemma of fudging the
facts by omission, of tempering musical knowledge. This
leads us to question the purpose of ethnomusicology. What
are our responsibilities to the music we try to represent and
to the people who create it, people who feel a sense of
responsibility and ownership towards it and to whom we are
indebted for helping us? Do we end up simply representing
the truths we can bear to live with? How do I reconcile my
desire to represent accurately the truth of local music with
my desire to support the local musical tradition and the
marginalised community that tries to maintain it? By
bringing this paper to Oxford, I hope to gain some
international perspective on these questions.
5
Deirdre Ní Chonghaile's PhD research concerns the
traditional music of her home, the Aran Islands. A
writer, lecturer, broadcaster and fiddle-player, she is
involved with the local folklore project Bailiúchán
Béaloideas Árann. Her research resulted in the 12-part
radio series Bailiúchán Bhairbre (2006-2007) for RTÉ
Raidió na Gaeltachta.
Francis Ward (University of Limerick) is
currently working on the ICTM Ireland
Research in Ireland page. Research in Ireland
will serve as an information portal for research
being carried out on the island of Ireland in
Irish musics and ethnomusicology. The page
will contain an overview of research being
carried out on the island of Ireland at the
present time, a database of postgraduate
students at Masters and PhD level and an
overview of their research topics, papers
presented & published etc., a database of all
‘professional’ researchers and a brief overview of
their research interests and publications, and
links to any funding available. If you would
like to be included on the Research in Ireland
page contact Francis Ward at:
[email protected]
Spéis
ICTM Ireland Member Events Listings
Blas International Summer School of Irish
Traditional Music and Dance is an
If you are involved with an event that may be of
interest to other ICTM Ireland members please
forward material (250 word) and images to Thomas
Johnston at [email protected] by September 10th
internationally accredited summer school hosted
annually by the Irish World Academy of Music and
Dance and set on the campus of the University of
Limerick, Ireland. In its 14th year, Blas 2010 will run
from June 21st through July 2nd.
Blas has a well developed ethos where access to the
best of tuition from some of the most renowned
musicians, singers and dancers is combined with
classes and lectures given by experts in the academic
study of our traditions. This follows the overriding ethos
of all Irish World Academy of Music and Dance
endeavours, where performance and reflection are
seen as equal of stature and mutually beneficial. At
Blas, Master classes in instrument/voice specific
technique and repertoire are supplemented by
lectures, illustrated talks, workshops and other
activities that help to give the broadest possible
understanding of the tradition as well as advancing
practical skills.
This years Blas sees Dónal Lunny continue as artist-inresidence where he will be joined by the Academy’s
most recently-announced resident Martin Hayes.
Other tutors include Colin Dunne (dance), Mícheál Ó
Súilleabháin (piano), Muireann Nic Amhaloibh (voice),
Siobhán Peoples (fiddle), Derek Hickey, (box),
Breandán de Gallaí (dance) Niall Keegan (flute),
Catherine Foley, Mats Melin and Orfhlaith Ní Bhriain
(dance), John Carty (fiddle) and Sandra Joyce (voice),
Geraldine Cotter (piano), Eileen O’ Brien (fiddle), Jim
Higgins (bodhrán), and Ciarán Coughlan (piano).
National Folklore Collection UCD and used by kind permission of Dr. Ríonach Uí Ógáín, Director of the archive
Joe Heaney Irish Song Man
Bright Star of the West
Bright Star of the West is a project funded by IRCHSS
and supported by NUI Galway and the Joe Heaney
Archive, University of Washington, Seattle. Beginning
in September 2009 and continuing until August 2010,
outcomes of the project will include a book, to be
published by Oxford University Press, on Joe Heaney’s
work and life by Lillis Ó Laoire, NUI Galway and Sean
Williams, a former student of Heaney, of The
Evergreen State College, Olympia, Washington. A
postdoctoral researcher at NUI Galway, Dr. Virginia
Stevens Blankenhorn, has been working on digitising
and transcribing the Heaney material which amounts to
over 300 sound files of singing, seanchas and some
lilting. Some visual materials will also be included.
Micheál Mac Lochlainn and Marian Nic an Iomaire
(also NUI Galway) have been engaged in creating and
designing an information database and website and Dr.
Blankenhorn has travelled to the University of
Washington to examine and copy some of the original
tapes. The website will function as a teaching and
research resource for students and will be accessible
to the public. For further information on Bright Star of
the West contact: Lillis Ó Laoire - Léachtóir, Roinn na
Gaeilge, Scoil na dTeangacha, na Litríochtaí agus na
gCultur, Fón: +353 91 495709, Facs: +353 91 494522
An exciting development for Blas 2010, is that Paul
Brady, one of Ireland’s most enduringly popular singersongwriters recently announced his first-ever music
bursary, the Paul Brady Blas Scholarship. This will
provide
!20,000 in endowment funds over three
years, offering 25 places for deserving musicians &
dancers on the Blas programme. Paul Brady will also
be joining the summer school to deliver the ‘Francis
Roche’ lecture on the afternoon of Thursday 1st July.
Further information on the summer school, updates on
tutors, concerts, seminars and performances at Blas
2010 is available from: Ernestine Healy – Director of
Blas International Summer School of Irish Music and
Dance, Irish World Academy, University of Limerick,
Ireland. Telephone: 061-202653
Email:[email protected] website: www.blas.ie
6
Spéis
ICTM Ireland Member Events Listings
Meitheal Summer School started out in 2004 as
an experiment based on Folkworks residential
Summer School in Durham in the North of England.
Meitheal has become a fixture on the Irish Traditional
calendar with the summer school combining the
familiar concept of master classes in instrument
specific technique and repertoire, as found in many
summer schools. This is also supplemented with
classes in composition and arrangement, lectures,
illustrated talks, workshops and other activities that
help to give the broadest possible understanding of
the tradition as well as advancing practical skills. The
lectures and workshops offer intense engagements
on a wide variety of music, song, and dance subjects,
from multiple perspectives, on the ways in which
‘Tradition’ is conceived, performed, practiced,
contested, and lived.
Lúnasa Lá Nua launch at the Button
Factory,Temple Bar (Dublin) May 27th
One of the greatest attractions of Meitheal is its
collaboration with other festivals and organisations
such as Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann, National
Concert Hall, Joseph Browne Spring School, Corofin
Trad fest, Ennis Trad Fest, the Nyah fest, Kilfenora
fest, and Féile Lios Tuathail who provide
opportunities for the Meitheal students. This year for
the first time there will be solo and group
performances by Meitheal students at The World
Fleadh.
ICTM Ireland member Tracy Crawford of Bally-O
Promotions has been busy recently with the release
of Irish traditional music band Lúnasa’s highly
anticipated new album Lá Nua (New Day). The new
album, their first studio effort in four years, follows the
critically acclaimed 2006 release Sé, which received
worldwide praise; “The material, both original and
traditional, becomes a springboard for explorations
that go beyond folk, dipping toes into chamber music,
jazz and beyond.” NPR, USA.
For Further information on Meitheal, write to
Ernestine Healy or Gary Shannon at
[email protected] or phone 0876704465
(meitheal phone).
Lúnasa will embark on a U.S. tour in support of Lá
Nua beginning April 8th and tour Ireland and the U.K.
in May. The new album, their first studio effort in four
years, follows the critically acclaimed 2006 release
Sé, which received worldwide praise; “The material,
both original and traditional, becomes a springboard
for explorations that go beyond folk, dipping toes into
chamber music, jazz and beyond.” NPR, USA.
Lúnasa will embark on a U.S. tour in support of Lá
Nua beginning April 8th and tour Ireland and the U.K.
in May.
Please visit www.lunasa.ie for tour dates and more
information contact: Tracy Crawford, Bally-O
Promotions
M - + 353 (0) 86 852 0975.
E - [email protected]
Visit
7
for more ICTM Ireland member events
Spéis Recent & Forthcoming Publications by ICTM Ireland members
January 2009, after 23
years of being safely
packed away, Karen
Klausner Chute took
the taped interviews
and travel journal from
her trip to Ireland and
wrote about her
adventures and the
collected stories the
Clancy and Makem
families and friends
shared with her.
Memories from Family
and Friends is the
adventure of a single woman following fate’s “nudges”
that led her to Paddy Clancy’s house where he told her
of the struggles he and his brother Tom had in a new
country, America. To Peg Clancy’s house, where she
speaks of the family life they grew up in and her big
brothers, Paddy and Tom and the little dreamer brother,
Liam. To a shy and candid talk with Tommy Makem
about his life. To Northern Ireland where the warmth of
Mona, Nancy and Jack Makem’s stories of their little
brother Tommy and mother Sarah Makem where in
deep contrast to the cold occupied, “troubled” streets of
their home town. For fear of the stories being lost
forever, she shares them now. You don’t have to be a
fan or be Irish to appreciate Karen’s adventures
collecting the stories of these four remarkable men,
Paddy, Tom and Liam Clancy and Tommy Makem.
Published by: Wandering Rose Publishing (2009)
Focus: Irish
Traditional Music by
Sean Williams is an
introduction not only to
the instrumental and
vocal traditions of the
Republic of Ireland and
Northern Ireland, but
also to Irish music in the
context of the Irish
diaspora.
Ireland's size relative to
Britain or to the
mainland of Europe is
relatively small, yet its
impact on musical
traditions beyond its shores has been significant.
Intended for non-Irish readers, Focus: Irish Traditional
Music offers a perspective on Irish music rarely seen: the
interweaving of music with dance, film, language, history,
and other interdisciplinary features of Ireland and its
diaspora.
Part I: Irish Music in Place and Time, focuses on the
development of musical traditions and their linkages with
historical trends and events in Ireland.
Part II: Music Traditions Abroad and at Home, locates
Irish music within a larger 'Celtic' music framework,
including the North American Irish diaspora, and focuses
on the instruments and instrumental forms.
Part III: Focusing In, closely examines vocal music in
Irish-Gaelic and English, and in doing so reveals the core
values of a global marketing phenomenon.
The accompanying CD presents both traditional and
contemporary sounds of Irish music at home and abroad.
Published by: Routledge (2009)
Hill, Juniper. 2009. “Rebellious Pedagogy, Ideological Transformation, and Creative Freedom in Finnish Contemporary Folk
Music.” Ethnomusicology Vol. 53 (1): 86-114.
Hill, Juniper. 2009. “The Influence of Conservatory Folk Music Programmes: The Sibelius Academy in Comparative Context.”
Ethnomusicology Forum Vol. 18 (2): 205-239.
Hill, Juniper. 2009. “Transformative Teaching Methods in Finnish Folk Music and Wilderness Education.” Musik im
interkulturellen Dialog: Festschrift für Max Peter Baumann, edited by Karoline Oehme and Nevzat Çiftçi. Bamberg, Germany:
Forschungsstelle für fränkische Volksmusik, pages 91-102.
Langlois, Tony. 2009 “Music and Politics in North Africa”.,Chapter in Music and the Play of Power: Music, Politics and
Ideology in the Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia. Laudan Nooshin (ed), Ashgate Press.
Langlois, Tony. 2009 “Pirates of the Mediterranean : Moroccan Music Video and Technology”. In journal Music, Sound and the
Moving Image, 3:1, pp71-85.
Contact ICTM Ireland at [email protected] if you would like to include recent or forthcoming publications
in the October edition of Spéis
8
Spéis
Recently Completed Theses
Unsealing the Lips of Old Country Folk: An Analysis of john
Doherty’s ‘The Four Posts of the Bed’ by Conor Caldwell (Bmus, MA)
Queens University Belfast
John Doherty (1900-1980) is one of the most important and influential fiddle players in the history of Irish
music. His recordings have impacted upon the way that we view Irish music today, not only through the sheer
virtuosity of his technique and style, but also through the significant contribution he made to Irish music through
the organic assimilation of Scottish dance music into his repertoire. His fluent interpretation of Irish and
Scottish piping music (he was descended from An Píobaire Mór, the great Turloch Mac Sweeney (c.
1831-1916), from the parish of Gweedore, Co.Donegal), coupled with an insatiable appetite for the music of
the celebrated Scottish violinist James Scott Skinner (1843-1927) pushed fiddle playing in a new and exciting
direction.1 Doherty was well versed in the music of Michael Coleman (1891-1945), Paddy Killoran (1904-1965)
and other notable recording Irish musicians of the era, ably demonstrating all of Coleman’s intricate variations
in the canonical reel “Bonny Kate” on several different recordings.2 Doherty’s style was unique, although firmly
rooted in his family’s mould as borne out by his brothers Mickey and Simon, who were both recorded by
collectors. At the heart of a vast repertoire was a stable diet of local tunes (including highlands, barndances,
lancers, and a smattering of polkas), all played with an intricate knowledge of the dance tradition.3
“The Four Posts of the Bed” is a relatively common tune in Donegal, and is still widely played, usually by a solo
performer.4 Both John and Mickey Doherty recorded the tune for collectors, with John’s versions collected by
Peter Kennedy (The Pedlar’s Pack. Folktrax – 074, 1952) and by Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann (John Doherty.
CCÉ, 1974), and Mickey by the Irish Folklore Commission (The Gravel Walks. IFC, 1949). The tune is unique
in the repertoire for its percussive use of the fiddle and bow, coupled with the employment of left hand
pizzicato. A lengthy narrative is attached to the tune, although its validity (like most such stories) can be
questioned, but not totally discounted. The first recording of John’s version of the story was made by Peter
Kennedy on Folktrax 074 - The Pedlar’s Pack:
“[Did you hear the story] about the poor aul travelling fiddler that was going about one time? And he came to a
house, and … he asked about stopping to the morning or somehow like that. And the woman, there was a
spare bed in the house, and it was…an aul fashioned kind of a bed, and it was made, in the first time, too high.
But they put this poor aul fiddler into the bed…and he tumbled over too far out and he came across the
bedstock (bedframe) and fell, and he got some of the limbs hurted (sic) - I think it was a knee he got hurted –
but he had to be laid up for some days, and he took down the fiddle and he composed this tune, and he called
it the four posts of the bed. And you’ll hear throughout the tune the tippin’ of the heel of the bow on the fiddle
that…shows you that each tip that I give on the fiddle means a post of the bed”.
1
The Doherty family tree is traced by Alan Feldman and Eamon O’Doherty in The Northern Fiddler. (Belfast: Blackstaff, 1979). The
book also contains numerous transcriptions of Doherty’s music (and that of many other fiddlers from Tyrone and Donegal), as well as
extensive biographical material.
2 See: Conor Caldwell “Banished to the Shed: John Doherty and Bonnie Kate” in Ulster Folklife. Forthcoming 2011.
3 For more information see: Damhsaí Cúplaí Thír Chonail DVD Dir. Eoghan Mac Giolla Bhríde. Prod. Ciaran O’Maonaigh. Cairdeas na
bhFidiléirí, 2007.
4 Peter Campbell of Glenties and Martin McGinley of Raphoe are two players in particular who have made this tune their own in recent
years. Generally speaking, in sessions, an older player or listener will request that one of the younger players in the group performs the
tune, but occasionally communal performances occur.
An extract from ICTM Ireland member Conor Caldwell’s recently completed MA thesis “Style and Form
in the Music of John Doherty: Volume 1” awarded by Queen’s University in November 2009, under the
supervision of Dr Martin Dowling. This extract from the first chapter, dealing with the Doherty family
repertoire, examines the tune “The Four Posts of the Bed”, and also discusses some of the difficulties
that have faced folk music collectors in the twentieth century. Click HERE if you would like to read the
article in its entirety or visit Spéis at:
Conor Caldwell is currently writing a Phd thesis at
Queen's University, Belfast, on the music of John Doherty. Contact Conor at: [email protected]
9
Spéis
Recently Completed Theses
Towards a regional understanding of Irish traditional music
by Daithí Kearney
School of Music and School of Geography, University College Cork
The geography of Irish traditional music is a complex, popular and largely unexplored element of the narrative
of the tradition. Geographical concepts such as the region are recurrent in the discourse of Irish traditional
music but regions and their processes are, for the most part, blurred or misunderstood. This thesis explores
the geographical approach to the study of Irish traditional music focusing on the concept of the region and, in
particular, the role of memory in the construction and diffusion of regional identities.
This is a tripartite study considering people, place and music. Each of these elements impacts on our
experience of the other. People in some places construct or reinforce their identity through their use of music
and the celebration of musicians from that place. The thesis challenges conventional discourse on regional
styles that construct an imagined pattern of regions based on subtle musical differences that may, though are
not always, shared by people in that region and focuses on the social networks through which the music is
disseminated. The thesis also challenges the abandonment of regional styles and the concept of regions in
understanding the complex geographies of Irish traditional music. It seeks to find a middle ground between
discourse analysis, musical analysis, the experience of music and place, and the representation of music and
place.
The dissertation is divided into three parts. Part one considers the development of music geography, noting
and critiquing the abandonment of useful paradigms in both geography and ethnomusicology in search of new
ways of understanding. Of particular interest is the concept of the region but it also considers the study of
landscape and the humanist approach in cultural geography. The second part focuses on the discourse and
study of regions in Irish traditional music and the various agents and processes that shape the concept of the
region in Irish traditional music. The final part presents a case study of Sliabh Luachra combining and applying
the various perspectives and paradigms drawn from geographical, ethnomusicological and anthropological
sources. It attempts to generate an understanding of Sliabh Luachra as a region in the Irish traditional music
narrative that is based on a combination of musical, socio-cultural and locational/environmental factors.
The central issue of concern within this thesis is the importance of location, the role of distance and patterns of
diffusion. The cultural region is based on a series of social networks and interlinked spaces in which culture
evolves and is transmitted or diffused. Greater communications, recording technologies and increased travel
and tourism have played an important role in negating the significance of distance on cultural difference yet
distance remains a significant factor in the development and evolution of local and regional cultures. While
elements of the soundscape and the practices of music making may have become more homogenised, the role
of individuals and the individuality of each performance and performance context reinforces the uniqueness of
each region. The concept of a sense of place is integral to the narratives of Irish traditional music. The
combination of music and place in the design of heritage, the celebration of place within the Irish music
tradition and the development of places of pilgrimage present new contexts for a regional understanding of
Irish traditional music.
An extract from ICTM Ireland member Daithí Kearney’s recently completed PhD Thesis “Towards a
regional understanding of Irish traditional music”. Daithí has an ongoing research in interest regarding
monuments to Irish traditional music and Irish traditional music generally, especially the connections
between music and place. Click HERE if you would like to read the article in its entirety or visit Spéis at:
Daithí can be contacted at [email protected]
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Spéis
Conference:
Date:
Place:
Upcoming Conferences
41st World Conference of the ICTM
13-19 July 2011
St John's, Newfoundland
Visit http://www.mun.ca/ictm
Conference:
Date:
Place:
National Graduate Conference for Ethnomusicology
“Doing Ethnomusicology: Implications and Applications”
20-22 September 2010
IMR, London.
This three-day conference will be hosted by the Institute of Musical Research (http://music.sas.ac.uk/) in
central London and supported by the British Forum for Ethnomusicology (http://www.bfe.org.uk/).
Conference:
Date:
Place:
Current Trends in Ethnomusicological Research
The 2nd International Workshop in Hanover Hildesheim
23-27 June 2010
University for Music and Drama, Hanover, Germany
Research Funding Opportunities
Visit
for various research funding agencies which support research in music and dance
in Ireland. If you are aware of other sources of funding email details to [email protected]. As well as the
following funding bodies, your university, institution or organisation may also offer funding opportunities
that can support you in your research.
Culture Ireland is the Irish State Agency that promotes the best of Ireland’s arts and
culture internationally and assists in the development of Ireland’s international
cultural relations. Visit www.cultureireland.gov.ie/
The Fulbright Programme was established in Ireland in 1957 to provide
scholarships to Irish citizens to lecture, research or study in the United States and
for the US citizens to lecture, research or study in Ireland. Visit www.fulbright.ie
Arts organisations, artists, and groups (i.e. a non-profit organisation or community
group or those working in the health and education sector) may apply for financial
support from the Arts Council. Visit www.artscouncil.ie
The Research Council for the Humanities and Social Sciences operates a suite of
interlinked Research Schemes. The IRCHSS Government of Ireland PostGraduate Scholarships and Government of Ireland Post-Doctoral Fellowships fund
research at pre- and post-doctoral levels. Visit www.irchss.ie
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Contribute to the October 2010 edition of
Spéis
BULLETIN OF THE INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL FOR TRADITIONAL MUSIC IRELAND
Send material (including images) to Thomas Johnston at: [email protected] by
September 10th under one of the following headings:
• Research in Ireland (max 400 word)
• ICTM Ireland Member Events Listings (max 250 word)
• ICTM Ireland Member Reviews (max 500 word)
• Recent & Forthcoming Publications by ICTM Ireland members (max 250 word)
• Recently Completed Theses (max 500 word)
• Upcoming Conferences / Funding Opportunities (max 250 word)
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