Piping up for the Pale

At next week’s Temple Bar TradFest, a photographic exhibition will document Dublin’s long, varied and sometimes underrated contribution to the history of traditional music, writes SIOBHÁN LONG

THE URBAN/RURAL divide is at times a nebulous concept, but it always rears its dubious head when conversation turns to traditional music – and the many sources of spring water that feed it. An aficionado of the tradition might wax lyrical about the particular delights of the Sliabh Luachra style, its robust rhythms a boon for dancers, while another might champion the finer points of the Donegal fiddle style. In between, Sligo’s sinuous flute style and Connemara’s sean-nós singing will also come into sharp focus.

But what of the urban traditions that have salted more than a few musical doorsteps in their day? On Leeside, Cork Singers’ Club thrives in the heart of the city, fuelled by a swathe of singers with a hunger for witty lyrics and rhyming slang.

Dublin has spawned more than its share of traditional music and musicians too. For this year’s fifth Temple Bar TradFest, the flute player and former member of the Castle Céilí Band, historian and photographer Mick O’Connor, has compiled a photographic exhibition (assisted by graphic designer Martin Gaffney), which illustrates the continuity of traditional music activity in Dublin from 1900 to 2009. The exhibition includes a wealth of photographs documenting the capital’s traditional music heritage before the phenomenal growth of Irish music in the late 1960s. Taking time out from his Herculean task of compiling a history of the Dublin Pipers’ Club, O’Connor has relished the adventure of distilling Dublin’s musical past into a coherent and substantial visual exhibition.

One of the most striking features of Dublin’s traditional music scene at the beginning of the 20th century was the close proximity of music and politics, which won’t come as a surprise to anyone conversant with the city’s theatrical heritage.

“The origin of the Pipers’ Club is tied up with the National Revival,” O’Connor recounts with customary animation, “which focused interest on all aspects of our culture, including the music. The National Revival, which began during the closing decade of the 19th century, heralded the birth of the Gaelic League, the Feis Ceoil Association and the Pipers’ Club, all Dublin-based. A close examination of the Pipers’ Club minute book (1900-1904) reveals the cross-fertilisation of interests coming together to promote Irish music. Many members had dual membership of the Gaelic League and, later, of the Irish Volunteers. Members of the Pipers’ Club included some ardent nationalists and Gaelic propagandists.”

Perhaps the most famous was Éamonn Ceannt, a leader of the Easter Rising and signatory of the 1916 Proclamation. He was secretary of the Pipers’ Club until he resigned after his marriage to the treasurer, Áine Brennan.

Dublin’s traditional music fraternity didn’t limit its ambitions to the Pale either. In 1936, Seán Dempsey, one of piper Leo Rowsome’s pupils, participated in the World Dance and Music Festival at the Berlin Sportspalast, where he had the dubious distinction of playing before Adolf Hitler, Hermann Goering and Josef Goebbels. O’Connor smiles as he recounts the tale in more detail.

“According to Seán, the other pipers played in the usual fashion, ie standing up. However, as there was no chair available and as uilleann pipers generally play seated, a stormtrooper was ordered to go on his hands and knees. Seán then proceeded to play while seated on the stormtrooper’s back! Apparently Hitler was intrigued and sent for Seán afterwards, and he received a gold fountain pen as a memento. Liam Ó Floinn’s father, Liam Flynn, played the fiddle and accompanied Seán on the trip.”

O’CONNOR’S EXHIBITION documents the peaks and troughs of the tradition’s past, capturing the struggles as well as the triumphs, and the hairpin bends it negotiated en route to the rude state of health in which it finds itself today. For example, he recounts the struggle to ensure the future of our piping tradition.

“Despite the revival of the Pipers’ Club,” he says, “it had a limited support with seldom over 50 members. It had many financial ups and downs. Tommy Reck recalled that while he was secretary in the 1940s, he often had to close the door of the club when other members failed to attend.”

O’Connor casts a wry eye over the some of the more po-faced practices of the past too. “In a picture of the Kincora Céilí Band, who won the All-Ireland Céilí Band Competition in Longford in 1958, there is a notice in the background of the right side of the photo, and when it was enlarged, the following wording appeared: ‘Jitterbugging in this hall is not allowed and anyone who fails to comply with the order will be asked to leave.’ No messing there!”

The cross-generational leadership roles undertaken by key Dublin piping dynasties have played a crucial role in securing Dublin’s traditional music heritage, O’Connor believes.

“Uilleann pipes for many years have been and continue to be a Dublin passion,” he says. “Piping has flourished in Dublin with an abundance of young talented pipers, quite a few of whom have family connections with the Pipers’ Club over several decades. A core of young musicians is studying the recordings and techniques of the previous generations and this is very evident in their playing. The Potts and Rowsome families are still to the fore in piping.”

He is optimistic about the future too. “Over the past few decades, we have witnessed an extraordinary resurgence of interest in Irish traditional music,” he says. “Most commentators would agree that Irish traditional music is saved for posterity. It was never in a healthier state.

“The other aspects of our native culture are also in the ascent. Dancing in its various forms is extremely popular. We now have people of unbounded talent taking an active interest in our music. In the present new generation, many are multi-instrumentalists, more numerous, more talented than any other generation that went before them.”

Traditional Music in Dublin , a photographic exhibition dedicated to the memory of the great Dublin piper, Leo Rowsome, will take place in Temple Bar Gallery and Studios on Jan 27-30 as part of this year’s Temple Bar TradFest. Exhibition times: Wed, Fri, Sat, 11am-6pm; Thur, 11am-7pm. Admission is free. For details of TradFest events, see templebartrad.com

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/features/2010/0125/1224263035406.html

Crowley Pipemakers

Uilleann Pipers and Makers by John Mitchell

The Crowley name is synonymous with the art of uilleann piping and pipe making. It is a name which is highly respected within the world of uilleann piping and is known near and far. Their love for all things Irish and especially the uilleann pipes was the driving force behind all their work. They readily passed on their vast knowledge of piping and pipe making to any up and coming aspiring pipers and pipe makers. This generosity of nature played no small part in keeping the art of uilleann piping and pipe making very much alive in their native city of Cork.

The Crowley brothers came from Saint James Square, Blackpool. Tadhg was born in 1899 and his brother Denis in 1908. Tadhg began to learn the bag pipes at the age of sixteen. He was associated with two pipe bands, The Lee Pipe Band and The Brian Boru Pipe Band. At this time most bands were playing marches and Scottish pipe music. It was Tadhg’s love of his own native music that led him to transcribe all of the 1001 tunes from the famous Chief O’Neill’s book, into bag pipe settings. Original manuscripts of this huge task thankfully still survive at the time of writing this. By the early 1920’s Tadhg had developed an interest in repairing bag pipes and drums for local bands. It was around this time that he began to learn the uilleann pipes, his for love, at the Cork Pipers Club. In 1926, he repaired a set of uilleann pipes for Henry Ford’s father. These pipes are now in the Ford Museum in Dearbourn, Michigan. Henry Ford wrote back to Tadhg, which led to Tadhg working in Ford’s factory for six months.

…the Crowley name is highly respected within the world of uilleann piping and is known near and far…

That same year Tadhg was toying with the idea of going to the States. He had all of his papers ready and his uncle in the States had a job organised for him. One evening he went for a walk up to Sunday’s Well and looked out over the city. His love for his city and music won out, he decided not to go. Instead he decided to go into the uilleann pipe, bag pipe and drum making business full time.

Self taught, he first made a set of uilleann pipes for himself. Denis, his brother, was also interested in piping and pipe making and assisted his brother in the business. They ran their business firstly from their home, and in 1933 they moved it to 10, Merchants Quay, Cork. Due to rapidly growing demand for Crowley uilleann pipes, bag pipes and drums the Crowley brothers opened a workshop in Maylor Street, in the late 1930’s. Their 10 Merchant Quay premises remained as a music shop.

Tommy Clapham, a wood turner, and Denis Clapham, a drum maker (Tadhg’s brothers-in-law), both came to work in the workshop. The workshop had three wood lathes, a metal lathe, a band saw, a circular saw and big stocks of African black wood, Spanish cane and brass for fittings and keys. It was Tadhg Crowley who first used cupped keys on his chanters and regulators. The cupped design gives better sealing as it stops the leather pads from spreading out. This method has since been used by other pipe makers. He got this from clarinet makers.

Tadhg made a set of silver plated pipes for Micheal O Riabhaigh and Moss Kennedy. One of these sets was displayed at a trade fair in the City Hall. These pipes had an interesting feature as one of the drones which could be tuned to the note G, which would then harmonise with tunes being played in the E minor mode on the D chanter.

Tadhg taught both Micheal O Riabhaigh and Moss Kennedy their piping. He also taught Moss the art of uilleann pipe making. Micheal O Riabhaigh went on to revive the Cork Pipers Club in 1963.

Mary (May) McCarthy, piper and dancer, taught Tadhg’s daughters dancing in the Crowley home in the later 1940’s. Sean Wayland (chief founder of the Cork Pipers Club) was a good friend of Tadhg’s, and kept in regular contact with him by letter. A photograph of Sean always hung in the Crowley home.

Throughout his life Tadhg readily promoted all things Irish, especially our music and dance. He regularly played at dances at “An Grianan” and the A.O.H. Hall. Tadhg died all too young at the age of fifty two (1899 - 1952), leaving a young family behind. Denis, his brother, ably assisted him throughout his musical instrument making career. Denis continued to make uilleann pipes up until his death in 1966. The Crowley name is still strongly associated with music in Cork. Michael Crowley, Tadhg’s son, runs their family business from their premises in McCurtain Street, Cork.

The Cork Pipers Club is indebted to, and would like to thank the Crowley family, who so selflessly promoted the art of uilleann piping and uilleann pipe making in Cork during those lean years of the 1930’s, 1940’s and 1950’s when our Club was not functional.

Veronica Ryan,

Secretary,

Cork Pipers Club