CD Notes and Credits for Harping On by Kathleen Loughnane

Irish Traditional Music

BEAN DUBH AN GHLEANNA
(The Dark Woman of the Glen). I first heard this great love song in Kerty when I was 14, being sung by Séamus Begley. It is a great pleasure, just a few years later(!), to have Séamus sing it on the album.

AISLING AN ÓIGFHEAR
A lament written by the blind harper Ruairi Dali Ó Catháin (1550-1660) after the confiscation of Ó Catháin lands in the Plantation of Ulster. A variant of this air was collected by Jane Ross from a blind fiddle player in Limavady, Co. Derry, in 1851. It was appropriate that she should preserve the air for it was to her ancestors the Ó Catháin lands were granted. The tune has evolved to become the well known Derry Air. I am grateful to Sean Ryan for drawing my attention to Jim Hunter’s publication Jane Ross and the Londonderry Air.

LÚCHÁIR AN LÉINN
I was honoured to be commissioned by the National University of Ireland, Galway, to write an anthem to commemorate 150 years of student enrolment (1849-1999). The composition opens with a celebratory march, reflecting the onward momentum of the University’s growth. This is followed by an airy jig, linking with the vibrancy of Galway’s tradition of music. The piece concludes with a slow air, inspired by the peaceful and beautiful setting of NUI, Galway, on the banks of the river Corrib.

This page was last updated on 29 June, 2006

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Album	Harping On	Harp Music
Artist	Kathleen Loughnane	Irish Traditional Music

Musicians
Kathleen Loughnane Harp with Sharon Shannon - accordian (tr. 3,5) Catriona Cannon - accordian (tr. 7) Jacqueline McCarthy - concertina (tr. 7) Martina Goggin - djembe (tr.1,2,7,9,11,12) Dearbhaill Standún - fiddle (tr. 12) Brian McGrath - keyboard (tr.1,2,8) Jimmy Higgins - trumpet (tr.12) Séamus Begley - vocals (tr.6) Sean Ryan - whistle (tr.8) Mary Bergin - whistle (tr.12) Cormac Cannon - whistle (tr. 7,9,11), uilleann pipes (tr.9,11) Alec Finn - guitar (tr.3), bouzouki (tr. all except 2,8,12)

Sleeve Notes
Kathleen Loughnane is widely acclaimed for her arrangement and playing of the music of the Irish harpers. The moods in her playing range from the exuberant lift of her dance music to the haunting beauty of her slow airs. Accompanied here by her friends, Kathleen’s new recording makes a joyful addition to the recorded repertoire of Irish music on the harp. This recording contains arrangements of traditional tunes and Kathleen’s own compositions. In arranging and interpreting the harp music of the 18th century, her most important reference has been the living instrumental tradition, its technique, ornamentation and energy. Her research into traditional and classical sources has informed her own compositions. Based in Galway, Kathleen co-founded the group Dordán, whose distinctive mix of Irish and baroque music has received international acclaim. They have recorded four albums on the Gael Linn and Narada labels. Dordán have received various arts awards, including the National Entertainment Award for traditional music. Kathleen has performed and taught harp in Ireland and at major festivals in the US and in Europe, including the Edinburgh and Copenhagen Harp Festivals. Her arrangements have featured on the Harp Syllabus of the Royal Irish Academy of Music.

1	MARIE’S WELCOME A piece I wrote with thc warmth and generosity of my sister Marie in mind. THE QUEEN OF THE RUSHES A jig popular with pipers.

2	THE QUEEN OF THE WEST I learned this hornpipe from the playing of the great Donegal fiddle player, Tommy Peoples. ELEANOR PLUNKETT A slow air composed by Turlough O'Carolan. Donal O’Sullivan, in The Life Times and Music of an Irish Harper, describes a tragic incident in which thirty of Eleanor’s relatives died at their castle near Robertstown, Co. Meath, leaving Eleanor as the sole survivor of her family. The tune, never resting on the tonic, has a haunting quality. I have chosen to emphasise its quality as a lament.

3	AN CATHAIR GEAL / BRIGHT CITY Walking back into Galway on a sunny day brought to mind The Road to Brightcity. The title of this book of translations of Máirtín Ó Cadhain short stories refers to a name used in Connemara for Galway. I had just finished writing this waltz and the name seemed right. MARGARET O'CARROLL A waltz written by the noted whistle player Sean Ryan in honour of Margaret, wife of one of the powerful chiefs of Offaly. Famous in medieval times for her learning, she hosted gatherings of musicians and poets. Sean lives in her castle at Leap, Co. Offaly, where he continues the tradition of hospitality!

4	LOFTUS JONES Of O'Carolan’s tunes, this is one of my favourites. Written for a patron of that name who lived in north County Sligo.

5	CHACONNE IN C (VARIATIONS 1,2,3) Composed by G. F Handel. AN TONACHÁN TRÁ / THE SANDHOPPER I named this hop jig, or slip jig, having read Cillian Roden’s introduction to The Shores of Connemara. He quotes the naturalist Ed Ricketts: ‘Observers with a trace of sympathy for bohemian life should walk with a flashlight along a familiar surfy beach at half tide on a quiet evening. The huge hoppers will he holding carnival - leaping about with vast enthusiasm and pausing to wiggle their antennae over likely bits of flotsam seaweed” (From The Shores of Connemara by Seamus Mac an Iomaire, translated by Padraic de Bhaldraithe)

6	BEAN DUBH AN GHLEANNA (The Dark Woman of the Glen). I first heard this great love song in Kerty when I was 14, being sung by Séamus Begley. It is a great pleasure, just a few years later(!), to have Séamus sing it on the album.

7	EFTERKALKEN A Swedish waulking tune from the repertoire of the legendary fiddler, Hjort Anders Ollson. I learned it from Mary Staunton, who in turn learned it from an album called The American Swedish Spellmans Trio. BEN HILL I learned this tune from my daughter Catriona who was taught it by the great accordian player Joe Burke.

8	AISLING AN ÓIGFHEAR A lament written by the blind harper Ruairi Dali Ó Catháin (1550-1660) after the confiscation of Ó Catháin lands in the Plantation of Ulster. A variant of this air was collected by Jane Ross from a blind fiddle player in Limavady, Co. Derry, in 1851. It was appropriate that she should preserve the air for it was to her ancestors the Ó Catháin lands were granted. The tune has evolved to become the well known Derry Air. I am grateful to Sean Ryan for drawing my attention to Jim Hunter’s publication Jane Ross and the Londonderry Air.

9	GRÁINNE'S JIG Written by Tommy Peoples. THE WHEELS OF THE WORLD A jig taken from Breandán Breathnach’s Ceol Rinnce na hÉireann (Vols. I and 3).

10	LAMENT FOR Ó DOMHNAILL I learned this tune from the playing of the wonderful Sliabh Luachra fiddle player Pádraig O'Keeffe. Named after Red Hugh O’Donnell, whose departure into exile after the battle of Kinsale, 1601 heralded the demise of the clan system in Ireland. THE THREE SEA CAPTAINS A popular set dance.

11	MARTIN MULHAIRE’S REEL Composed by the well-known accordian player, and former member of the Tulla Ceili Band, who hails from Eyrecourt in east Galway. RÍL AN GABHA / THE BLACKSMITH’S DAUGHTER A reel from Breandán Breathnach’s Ceol Rinnce na hÉireann (Vol.1).

12	LÚCHÁIR AN LÉINN I was honoured to be commissioned by the National University of Ireland, Galway, to write an anthem to commemorate 150 years of student enrolment (1849-1999). The composition opens with a celebratory march, reflecting the onward momentum of the University’s growth. This is followed by an airy jig, linking with the vibrancy of Galway’s tradition of music. The piece concludes with a slow air, inspired by the peaceful and beautiful setting of NUI, Galway, on the banks of the river Corrib.


Credits
Léiriú / Producers: Alec Finn, Kathleen Loughnane Fuaim / Sound Engineering: Paul Mulligan, Absolute Music, Kinvara, Co. Galway Mastered by Robyn Robins at Mid-Atlantic Digital, Enniskillen Nótaí / Notes: Kathleen Loughnane Design: Peggy McConnell, Propeller Cover photograph (musicians): Eamonn Cannon A special thank you to Moya Cannon for her inspired translation of Bean Dubh an Ghleanna, and a big thank you to Paddy Cafferky for my beautiful new harp. Harping arrangements on this recording are published in the book Harping On, available from most shops or by mail order from Ossian Publications, Cork or directly from Reiskmore Music All rights reserved © Kathleen Loughnane 2002 Bright City, The Sandhopper, Marie's Welcome, and Lúcháir an Léinn composed by Kathleen Loughnane. All harp arrangements by Kathleen Loughnane.


This page was last updated on 29 June, 2006