Uilleann pipes / Bouzouki - Slán Le Maigh

Another collaboration with Mark Blackwell on his pipes and whistle - myself on Greek bouzouki, shruti box and guitar. Bit of an epic by our standards - it's over four minutes long. Hopefully you can stick with it and enjoy...

Some notes from Mark below on this beautiful Irish melody...

'A song composed by Aindrias MacCraith who was a hedge school master in the area of Croom Village, County Limerick. An area steeped in tradition before the ravages of foreign occupation. He was a member of the poetry school located at a tavern owned by another classically educated poet Seán O’Tuama. Seán Ó Tuama was the chief poet here. These poets represented the last of the bardic scholars after the destruction of the Gaelic families during penal times. Both of these poets were educated in the classics at hedge school in Kilmallock and learned English as well as Greek and Latin. O’Tuama set up ‘Cúirt Eigse’ Court of Poetry at his tavern in Croom and even issued warrants for poets to attend meetings and readings. Fenian Lays and tales were told at these meetings and genealogies of families traced. This was in part a resistance in spirit to English occupation and an attempt at preserving the tradition of their bardic culture. An interesting character, Father Nicolas O’Donnell presided as a kind of judge [Breitheamh] at these proceedings and often decided the outcome at this bardic court. He was known as the singing friar travelled from the nearby Franciscan Abbey at Adare. This singing friar had quite a distinguished career himself and was appointed Professor of Philosophy in Louvain and in 1720 was declared ‘Lector Jublitas’. Later he was guardian of the now crumbling Adare Convent 1733 to 1736.
Anyway, Aindrias Mac Craith was described as ‘a wild rake of a man, wine, women and song. A restless genius’. Unfortunately Aindrias got into some trouble with Father O’Higgins the local parish priest after he was found to be seeking the attentions of a local girl (being that he was quite a charmer) and banished him from the parish and his privileged position at the court of poets. Aindrias was profoundly sad over having to leave as he really loved this area of The Maigh as can be seen in the beautiful words composed in his song. He describes the beauty beside the River Maigh, the berries, the branches, the stacks, the estates, the craftsmen, the arts, the stories and the good humoured warriors. This banishment was a huge blow to him. He no longer had his sponsor O’Tuama at the Inn. A great story and always interesting to deep dive into the stories behind the songs and melodies.'

#folkmusic #bouzouki #celticmusic #irishtune #irishtraditionalmusic #shrutibox #uilleannpipes #croom #limerickireland