Music, Memories and Magic at at Great Fleadh Nua 2003
By Domhnall Ó Loinsigh (PRO)
When the curtain came down on the 30th Fleadh Nua it heralded the end of one of the most successful Fleadhanna in Ennis in recent years. Blessed with fine weather and watched by large crowds, this year’s Fleadh Nua will rank with the best, both in music terms and in the way all seventy-two events were organised with precision and efficiency.
This year’s Fleadh Nua was extended to a ten-day festival, to celebrate thirty years in Ennis, a move, which proved to be wise. Prior to the event, the Fleadh Nua website at www.fleadhnua.com received record numbers of visitors (over 200,000 hits were recorded for April and May). All the events during the festival were very well supported and people got the opportunity to savour each activity in a relaxed, pleasant atmosphere.
From the first night, when the Fáilte Concert with Frankie Gavin and Joe Derrane filled Glór with breathtaking, foot-tapping music, it was clear that this Fleadh Nua would provide people with something special, events to remember, moments to savour and memories that would never be forgotten; and so it was.
As the week unfolded, each day brought its own magic moment, its own event, which would be treasured.
Whether it was the intimacy of An Fidil Beo performance, with the fiddles of Connie and Áine Ní Chonaill and the flute playing of Francis O’Connor blending in sweet unison, or the memories of past years conjured up on Film by Fr Joe McMahon.
Additionally free lunchtime concerts featuring musicians such as Martin Connolly, Siobhán Peoples, Chris Droney and his family, Mick Coyne and many other top class traditional performers were held throughout the week. Add to this the well-attended Session workshops each afternoon, and as always Fleadh Nua lived up to its reputation of having something for everyone!
The highlight of the week belong to the Tribute Concert to Jack Mulkere, which filled Glór to bursting point on Friday night and which saw the dark stage light up again and again with Ireland’s finest musicians (Joe Burke, Moloney’s of Ballinakill, Tony McMahon, Steve Cooney, Paddy Canny and Kieran Hanrahan, Peadar O’Loughlin and Ronan Browne - the list goes on and on!) paying tribute to this great teacher of traditional Irish music, who touched the lives of so many. One will not forget the finale to this concert, where over thirty musicians filled the stage with their presence and the auditorium with the most wonderful sound imaginable.
This was not just a tribute concert, it was a celebration, an acclamation, an outburst of joy at the living legacy of Jack Mulkere, with his former pupils and his family saluting him in the way he would have liked best - in music.
The huge pictures, which filled the back of the giant stage in Glór, evoked memories for many in the audience. It was a production par excellence, a credit to the organisers, and an experience that those present will treasure for many years to come.
A monument commemorating Jack Mulkere’s enormous contribution to Irish traditional music, and also many other facets of our distinctive national identity, was unveiled during the Fleadh Nua in Crusheen Village (details are covered elsewhere in this issue of Treoir).
This year’s Scoil Fleadh Nua would have made Jack Mulkere a very proud man, to witness hundreds of young people sitting, listening and learning from the masters, in a variety of instruments. The concept of Scoil Fleadh Nua has been developed significantly in recent years and is now one of the most popular aspects of Fleadh Nua. Passing on the music tradition in a relaxed graded atmosphere is the hallmark of Scoil Fleadh Nua. Having the leading exponents of traditional Irish music available to impart their skills is something to which young musicians aspire and respond in a very vibrant way. This is an important link in the preservation of traditional Irish music, a sharp contrast to the conditions under which Jack Mulkere and other old masters had to conduct their music classes.
Another magic moment was captured at this year’s Seán Reid Memorial Lecture, which celebrated the life and times of the man himself. RTÉ Presenter, Kieran Hanrahan, the Ennis-born musician of Stockton’s Wing fame, gave us a very special insight into the life of Seán Reid. With the help of some unique archival material and a number of Seán’s friends, we were treated to an understanding of a man who made a huge contribution to the development of the fledgling Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann movement and who inspired many with his love and enthusiasm for traditional music. The evening was recorded and will be broadcast on RTÉ Radio in the near future and is a programme not to be missed.
The return of another Ennis-born musician Dr Gearóid Ó hAllmhuráin to Fleadh Nua and his ‘Tracin’ concert with Frenchman Patrick Ourceau in Glór was another moment to be savoured. Described by one audience member as ‘the sweetest music I’ve heard in years’, the concert gave an insight into the work Dr Ó hAllmhuráin has done in promoting Irish Traditional Music abroad. His scholarly approach, combined with his deep traditional background, served to illustrate the huge international impact he has made.
The current All-Ireland Céilí Band Champions, The Ennis Céilí Band, celebrated the launch of their new CD Cois na hAbhna on Saturday night. This young band have brought a new energy to Céilí music, a fact that was evident when they played at the outdoor Seisiún Mór in the Abbey Street car park on Sunday evening. No sooner was the band into its first set of tunes than people on the ground had launched into a Clare Set, to be followed almost immediately by another Set.
This was the essence of Fleadh Nua, people enjoying themselves in a relaxed carnival style atmosphere, having enjoyed the Cultural Parade - An Tóstal Sráide - which many contend was the best in years, with its Robert Emmet bicentenary theme (groups of Wexford Pikemen, Dublin Comórade ‘98 Liberties Group, etc.), its marching bands, its celebration of all that is best in our traditional heritage.
And so another Fleadh Nua has come to a close. The Coiste will now take stock and analysis, before planning ahead for next year. But Fleadh Nua has a wider significance than just a music festival. It makes a huge contribution to the economy of Ennis and the surrounding area each year to an estimated tune of euro 4 million. Indication of numbers this year point to a continued growth of Fleadh Nua and its importance as a visitor attraction is again highlighted by the demand for accommodation over the week. Speaking after the close of Fleadh Nua, PRO Domhnall Ó Loingsigh said that its importance to the town could not be over emphasised. It has played a significant role in enhancing the traditional music image of Ennis, both at National and International level and has helped establish the town as a tourist destination. This role must be further developed he said and Coiste Fleadh Nua are at present drafting a Strategic Plan to develop and further promote the festival in the years ahead.
Fleadh Nua 2003 takes place from Monday 24th to Monday 31st May and a very warm ‘Banner County’ welcome is extended to all who can be with us for an action-packed week of traditional entertainment at its best.
