This article is from page 31 of the 2008-01-22 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 31 JPG
THE FUTURE of Irish traditional music in East Clare is secure and well, according to Tulla concertina player and teacher, Mary McNama- ra. And Mary should know, having taught concertina and fiddle in the area for the last 12 years.
Now some of her young musicians Mary are to take centre-stage at the Comhaltas HQ, Cois na hAbhanna in Ennis for a seisitin that will showcase East Clare talent.
The 20 youngsters — aged 10 to 18 — will play the venue at the invitation of Comhaltas on January 25, and a fabulous night of music, song, poetry and dancing is promised.
“We have such a wealth of talent
here that I could have picked more than the 20 needed for the pro- gramme,’ said Mary.
Since before Christmas, the music students have been practicing the tunes, solos, duets and songs they will perform on the night.
‘We have a very varied programme including a couple of O’Carrolan ar- rangements. They had to learn the tunes and that comes naturally to these youngsters, but they also had to learn to play on a group Seetting or with other musicians. But they’re all very talented and capable.”
The seisitin is an informal evening, more like a gathering by the fireside of a home or cosy pub.
As well as the youngsters under Mary’s direction, students from the
Anne Burke school of traditional dancing in Scariff will perform.
Comhaltas have a programme of seisiun nights planned for their newly refurbished HQ, which gives musicians a platform to perform and families a venue to share the pleasure of music at a reasonable price.
An adult ticket for the evening costs just €5 and a family ticket can be bought for €10.
Mary has been preparing students for competitions and performances for many years. Her daughter, Sor- chadha Costello, won the All Ireland Under 12 fiddle title in August last year and her son, Padraig plays piano with the seisiun group.
As well as Mary, Mike Willis teaches piano, Conor Keane teaches
accordian and John Kelly teaches flute.
The evening fits in with the ethos that Mary likes to bring to her les- sons.
“T want the children not just to learn the tunes themselves but to en- joy their music and to be aware of the rich heritage they have in learning the tunes and the style of East Clare. And through evenings like this, they also learn that the greatest joy in per- forming is the pleasure they bring to an audience through their music,” she said.