Concert Review—

Another Fine Show By Sliabh Notes

By Andrew Carey

Newtown is a very attractive town. As proof, the band Sliabh Notes, three of the most beloved musicians from that corner of southwestern Ireland called Sliabh Luchra (Irish Gaelic for “Mountain of Rushes”), played Newtown Meeting House on Thursday of last week, nearly 14 months after their last appearance there. Considering the gap between their concert in February 2007 and their previous Connecticut performance in 2000, it seems logical to conclude that Newtown has something about it that lured these Irish musicians back for more.

Perhaps it was the appreciative audience. Perhaps it was the fine acoustics and Colonial charm of the meeting house. Perhaps it was dinner at The Inn at Newtown.

Whatever it was, our town seems to have it. And with a fine show like the one offered on March 27, we may hope that in a year or two the Shamrock Traditional Irish Music Society (STIMS), who sponsored the concert (as it has done for the traditional Irish music concerts in recent years), will bring Sliabh Notes back to Newtown Meeting House once again very soon.

At the juncture of Counties Cork, Kerry and Limerick, Sliabh Luchra is a unique region of Ireland. A linchpin of that identity is its particular musical dialect and the dance sets associated with it.

While in the rest of Ireland 6/8 jigs and 4/4 reels predominate at both dances and musician sessions in pubs and kitchens, in Sliabh Luchra 2/2 polkas and 12/8 slides — minor parts of the repertory in other parts of Ireland — are given pride of place and played with a distinctive rhythmic lift.

Matt Cranitch, from Cork, is one of the living masters of Sliabh Luchra fiddling and a notable teacher as well. March 27 was his birthday, as well as that of Monroe accordion player Loretta Murphy, a longtime member of Connecticut’s favourite céilí (Irish dance) band, Music in the Glen, who was herself in the audience. This was announced at the beginning of the night by STIMS’s Gregg Burnett, which led to the concert beginning with the audience serenading the musicians with a round of “Happy Birthday.”

Mr Cranitch thanked the audience before delivering a short discourse on the music of his native region and a good-humored dig at the music of the rest of the country, leading, of course, to a demonstration of Sliabh Luchra’s “higher order of music” with a set of three polkas.

Mr Cranitch’s fiddle and Dónal Murphy’s accordion began the set in perfect unison, with Tommy O’Sullivan’s guitar coming in on the second tune.

Despite Mr Cranitch’s gentle mockery of jigs and reels, the second set consisted of jigs — “Tony O’Connor’s,” “The Peacock’s Feather” and “Anthony Crowley’s,” deftly played and full of life — and the third of reels, the popular session tunes “The Providence Reel,” “The Man of the House” and “Speed the Plow.”

“I was going to start with a song I think is easy to sing,” Mr O’Sullivan said after the third set, “but for some strange reason I decided to start with one I think is really hard to sing instead.” Despite that, Mr O’Sullivan’s rendition of “Galway,” a song of praise for Galway City, was effortless. Gentle touches of fiddle and accordion combined with the guitar to make the perfect setting for lovely lyrics about a city that despite the hard times of the past remains “like crimson roses in grey walls.”

Soon it was time for a treat, the slow air “Aisling Geal” (“Bright Dream”), the melody of a favorite song from Cúl Aodha, a region near Mr Cranitch’s Cork home well known for its singers.

“Someone always asks for this one,” Mr Cranitch said, “and the person who asked for it this time was Tommy.” This was a showpiece for the fiddle, with gentle backing from Mr O’Sullivan’s guitar. Slow airs like “Aisling Geal” are typically not accompanied at all; Mr O’Sullivan is one of the rare guitarists able to devise an understated backing that fits their melodic, almost rhythmless grace.

Mr Cranitch left the stage and Mr Murphy returned for a set of three reels, starting off with one by the Chicago-born fiddler Liz Carroll, who herself has played at the same venue. This was a set new to the band, débuted, or so Mr Murphy said, only the night before. “Like most of my new tunes,” he added, “I got it from my daughter.” It’s clear that Melanie Murphy, age 12, has already developed an excellent sense for new tunes.

When Mr Cranitch came back to the stage, he brought with him a guest: Joe Gerhard of New Haven, one of our region’s best Irish fiddlers and a long-time friend of Mr Cranitch’s. The augmented Sliabh Notes proceeded to play a set of slides, one passed down by the great Denis Murphy, a legend of Sliabh Luchra fiddle, and two more recently composed by Francis O’Connor.

Dónal Murphy announced that Mr O’Sullivan would sing “a classic song.  I’ve no idea what he’s going to sing for you but I’m sure it will be a classic.” And indeed it was; “She Moved Through the Fair” is sung by many Irish singers and has been well performed in many different styles, from the purely traditional unaccompanied solo voice to outright rock and roll. Mr O’Sullivan’s version was bluesy yet uncompromisingly Irish, a perfect combination of his varied musical influences.

Mr Gerhard was asked to return to the stage, and a set of nameless reels was played.

“We’ve discovered long ago,” Mr Cranitch said, “that knowing the names of all the tunes and all this information is great... but it’s nothing compared to the joy that comes from actually being able to play the tunes.”

Another song was in order, and “I Feel So Near,” by the Scottish songwriter Dougie MacLean, was perfect for the task at hand. As the night was drawing to a close, Mr Cranitch said “it’s always a great dilemma to us, when we want to finish off the evening with a great memory, whether we’ll play slides or polkas, so we’ll do both.” The audience, however, wasn’t satisfied to leave just yet and demanded an encore, which the band was more than happy to provide with a final blast of reels.