Adventures in Ireland

For my mom and me, competitions are always just an excuse to travel to Ireland. We always make the most of the trip by visiting friends and seeing sights. This year’s excuse was the Fiddler of Dooney in Sligo. 

The first day consisted mainly of travel, and lots of it. Mom and I arrived in Dublin early on Thursday morning and visited Taste Food Company & Cafe, our favorite place to eat, what I think are, the best raspberry scones. Afterwards, we went to the airport to catch a flight to Donegal, where we stayed with our friends Mairead and Nia. Mairead contributes fiddle and vocals to a very well renowned group of Irish musicians called Altan. 

Pre-Flight Selfie

We met her back in 2008 at the Dublin Ohio Irish Festival where she performed with Tea with The Maggies. We saw her again this past winter with her daughter Nia, when Altan performed at a local theater in the Penn State area. When Mairead heard we would be visiting Ireland, she invited us to spend some time in Donegal with herself and Nia, plus their dog and cat, of course. 

Mairead surprised us when we met her at the Dublin Airport before our flight. We didn’t expect to see her until we arrived in Donegal. She had just been interviewed at a radio station with fellow band member, Ciaran Curran, in Dublin. We all flew back together in a tiny puddle-jumper plane to Donegal. When we arrived at Mairead’s house, we were greeted by Seog, the cat, and Blonde, the dog. We drank some tea and talked for a while before collecting Nia from school. For the remainder of the afternoon, we enjoyed vegetable soup, visited Granny, Mairead’s mom, and caught up on sleep. 

The view from Mairead's kitchen.

Despite Google Maps not being very helpful and mom having to quickly teach me how to read a map the old-fashioned way, we made it to Sligo the next day. We stayed with Catherine and Charlie, two wonderful hosts found through one of the organizers of the Sligo Live event, being held along with the Fiddler of Dooney. We hadn’t met our hosts until the day we were staying with them. Two of their sons are members of a great trad-fusion band named Moxie. We met them years ago in County Cavan where we enjoyed playing a few tunes together. 

Saturday was the day of the competition. I began the day by warming up my fingers with my competition tunes, The Cuckoo hornpipe, Elizabeth Cullin which is a jig composed by Billy McComiskey, a fantastic accordion player, and a reel named Lord Gordons, learned from a recording of one of my favorite fiddlers, Michael Coleman. 

When we arrived at the church where the competition was held, I played through my tunes again. Once the competition started, I listened as the other competitors played their tunes. Each competitor was absolutely great and had a unique style. I loved listening to tunes I hadn’t yet heard, and some I already knew, but played in a different style with contrasting variations. In total, there were sixteen competitors including myself--the only American on a roster filled with Irish fiddlers. 

The competition was stiff, indeed. It lasted for two to three hours and I played towards the end. Once I left the stage, I knew I played my personal best. But, in competitions, you never know what the judges are looking for. Your opinion of your personal best could be someone else’s opinion thinking you could add more variations, slurs, phrasing, etc. to the tune. I never go into a competition expecting or not expecting to win, because it’s not up to me, even when I play my best. It’s all up to the judges. 

So, when my name was called to take the first place trophy in the Junior category, I was thrilled! The second and third placers, Blaithine Kennedy and Ademar O’Connor, each played stunning versions of lovely tunes. I had a chance to play a couple of those tunes later that day at a pub in town called Foley’s with Blaithine. Senan Moran, last year’s winner of the Junior age group, and a friend of mine whom I’ve met with several times at past All-Ireland Fleadhs, joined us.

On Sunday night, Mairead was in Sligo after her travels in London with the band. We ate dinner together, then went to the Hawk’s Well Theater to watch Altan perform. The show was brilliant, filled with fabulous songs and tunes from their new CD, The Widening Gyre. At the end of the second half, Sarah O’Gorman, the winner of the Fiddler of Dooney’s senior division, and myself, joined the group on stage to play two sets of reels. It was so much fun to perform with the band again. There is always great energy on stage with them. 

After the show, Mairead, Ciaran, mom, and I traveled two hours back to Donegal where we spent a few more days with Mairead, Nia, and their friend Jillian. Over the next few days, we enjoyed attending sessions, walking on the local beaches, visiting the local radio, and having a s’mores party.

In the boot!

Blonde!

Mom and I said a very sad goodbye to our friends in Donegal. We traveled to Westport for a session at Matt Molloy’s Pub, where I was able to meet new musicians and play loads of tunes until the early hours of the morning. Then, we spent a few days in Clare with our friend Manus McGuire and his wife Jenni. They are lovely friends and fantastic hosts. I enjoyed sessioning at a local pub with Manus, Ged Foley, and several young musicians from the area. We toured the University of Limerick’s Irish World Academy where I met Niall Keegan, a wonderful man who informed me of the program UL offers for Irish music studies. 

What a lovely trash can!

The Coral Beach

Our last stop of the trip was Dublin. I was very fortunate to have been able to meet up with a few friends from a camp I attended this past summer, Studio2Stage. Mom and I met Shannon, Michelle, and Siobhan at Butler’s Chocolate Café on Wicklow Street, where we conversed over some delicious hot chocolate and chocolate truffles. 

Unfortunately, we had to make our way back home the next day. It was sad to leave, but we had a truly amazing time in Ireland, sharing memories and adventures with some of our greatest friends. I hope to do it again in the near future.