At the Crossroads

In this interview, the very knowledgeble John Roche talks to me about the history of music in Wexford and also tells us about a book that he would eventually launch in August 2024, 'The Wexford Tunebook'. The interview was conducted in March 2024 and the book can now be purchased from the following sources: Trax Music: https://www.traxmusicstore.com/shop/books-for-music/music-books/books-about-mus...

In today's podcast I am looking at the rest of Finbarr Dwyer's compositions. These are lesser-known and lesser-recorded tunes and, as well as the expected collection of reels, will also include some jigs, waltzes and a polka. Towards the end of the programme I will also detail some commonly mis-attributed tunes that Finbarr did not compose as well as a brief "maybe" pile on which the jury is still...

In this episode, I'm chatting to Eugene Lambe from Dublin who moved to County Clare in the early 1970s. Over the years, he has met, played with and befriended all of the local musicians and characters and, back in the 1980s, he decided to video some of them for archival purposes. Over five hours of footage is available for viewing at the ITMA in Dublin and I present a selection of it throughout th...

On today's programme I analyse a variety of Finbarr Dwyer's compositions - the ones most commonly played and recorded over the years. Send any information to paahtomusic@protonmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I'm pleased to introduce another guest on the podcast - a man who really needs no introduction - Clare's P. J. Murrihy. We had a great chat for a couple of hours at The Falls Hotel in Ennistymon where P. J. told me about his years as a member of The Kilfenora Céilí Band and playing music with the likes of Jimmy Ward, Michael Sexton and Seamus Shannon. Thanks to The Falls Hotel for the ho...

On today's programme I take an exploratory look at the music of East Galway. Four main strands are considered: "The Old Ballinakill Style", "The Fahy Style", "The Paddy O'Brien Accordion Style" and "The Joe Cooley Accordion Style". ***I mentioned Gerry Conroy, flute player, as being part of the same Conroy family as Anne Conroy. This was an error. They were of no relation. Anne did, however, have...

Today I'm sharing a re-run from my old radio programme Music at the Crossroads from Dublin South FM. It is the inaugural episode from 23rd January 2018 and features a mix of Irish traditional music. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, I'm talking with Rawap and Dutar player, Mominjan Rahman from the Uyghur ethnic group. Rahman is a member of the Uyghur European Ensemble and tells me about his peoples' culture and music. Below are some links to expand on some of the talking points. The 12 Muqam & Amannisakhan: https://en.chinaculture.org/library/2008-01/21/content_72053.htm *Note that in the interview, I tho...

Today's episode features an array of popular folk songs sung by their original composers despite being popularised by other singers. You'll notice certain differences in the lyrics when comparing versions which I found quite interesting. Included in the line-up are the likes of Barney Rushe, Thom Moore and Ewan McColl. Comments, queries and suggestion to paahtomusic@protonmail.com Hosted on Acast....

Over the next 90 minutes, I will dive into the music of the three major acts who laid the groundwork for the emerging genre of bluegrass in the 1940s. I begin with the "Father of Bluegrass", Bill Monroe, whose seminal 1946 recording session with Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs and others split the old-time string-band atom. From there, I delve into Flatt & Scruggs own group which formed upon depart...

This episode focuses on musicians and singers who passed away during the course of 2023. I will take a broad sweep of influential musicians from all genres and backrounds including Irish Traditional Music, Bluegrass and Folk. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Happy Christmas everybody! Here is a selection of my favourite albums released in 2023. The aim has been to stick to Irish traditional music strictly but, unsurprisingly, some exceptions have made their way onto the list. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

County Clare is renowned for it's strong musical heritage and, still today, boasts a very vibrant culture of music, song and dance. As I've discussed in previous episdoes, County Clare, in fact, can be said to have a number of distinct styles within its boundaries and today we are focusing on the northern part of the county. This general remit includes north coast villages such as Ballyvaughan, Do...

A follow-on from last week's episode. This week I'm looking at some lesser-played Ed Reavy tunes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

First of two episodes on the compositions of prolific composer Ed Reavy. I dive into the history behind his most favoured tunes and provide a musical analysis. Most of the tracks are 'snippets', which may be frustrating to some. But for the sake of brevity, it had to be done. Email comments, queries and suggestions to paahtomusic@protonmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more infor...

Back on the airwaves! It had been my intention to ease back into the podcast world with a simple music programme but I ended up getting carried away with discussing the sacred nature of the often-forgotten #4 degree. This is a DEEP DIVE folks. Not all shows will be these idiosyncratic...promise! Email: paahtomusic@protonmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Focusing on musicians that are not from Ireland, the UK, the USA or Australia. I've also limited French musicians too. Generally, I'm aiming for a "pure drop" style but I also made some exceptions along the way. Taking in musicians from as far and varied places as Japan, South Africa and Iran, you'd be surprised what's out there! Enjoy, and please don't hesitate to get in touch if you feel lonely:...

I'm getting straight into the "swing" of things this evening with a show on music native to Texas (some would say Oklahoma....) - Western Swing. As always, I appreciate you spreading the word and any comments or queries, email me at patrickcumminsmusic@gmail.com. I'd love to hear from you. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A simple show this week focusing on some of my favourite Irish music clips. Please don't hesitate to get in touch with any comments, queries or suggestions: patrickcumminsmusic@gmail.com. And if you enjoy the show, tell your friends! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In today's episode I'll look through some of the musicians and bands that played on the bluegrass scene in Washington D.C. I will do a more deeply researched show for a future episode but this is just a selection which I've hand-picked to give you a flavour of some of the incredible musicians who littered the city between the 1950s and 1980s. *It may have been Jimmy Guadreau on mandolin for the "T...

Following on from last week's show about East Clare, we're moving westward through the Fergus Valley region, out to the Atlantic coastline by Milltown Malbay and then southwards to the Loophead peninsula. This area covers a wide range of ground and has several, distinct parameters that separate them from each others. From the Kerry/Limerick-influenced repertoire of the South-West peninsula, to the...

Although not intended to be a comprehensive study, in this episode I will touch on some basics regarding the East Clare style. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find material of everyone I wished to include, particularly John Naughton. No doubt, I'll make a return to this subject, even if only indirectly, in a future episode. Apologies also if the sound causes any issue at some points. My int...

In today's episode, I'm taking a brief look at early recordings of céilí bands and groups of musicians who led to the formation of (or played in a comparable style to) early céilí bands. All of these are taken from 78rpm discs from the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s. As such, the quality is varied depending on how well they had been preserved and/or restored. I begin with a relatively comprehensive introd...

Although Bluegrass music is rooted in the ancient traditions of Appalachian Old-Time Music and the African-Amerian blues, it is generally accepted that the birth of this specific flavour of American culture happened in December 1945 when Bill Monroe hired Earl Scruggs (banjo) and Lester Flatt (guitar) to play in his band The Bluegrass Boys . The rest is history. In this episode, I look the route M...

In episode 2, the focus is again on Irish traditional music and song. Timestamps below: 00:00 John Carty & Paddy Folan (Unfinished Album, c. 1982): Last Night's Fun / Maid Behind the Bar [reels] 03:58 John Carty & Paddy Folan (Unfinished Album c. 1982): McGivney's Fancy [hornpipe] 06:06 John Carty & Paddy Folan (Unfinished Album c. 1982): Sailor on the Rock / The Old Blackthorn [reels]...