TRADITIONAL FIDDLE MUSIC FROM DONEGAL
CNF 005
- New cd featuring the fiddle playing of Frank Cassidy of Teelin and featuring duets with John Doherty.
Audio Samples.
Tuam na Farraige:
Tiarna Muigh Eo:
Bonnie Kate:
Track Listing
- Tuam na Farraige // Hornpipe
- Down the Broom // Reel
- The Pinch of Snuff// Reel
- Tiarna Muigh Eo // Air
- Tiarna Muigh Eo
- The Wedding Jig
- Bonnie Kate // Reel
- Cronán na Mathar // Air
- Loch na Gar // Air
- Seamus Ennis recalls meeting Frank Cassidy
- Cuffe Street // Reel
- The Pinch of Snuff // Reel
- The Irish Washerwoman // Jig
- Introduction to Muineál a'Bhardail by Frank Cassidy// Speech
- Muineál a'Bhardail // Reel
- Myth Island // Air
- Cuffe Street /) Reel
- The Japanese Hornpipe // Hornpipe
- Con Cassidy talks about Frank Cassidy // Speech
- Beautiful Ohio // Waltz.
- The Lark on the Strand // Jig
- The Showman's Fancy/ Unritled // Hornpipes
- Con Cassidy speaks about Frank Cassidy // Speech (1:17)
- The Blacksmith's Fancy // Reel
- Rakish Paddy // Reel
- Dr Me Closkey remembers Frank Cassidy //
- Tiarna Muigh Eo // Air
- The Blackbird // Air
- The Japanese Hornpipe // Hornpipe
- The Mason's Apron // Reel
- Myth Island // Air
- Come back to Erin // Air
- Frank's greeting to his sister Kate // Speech
- Bonnie Kate // Reel
- Crónán na Máthar II Air
Níl gar ann!- Is the title of the new CD from Cairdeas na bhFidiléirí featuring the fiddle playing of Frank Cassidy from Teelin, Co Donegal.
The CD consists of 35 tracks running just over 59 mins playing time, it includes mostly the solo fiddle playing of Frank Cassidy and also 5 duet tracks featuring Frank playing with another Donegal fiddling great, John Doherty.
The CD features some speech items, the voice of Frank himself also his cousin Con Cassidy, Séamus Ennis and Dr Malachy McCloskey voicing their opinion of Frank's playing.
The recordings cover a period in time from 1946 to 1967 and are drawn from a number of sources, The Folklore Commission, the BBC Archives, TCD and private collections.
Some of Frank Cassidy's music has been heard on radio but much of this material will not have been heard by most fiddle fans before.
Although Frank Cassidy died in 1971, he is still often spoken of in traditional music circles, with very high regard. This album will be of great interest to Donegal music fans, since the fiddle playing of Frank Cassidy has not been generally available until now.
This is an important collection of music of the man who Séamus Ennis often said was the best fiddle player that he had ever met! In a roundabout way Séamus Ennis is also involved in the title of this CD, Séamus was very keen to record Frank Cassidy however when he would eventually persuade Frank to play for him, he might play a few tunes and then put the fiddle down again exclaiming Níl gar ann! ( " It's no use") he wasn't happy with the way he was playing.
The album comes with extensive notes and maintains the high production standards set by the previous releases from Cairdeas na bhFidiléirí.
Copperplate is very proud to have this title on our roster and to help it achieve its full potential will be supporting this release with a full-scale promotional mail out to media and retail. Contact Copperplate for all your PR needs. Please copy us on any reviews/features/airplay. Feedback always welcome.
Also available from Copperplate
Con Cassidy: Traditional Fiddle Music from Donegal
Danny Meehan: The Navvy on the Shore
Press Reviews
The Wall Street Journal"NIL GAR ANN!" by Frank Cassidy: Donegal has a long legacy of brilliant fiddlers, and Frank Cassidy (1900-1971) from Teelin was one of the best. Among the 35 tracks are two sterling fiddle duets by Cassidy and John Doherty from 1946 and three more by the pair from 1953. The CD title, "Nil Gar Ann," means "it's no use" and refers to Cassidy's comment to Seamus Ennis about making music after the deaths of his brothers Johnnie and Paddy, with whom he loved to play. There's some spectacular fiddling on this release. Earle Hitchner