SLIABH Luachra Music Trail musician-in-residence, Eoin Stan O’Sullivan, has been busy passing on his skills and musical knowledge to national school pupils throughout Kerry, Cork and Limerick.
He brings his fiddle and his stories of musicians past and present, giving the young students an insight into their unique musical and cultural heritage.
Eoin is also recording tunes with the children for the Irish Traditional Music Archive and the schools he has visited to date include Áth Na mBláth in Killarney, Barraduff, Ballydesmond, Boherbue, Abbeyfeale, Brosna, Cullen, Kiskeam, Meentogues, Millstreet, Raheen, Rathmore, Scartaglin and Shrone.
Eoin Stan is a well-known musician from Newmarket who spent his childhood immersed in the music and history of Sliabh Luachra mainly thanks to his father, the fiddle playing local historian Raymond O’Sullivan.
In 2013 he started a small school teaching local music to people of all ages and that year he also took on the role of director of Scully’s Fest, one of the many offerings on the Sliabh Luachra musical calendar.
“It’s been a huge pleasure to visit the schools and see the interest the children have in learning about Sliabh Luachra music. It’s very heartening to see the amount of musical talent in the schools and I’d love if even more could be done to help children learn the tunes from their local areas,” he said.
“I’ve seen children bristle with pride when I play them music named after their locality or their relatives. I think every child in Sliabh Luachra should be helped to learn their own music,” Eoin Syan added.
He said someone growing up in Kerry will always be told about the county’s vast sporting achievements and it should be the same when it comes to Kerry’s continuing musical and cultural legacy.
The musician-in-residence scheme is funded by Kerry, Cork and Limerick County Councils and the Arts Council.
Pictures: John Reidy. Click on individual images for details
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