Ennis Céilí Band
Traditional Dance Music from County
Clare
Rath Records RRCD002; 35 minutes; 2003
Padraic
O’Reilly
Down
the Ivory Stairs
Rath Records RRCD001; 41 minutes; 2001
I saw the Ennis Céilí Band win the All-Ireland at the
Fleadh in Listowel in 2002 and the CD does them full justice, The first track
is very atmospheric and was in fact recorded at the competition. Overall the
sound is tight and the playing lively throughout. I have always been slightly
wary of the typical Fleadh céilí band line-up which can to my ears sound
sometime a bit squeaky with three or four fiddles and a flute in front and the
lone box-player struggling behind, but not this band. The combination of
very-together playing and a careful recording mix gives a fulsome sound well
supported by the piano of the band’s leader, Padraic O’Reilly. 
I
am not quite sure how a pianist leads a céilí band. It is more usually the
box-player or a lead fiddle, but that’s what it says on the label! Padraic
gives them the two “bumps” to start and off they go. There is a good mix of
common and more obscure tunes, including two settings of Ed Reavy’s Hunter’s
House, but a Scottish jig which they attribute to Jimmy Shand is actually
the well-known Rosewood.
Marches
are traditionally part of the céilí band repertoire (required for the Waves
of Tory) and thus also feature in the competition curriculum. There are
three marches on this CD, each on a separate track, and two of these are rare
tunes from the nineteenth century Grier collection. The playing of the marches
is suitably military in style, with some quite interesting part-playing by
sections of the band.
It’s
not all-band all the way either as there are two lovely tracks featuring a trio
from the band: Nuala Hehir (accordion); Liz Gaughan (fiddle) with Padraic
O’Reilly (piano). Altogether a very enjoyable listen – recommended.
Padraic O’Reilly’s piano CD is a breath of fresh air – solo piano recordings of traditional music are thin on the ground. His sound and style will initially remind you of something from Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin, but Padraic is somewhat deeper in to the tradition, I guess, and what we have here is a virtuoso traditional musician whose instrument happens to be the piano, rather than a classical pianist who can play Irish Dance tunes when he feels like it. Could it be just a coincidence however that some of the tracks were recorded at Ó Súilleabháin’s stomping ground – the University of Limerick?
Padraic plays the dance
tunes with gusto and his implementation of the ornaments, both rolls and
triplets is impeccable. He gives us great reels, jigs (including one of his
own), hornpipes, airs and set-dances on his own and with virtuoso contributions
from the likes of Liam O’Connor and Garry Shannon whom he accompanies. The
piano sound is sparkling and when Padraic solos, he has arranged an exciting
rhythmic backing with “modern” breaks which add to the exuberance of the music.
As
in the céilí band album there is a titling glitch involving a Scottish tune,
when what many will recognise as Jean’s Reel, composed by the late Bobby
McLeod for his wife, is attributed to another Scottish accordionist: Phil
Cunningham. Maybe Clare is too far from Scotland and such connections get
blurred…a Northern Irish musician would know better! Nevertheless a lovely
innovative album from the leader of the Ennis Céilí Band. If you like
traditional piano, this is for you.
These original reviews were written by Seán Quinn for The Irish
Music Review.