“We need to keep this joyfulness going, places you can go that are about getting together and dancing as a community“
Ahead of her collaboration with Aindrias de Staic, we spoke to Burren native, Louise O’Connor, a trad musician with a passion for all things Irish music and dance and owner of Celtic Dance Party, about her love of story, tradition keeping heritage and what she’s looking forward to most about taking part in Lasraí at Ennistymon Community Centre.
How does it feel to be performing back in the Burren, where your love for traditional music first started?
When I come here to Clare it’s very special, it definitely feels like a homecoming. I’m back teaching classes in my hometown for the first time and I really feel like I’ve come full circle. I started my trad lessons here when I was 7 so it’s great to bring it all home.
How important story is to you in your music and your dancing?
The storytelling part of it all is really important to me. I’ve loved learning the stories behind the tunes and songs, and I think it’s a definitely a good idea to teach the context of the set dances, to see where they were born out of and what they meant to people throughout the years. Stories like the Straw boys or the Wren tradition, there was a big place for them in the community and they can still bring people together. People looked forward to these dances. It was a release just to come to them after a hard day’s work.
You’ve said you learned a lot from playing in the Trad sessions in Dublin with a group of older musicians. How important was that experience for you?
Those musicians were the reason I could transition onto the trad session scene, which wasn’t easy. Those men sparked my love of the tunes with their stories, both in just the playing of the music and in the stories they told in between them. It’s the intergenerational cultural exchange of it all. I’m still often drawn to these sessions with the older players; some of my heroes of music and dance are from across the generations. I hope I am keeping this going in my own way. I can see it in the generations coming to the céilís, we had everyone from age 10 to 70 at the last one! I think it’s important to pass it on, and keep this tradition going. There’s definitely an element of passing it back to keep it all going.
Do you think set dancing is becoming a Lost Skill that needs to be brought back?
Well, while there is an aging population of set dancing, right now I’m also seeing it becoming a trend among a lot of the younger ones. There’s groups now in Dublin, Kerry and Galway and it’s definitely growing, so the plan is to try and join all these groups up. It’s an amazing community and we need to keep this joyfulness going, places you can go that are about getting together and dancing as a community.
What are you looking forward to about the Lasraí gig?
Well I’m looking forward to my set with Aindrias and the rest of the musicians we’ll be playing with and I think the street céilí is going to be great craic, but as it’s my first time there I’m also just looking forward to seeing all the other performances and taking it all in.
Thanks for taking the time to talk to us and we can’t wait to see you on stage on August 16th!
LASRAÍ will take place on Friday, 16th August, at the Ennistymon Community Centre. REKINDLE Festival Day will return to Parliament Street, Ennistymon on the 16th and 17th of August as part of National Heritage Week.
LASRAÍ is a multicultural event celebrating traditional music and dance, not only from Ireland but also from around the world. Showcasing an esteemed lineup of Irish and international traditional artists who are not just upholding but also elevating traditional cultural skills, these individuals play a pivotal role in nurturing and expanding the traditional arts in Ireland.
With thanks to our sponsors:
Doolin Ferries, Shannon Ferries, Hotel Doolin and the Armada Hotel
