Latest CD releases reviewed
CIARÁN Ó MAONAIGH
Ceol a'Ghleanna - The Music Of The Glen Claddagh Records
****
His ability and appetite to play the music in all its bare-boned glory sets Ciarán Ó Maonaigh apart. Ceol a'Ghleanna/Music Of The Glen is a superb snapshot of his home place. Gathering a repertoire of tunes from his native Donegal was probably the easy part; airing them in all their spacious glory is what matters: and Ó Maonaigh lets the tunes do the talking, with minimum interference, apart from his inspired invitation to fellow fiddler Dermot McLauglin to join him on Loughisle Castle. Guitarist John Blake's accompaniment insinuates itself in between the cracks, and the rest is left to Ó Maonaigh's unhurried playing, particularly on the slow air, Iníon a'Bhaoghailligh. Heart and soul in abundance, bravado nowhere to be seen. www.claddaghrecords.com Siobhán Long
FIONA TYRRELL
Déirín Dé Gael Linn
***
Ennis-born and now Boston-based singer Fiona Tyndall (previously Tóibín) has undertaken a labour of love in recording this collection of songs siphoned from her childhood summers in Carrigaholt, where her parents presided over the local Irish summer school. She's brave enough to venture towards innovative arrangements of such standards as An Buachaillín Bán and An Cailín Gaelach, with sax and piano offering a distinctive skeleton to Tyndall's lonesome vocals, and yet wisdom prevails in the traditional setting of Fáinne Geal An Lae. Although the song choices at times suffer beneath the weight of over-exposure (Mo Ghile Meár, Siúl A Rúin), Déirín Dé whispers of a rare and welcome childlike innocence and naiveté. Subtle guitar lines from MacDara Tóibín root this collection very much in its place and time. www.gaellinn.com Siobhán Long
