First Encounters: Brian Bourke and Frankie Gavin

Brian Bourke is an Irish artist and Aosdána member. His first solo exhibition was in 1965. A retrospective of his work was held in 2010 and another is planned in May. He lives in Rosscahill, Co Galway, with his wife, painter Jay Murphy

I’m much older than Frankie, about 20 years older. The first time I ever saw him he was a teenager, playing in Slattery’s in Capel Street with De Dannan. They were so young and so inexperienced at playing in public, they didn’t want to play with a microphone. The other musicians didn’t chatter when they heard this young fella playing, which was very interesting, because they were terrible chatterers. I didn’t meet Frankie then but shortly after that.

Over the years Frankie and I and Paul Burke, a box player, travelled about and played together. I humbly admit to playing the bodhrán – you have to be humble about the bodhrán. My father was a fiddle player: my roots and his were in Dublin, but the most music I heard when I was young, in the early 1950s and 1960s, was in London. There was great traditional Irish music going on there. Traditional music is very much part of my life. One of my sons, Malachy, is a very good fiddle player, he’s recording with Frankie at the moment.

When I moved to Galway in about 1976, Frankie was very helpful in getting us a place to live in Spiddal. He’s a frequent visitor to the house; we get on extremely well. We’ve worked together on many occasions and I’ve done concerts with him – we went to Argentina and did some recording in New York together. The age difference doesn’t mean anything but that’s the thing with traditional music: in a session, you’re with almost every age group, including kids. Art is a lonely business and part of the appeal of traditional music is you’re in a group .

Frankie is interested in art; he’s extraordinarily imaginative and hardworking. What we do have in common is that he does a lot more work than might appear in public. He makes music in pubs, little concerts, comes to my house with Noel Hill and they play beautifully together. I see a great deal more of him in sessions in the backs of quiet pubs than anywhere else. That’s the thing about Frankie and meself, he works the way I do: he’s always working – at it, with it, thinking about it. If he says come and play in such and such a place on such and such a day I just up sticks and go.

Over the years, I'd meet Frankie the odd time and sarcastically start singing this song, being jocular. One day he said, you're gonna sing that song on a recording. And so I did: it's the most mawkish song you could imagine, A Mother's Love is a Blessing .

The friendship with Frankie has been a treasure for me since I first met him: life would be a lot less interesting if I did not know him.

Frankie Gavin is a traditional musician . His professional career began as a teenager, playing with De Dannan. In 2010, he was named the fastest fiddler in the world by the 'Guinness Book of Records' and is now planning to start a national fiddle orchestra. He lives in his native Galway

I didn't know Brian was a famous artist when I met him in the 1970s. But the chemistry between us was remarkable and is to this day. He's a formidable personality but I never felt any sense of intimidation, even though I was still a teenager when we met. There's a great uplift every time we meet. Brian brings out the best in a person.

We were good friends when he was still in Dublin but then he moved to the west: the first cottage he moved into, ’twas I that found it. It’s between Spiddal and Moycullen. I’d go up there, play a few tunes, stay, or we’d go out to the local pub.

Those who know Brian well know how passionate he is about Irish music. Once he’s sitting in a session, playing the bodhrán, he goes off to another place. There’s a joy in his eyes and it’s great to play with him. He’s a mighty bodhrán player. A lot of bodhrán players are all technical and posh, they’re trying to play a drum kit on the bodhrán.

Brian did record with the band, singing A Mother’s Love is a Blessing. We were doing an album called Ballroom and Brian does this fantastic kitsch arm-on-the-piano posh accent voice . . . it’s hilarious. We did it tongue-in-cheek and that’s the way he sang it on the album. And the number of people who loved it, especially in America!

I’ve known his son Malachy since he was a few months old. Brian wanted him to learn a bit of music so when he was seven/eight/nine, I said, let’s start him on the mandolin, the fingering and positioning is exactly the same, then when he takes up the fiddle, he’ll just have to learn the bowing. He’s a fantastic fiddle player now, we’re just after recording an album together.

I’m very much into art and once said to Brian, I think I’ll take up art. He looked at me and said: “If you take up art, I’ll take up the fiddle.” I said: “Well thanks very much, you’re not very encouraging.”

We went on an extraordinary trip to New York one time; stayed in this fancy rooftop penthouse somebody put us up in. I said Brian, did you ever consider doing cityscapes? He did and it was a massive success. He did a whole series of drawings of yours truly and also did some drawings in a studio where we were recording an album. I’d suggested we’d frame the drawings, have an art exhibition afterwards, and that’s what we did.

He’s incredibly intelligent but he doesn’t make you feel nothing in his company – that’s a special gift.

Frankie Gavin and De Dannan will play at the National Concert Hall tonight, March 15th (nch.ie). He is also looking for two fiddlers aged 18-30 from each of the 32 counties for Frankie Gavin's Irish Fiddle Orchestra, email one fast reel to frankiegavin@aol.com