Here's what I'd consider some really great reel playing from Mícheál Ó Raghallaigh & Danny O'Mahoney: ComhaltasLive #227 - 4

The tunes are For the Sake of Old Decency, Brendan McMahon’s, Martin Wynne’s No.2 and The Longford Tinker.

Stupendous! I like their duet alot.
I still think Niall is a bit above, mainly by his solo work and jazzy feel. Concertina is not an easy solo instrument, and Niall's performance makes my jaw fall to the floor. I also think he does quite a study of Jazz theory to be able to implement it so eloquently. His playing is real break through for the Irish tradition. He's no longer a folk musician nor his music can be described as folk or traditional. It's very modern, innovative, while based in Irish Tradition, simply because who Niall is, not by his choice, it seems.
The others simply play folk tunes, no matter how professional their skills are.
I'm sure there are piano players or accordion players in Irish tradition, who do the same, "jazzifying" or "classifying" Irish folk music, just like in every other culture. Niall does it on Anglo Concertina.
In Russian music this trend of modernyzing folk tunes was going for quite a long time and they came, in my opinion, to very bizarre state, when the whole orchestra will play what used to be simple dance tune, but they'll make the symphony out of it. Only a bear in the woods can survive such an "experience", and only because he doesn't hear it. But that's the other side of the medal. Niall is far from that.
Again, my opinion.

Many of us are delighted to "simply play folk tunes." Nor do we call them folk tunes. They are traditional tunes. They are all composed by such sophisticated musicians as Charley Lennon, Paddy O'Brien, and Paddy Fahey. Can you play tunes by Paddy Fahey on your concertina? Some people play then rather well: Noel Hill, Tim Collins, Dympna O'Sullivan, William Kimber, Scan Tester.

In fact, most if us would say they prefer not to have traditional tunes "jazzed up" or "classified up" in a teeth-grinding fashion in the first place, whatever the player's "professional skill."

Niall is a great player. His expertise is unquestionably of the highest caliber. But there is much more to making good music than technical expertise or the study of jazz theory.

Saying that "His playing is real break through for the Irish tradition." shows a lack of understanding of the tradition. Niall fits well within it, as he would be the first to assert (I would hope). I am not the first or the smartest to assert what has been said before: technique enhances musical understanding but is no substitute for it.

(David Levine, formerly -- and still, really -- "cocusflute")

All these issues have been exhaustingly dealt with by the late Tom Munnelly and Tony McMahon in their presentations to the Crossroads conference in 1996. McMahon's paper is here

Or eat icecream. Or play jazz. Or compose original music. Or play for dances.
What does it have to do with Niall's unquestionalble originality?

Are you sure you are not mixing things?
Traditional music may or many not include folk tunes. Church music, Ceremonial and Wedding music are all traditional, but not necessarily folk. Dance music, songs, ballads may be folk, but not necessarily traditional.

Traditional music can't be composed by a modern sophisticated composer. You are clearly mistaken here.

Probably, but not so well as the notables below, with exception of William Kimber, whose playing I don't find inspiring.
Noel Hill, Tim Collins, Dympna O'Sullivan, William Kimber, Scan Tester.


I understand and agree mostly, having grown up and been forced to listen to jazzed-up and "classified" Russian Folk music, while traditional Russian music was banned.

Which, to my opinion, Niall demonstrates flawlessly.


It's your opinion, and I disagree with it. I think he is way ahead of all the rest "I" heard in his innovations, whether you happen to like it or not. He simply can't be "within" the tradition, while at the same time moving it ahead. He is "leading" the tradition. He is "ahead" of it. A master can't be within a school, Master IS a school.

Leave $10,000 in small, unmarked, non-sequential bills behind the inoperative escalator at the DuPont Circle Metro station in Washington, DC to return this thread to its pre-hijacked state.

(This is obviously a joke, because ALL of the escalators are generally inoperative at DuPont Circle.)

Right you are.

Comparisons are odious.

Thread restored?

This bit from the paper pretty much agrees with what I think of the subject:

It's maybe worth pointing out the player whose playing McMahon was responding too and caused all the commotion on the Late late show, as mentioned in his paper, was Niall Vallely.

They are, though that didn't stop somebody on ComhaltasLive commenting:

QUOTE (Paddy Cummins)

Fantastic. As good as the old Noel Hill and Tony MacMahon duets.

I guess that'd be too much to hope for...

BTW, what does this green face mean?



I hope this doesn't re-jack the thread.

That's the pukey face.

Oh my God. I thought it meant embarassment. My apologies...

Very nice clip! OK, I'm not hijacking a thread and never would do so, so please close your eyes for a bit, turn your head around and don't read the following I'll be whispering so no one will hear...



I'm one of those who see "jazzy influence" as being a negative thing on irish music, so I agree with cocus here...

You mean this one:

I was wondering...