Peter Laban

Edel Fox and her husband Neil Byrne played their concert last night. It was a wonderful night. Great selection of tunes, loads of compositions by the Dwyers, Charlie Lennon , Joe Liddy and others. Complex, notey music on some level but the affinity between the two players providing great heart and warmth. Liam O'Brien and Deirdre Hurley are on next, on 1 November, but that may be outside the timeframe requested by the OP. The concert after that will feature yet another concertina player : Méabh Mulligan, who will appear with Andtew Hendy.

Some mainstream interest in the concertina: My ancestors could have heard these songs

I have heard more than a few very fine players say that the cross row system gave them the freedom they previously lacked. So there is that too. My son went to Noel Hill for a few years when he was in his mid teens, that approach taught a lot of options and solutions to certain patterns. Whatever else you may feel about the style or approach it does open up the instrument and offers the player considerable freedom. And for that reason it's best not to dismiss it too lightly.

The concertinas on display are a part of the collection of a forum member here. I am not sure I'd call it a 'Museum', it's more a visitor's centre but YMMV. The music makers is part of Oidreacht an Chláir and supports the work of that organisation. OAC, among other things, is responsible for the Concertina Cruinniu. They do the odd Friday night song and tunes concert as well but I am not sure that has started again, I often miss them because I am not a Facebook user. The ones I do catch are always worthwhile. [Just to add: I looked it up, there's a songs and tunes night on coming Friday but no concertina involved. Last Friday of the month is probably right, for future reference] Glór in Ennis is starting a series of monthly duet concerts, 'Just the two' on 4 October, that may be earth checking when in the area. Edel Fox and Neil Byrne are starting off this run. Liam O Brien will be in a later concert. Check glor.ie

But it makes sense the concertina was sold more or less locally.

As is the OP.

It is a whole group of tunes really. Cucanandy is named for the song Bess Cronin sang to it. The name was connected to the tune by the recording The Gloaming did of it. Or so it seems, we used to know it as 'My mind will never be easy' before that. 'She didn't dance and dance..' is a slide version of the same melody. And there is Samuel Lover's 'The Whistling Thief', that Séamus Ennis and Sean 'as Donncha used to sing, using the tune as well. I tried to get to the origins of all that but never quite managed to untie that knot.

Or see them here:

There was a discussion about the tune on thesession: https://thesession.org/tunes/7028 in it, it was stated : I don't have Sullivan's book although I read it some thirty years ago so can't comment on that any further. I wouldn't rule out there's more than one Planxty Reilly either. Yes Hills of Coore, a bit and several others too like The Stream of the Cats/Humours of Tullycrine, Tuamgraney castle, Napoleon crossing the Rhine (or was it the Alps?) and all of those.

Custy's in Ennis is the obvious one to visit. Most music shops aren't specifically geared towards traditional music and only have generic mass produced stuff (or McNeela things). Powell's in Galway, perhaps, if you are there, for a look at books and cds, I don't recall any interesting concertinas in there. But YMMV, familiarity... and all that. I am limited in my experience with music shops outside the Limerick-Clare-Galway area.

To quote Ptarmigan, elsewhere and some time ago : Planxty O’Reilly of Athcarne … ( Ua Raghallaigh Atha Carna ) Composed by Turlough O’Carolan.

You are advertising this now on three different threads. Don't you think that's a bit much? We got the message the first time.

It's no longer the nineteen seventies.It's a different country now. And the number of concertinaplayers has exploded since.

Can't be, they weren't invented yet 😇 (I'll get my coat... )

Just to add a bit on the Padraig O Keeffe thing. I said it isn't particularly concertina focused but there is a number of concertinaplayers in the line up: Eimhear Flannery, Liam O'Brien, Lily O'Connor, Eoin Begley and Michelle O Sullivan among them. So there's that. You could do a lot worse. They'll probably each have designated sessions in various pubs, if you are into that sort of thing.