A chat with Cathal McConnell

Cathal McConnell, from County Fermanagh, Ireland, is one of the best flute and whistle players in Irish music. In addition, his singing is as pure and honest as any singer in any tradition or genre. His work with Boys of the Lough, the group he founded, is widely known and universally respected among traditional musicians and fans. "Perhaps the greatest contemporary Irish folk music ensemble," according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.  Cathal has been playing with the Boys for thirty-three years. His influence on our little world of whistle playing is difficult to fathom. Michael Copeland, for example cites his exposure to Cathal McConnell as the beginning of his interest in flutes and whistles.  I've lost track of the number of players who have told me that it "all started" for them when they heard Cathal.  Although I've never met him in person, I think of Cathal McConnell as my whistle teacher.  His CD tutorial on Homespun Tapes has been tremendously useful to me, largely due to his natural gifts as a teacher.

Now comes Cathal's new CD, Long Expectant Comes At Last, just released in February 2000 and recorded in New York.  Although including dazzling whistle- and flute-playing and an exceptional group of supporting players, the great treat here is Cathal's singing, at turns amusing and touching. 

Dale Wisely of Chiff & Fipple: Cathal, as of tonight, Chiff & Fipple's newsletter goes out to 1770 whistle-playing subscribers.  As their self-appointed spokesperson, I thank you for taking time to answer our questions and I thank you for your life's work in Irish music. I very much am enjoying your fine new CD.  How did you come to decide to record in New York?

Cathal McConnell: I was ready to do a new album and I considered Bill Ochs (New York-resident and producer of Cathal’s CD) was the best man for the job.

Q. You must be proud of the line-up of musicians on this recording.  Eileen Ivers, Joanie Madden, and the great Richard Thompson, to name a few.  What was it like working with these folks?

A. It was an amazing experience and very challenging.

Q. When did you first pick up a whistle?  Was it your first instrument?

A. It was in 1952 and yes it was my first instrument.

Q. To what extent were you self-taught versus tutored?

A. I learned by rote firstly from my father Sandie McConnell and also from P. Flanagan, a neighbour from Rossdoney, Co Fermanagh.

Q. Many of us have an interest in the history of the instrument.  I gather
that Clarkes and Generations were essentially the only instruments available
for many of those early years.

A. The Clarke came first, then the Generation, which I much preferred.

Q. What whistles do you play now?

A. Generation in D and Eb.

Q. Going back again to your formation as a musician. At what point did you
take up the flute?

A. In 1958 I got an old instrument which I bought from Joe Shannon from Tempo, Co Fermanagh. It had a crack in it.

Q. Do you play other instruments from time to time?

A. Not really, but of course I love to sing.

Q. I mentioned in the introduction that your tutorial has been helpful to me. I get the impression you especially like teaching.  Tell us about how you feel about teaching and when you still get those opportunities.

A. I love to teach and have done a little of it here and there since way back. I also used to adjudicate at competitions. I didn't really like that and prefer the teaching. This summer I will teach at Falun Folkmusic Festival in Sweden, something which I have been invited to do on and off since the mid 80s.

Q. I'm interested in the fact that you, like many other Irish musicians of your generation, kept playing the traditional music in the traditional style during a seemingly long period when interest in it was not nearly as wide-spread and extensive as it is now.  Was there a period when it seemed to you that traditional Irish music might die out?

A. It was at a low ebb in the 1950s and many musicians were laughed at. Once the music got onto radio, TV and LPs and tape that changed things for ever.

Q. There must be quite a contrast between the early days and the present time,
with so many fans of Irish music out there.

A. It is a completely different world now.

Q. Personnel changes are always difficult for a band.  How is the current Boys of the Lough line-up working out?

A. I really enjoy the current line-up. There are plenty of lively moments with Brendan Begley on board and Malcolm Stitt, who was not even born when we began the group, is great fun - a fine young musician.

Q. What are your touring plans?  Do we get to see you tour in support of the CD
here in the US?

A. I am planning a short trip to the USA in April to help publicise the new CD. I have several things on with Boys of the Lough in various parts of Europe this year and with new agency in the USA things are shaping up well there too. I hope to find time to get going on a whistle album!

Dale Wisely is founder, editor, and assistant glazing technician of
Chiff & Fipple:  The PostStructuralist Tinwhistle Internet Experience.
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