Matt Molloy Se Mo Loach

Irish Flute
1

I have just started the first minutes of Se Mo Loach on Matt Molloy

https://tg4.tv/en/player/categories/irish-music-series/play/?pid=5850538109001&title=Matt%20Molloy&series=Sé%20Mo%20Laoch%20&genre=Ceol&pcode=063128

Thought this might be worth raising as a topic.

On it Seamus Tansey says God broke the mould when he made Matt and there is only one Molloy.

I heard his son Peter playing in his Dad’s bar and felt he was very much a chip of the block. It wasn’t the situation to fully confirm how close and I dare say he might not intend to be a carbon copy (not meaning that would be a bad thing at all , of course not ).

Perhaps some folk here would be more familiar and better able to comment. Has he son made recording? Hope these two links work. I just found these links one of which is new to me. Look like there could be a lot of good stuff there.

Three generations here from Matt Molloy’s Bar facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=295540151061226

https://www.facebook.com/mattmolloyspub/videos/2588075554641630/

2

There was discussion when it was first aired. :wink:

I remember the Molloys play at the Divers night concerts in Ennistymon that raised funds for the Burren Sub-aqua club during the later nineties. I know a CD was made of the concerts but I don’t know if they included Matt & Peter Molloy. I have recordings for some of the concerts but can’t remember who was playing on the tapes but that would be the only possible I can think of.

3

Having raising this as a topic I went on and watched the rest , smashing all together.

I kind of regret mentioning it now. Maybe I should have considered it more and not just jumped in. I tend not to like or agree with such statements as the post is about, if people want to make them no harm , their opinion is fully valid, but so too is the playing of many others who might in some ways be classed as ‘lesser players’ to varying degrees. It does not mean that I personally do not enjoy their playing just as much at times. I am never too keen on the idea of who’s better than who. I guess that would be a prevalent feeling in trad music but others have their own need for such things and they are entitled to that. I suppose I mean something like love Matt’s playing for the outstanding brilliance and style and the whole lot but personally I wouldn’t be overly into rankings.

4

Who’s better is hard to resist even though it’s dumb. I keep playing his “Drowsy Maggie” and trying to cop it on my new Bb flute and the thing that’s good about it isn’t really his technique, as great as that is, it’s the musicality of it, his, taste, his vision of the tune. That’s not something you can rank as “better” because somebody else will show you a different vision of the tune.

5

Here’s a clip of Jack Molloy (Matt’s Nephew), playing a Delrin flute I made for him. Filmed recently in Ireland (for anyone that hasn’t already seen it!).
https://vimeo.com/355165189

Cheers.
Damian
https://www.thompsonflutes.com/
https://www.facebook.com/thompsonflutes/

6

Mick O’Connor once mentioned in passing he thought Molloy didn’t see any limitations when playing the flute. Possibly the best summation I have heard. Mick first came across Molloy when he (Molloy) first came to Dublin and cause a bit of a stir with his approach to the flute.

Different players bring different things to the table and we should perhaps enjoy the bits we like in each player’s music. Great musicians can wear different hats, depending on the situation and in some situations sparks may fly while in other you can take or leave what they’re doing.

I first saw Molloy play in 1971, with Liam O’Flynn, and have barely any recollection of it: everything on the night was overshadowed by hearing Séamus Ennis for the fist time, which was transformative, for better or for worse. Mind you, Molloy and Flynn again in the same location in 1979 with Planxty pushed me over the edge.

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I guess one of the many nice / good things about ITM is that even the Greats and award winners are normally very inclusive , sharing and friendly and supportive to others. It almost seems to go with the territory.

My preferences in who I like to listen to have developed over most of my lifetime now. I still have a wide range of likes including slower and faster players for example. I’ve grown to have my own players that I especially like to listen to.I am not always able to say why but mostly could give some idea of why.Their styles would have similar characteristics. My listening choice has narrowed stylewise. They really hit the spot for me. I am much more selective in what I listen to compared to the wider range of what I like.

I recently saw two very well know great players (who’s music I love) opinion that ITM should be played fast. One of these is Frankie Gavin on the Se Mo Loach series. He said it should be fast so it he said it is happy and that is what ITM should be, (dance tunes). Not disagreeing. He’s music , both solo , solo ish, and maybe especially with De Dannan is full of life, exuberance, lift , surprise, craft, style and such like. Truly outstanding and happy. I would think the word genius is very appropriate. AFAIK a few outstanding people can be at least a little bit outspoken. They might have a narrower focus. My guess is that many of the players who say it should be fast and happy would still see the likes of say Martin Hayes or maybe some of the older style players who were not extra speedy as having a truly valuable music. Isn’t it the many facets of feeling that can be within ITM that sometimes make it a deeply moving folk music. Like it can have knobs for , joy, liveliness, simplicity, rhythm, beat, sadness within joyfulness, or lonesomeness, tension, danger and so on. Then I can think of tunes that exude the character of people we have been blessed to know. There’s a jig sometimes called Danial O’connell that has much of the optimistic, straightforward, cheerful, honest, fun loving down to earth qualities of an Uncle I had. I think it’s partly the variety of settings these knobs can be at that mean we can listen to the same tune, even played on the same instrument, and it can be so different.

I would hate to see too many players limiting their influences to the ‘amasing’ players. There is a place for outstanding but many are beautiful in there own ways. That was possibly a bigger danger for those living away from Ireland. Now with the Internet it is easier for us to delve into source material.

Competitions relate to this as well. A good thing in many ways but some smashing players might not go too far in competitions IMHO.

What a load of manure. :blush: A distant manager in a company I worked for was called Chuck Minure (think that was the spelling).

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oh yea worth it great style