Earlier this year Ben Lennon, the renowned fiddle player from Co. Leitrim, passed away at the age of 91. This blog by Alan Woods looks back over the life and music of a much loved member of the Irish traditional music community.

Learn three tunes from our online P.W. Joyce Collection, with Johnny Óg Connolly, Clíodhna Costello and Pádraig Ó Dubhghaill

As part of ITMA's contribution to the virtual Willie Clancy Summer School for 2020 we asked 4 photographers to choose their favourite photograph from the festival. Tony Kearns, Nutan, Colm Keating and Peter Laban have each spent many years taking photographs at the festival and are regular visitors to Miltown Malbay. 

Photographer Peter Laban has taken photographs at the Willie Clancy Summer School from many years.  He has kindly donated a substantial collection of these images to ITMA.  This is a selection that he choose from the early days of the festival, with some of his own thoughts and memories included.

As part of ITMA's Pop-Up Archive at Scoil Cheoil an Earraigh in February 2020, musicians Seán Hughes and Clíodhna Ní Bheaglaoich were invited to research and prepare a presentation on the music, song and dance of Corca Dhuibhne based on resources found in ITMA collections.  Seán has kindly taken time during the current lock-down to turn their February 2020 Scoil Cheoil an Earraigh presentation into an online blog.

Our planned Pop-Up Archive at World Fiddle Day Scartaglin 2020 was to feature a presentation by Paudie O'Connor on his detailed research on Sliabh Luachra resources in ITMA Collections.   Undaunted by circumstances, we are delighted we have been able to get some recording equipment to Paudie this week.  So by blog and video, we join Paudie at home with his wife Aoife NÍ Chaoimh and daughter Róisín. Big shout out to Róisín who got the video looking great!

While the 'very hungry' cocooning flute player Fintan Vallely waits to triumphantly emerge from his 'cocoon's nest', his thoughts have turned to the lofty topic of 'Topical tunes to while away the quarantine with sanguinity'. Why not join Fintan on his tune research, and suggest a tune title or two yourself.

In October 2019, Catriona Gribben from Gaoth Dobhair, Co. Donegal, joined ITMA as an Intern from Queen's University Belfast (QUB). Her ambition to learn more about field recording and archiving took a much more local twist than she first anticipated.

Almost two years ago on Thursday, 20 June 2018, poet Mary O’Malley and uilleann piper Tommy Keane took part in the live ITMA/Poetry Ireland series "Soul Clap Its Hands and Sing".  To celebrate Poetry Day Ireland 2020, Mary & Tommy have generously given permission to share the reading of 'Ixion Stopped Tony Mc Mahon Plays Raglan Road' and the playing of Fáinne Geal an Lae.

COVID-19 has accelerated our relationship with the digital world with remarkable speed. Online sessions and performances are fast becoming a daily feature of our lives.  However a landmark digital project launched in 2012 by ITMA and the Inishowen Traditional Singers' Circle in Donegal has had, and continues to have, a profound influence on many singers and researchers, no more than on Berlin-based singer Andreas Schulz. 

Tomás Ó Canainn's (1930-2013) contribution to the traditional arts in Ireland manifested itself in a remarkable array of outputs, as an uilleann piper, accordion player, singer, poet, writer, composer, researcher and lecturer.  In November 2019, the Ó Canainn Family contacted ITMA with the generous news that Tomás' archival legacy was to become part of the national collection. 

The uilleann piper Patsy Touhey was the most celebrated Irish traditional musician of his day. Born in Ireland in 1865, he flourished in the USA as a professional entertainer and became a prime mover of the Gaelic music revival in the States. Today his music is a byword for unsurpassed virtuosity.

On 24 March 2020, ITMA posted images and a short note about Pádraig O’Keeffe manuscripts on Facebook. This re-opened a lovely conversation with Paud and Denis Collins from Knocknagoshel, Co Kerry who had donated the collection to ITMA in 2013.

Transition Year 2020 brought another wonderful young traditional music student through our doors in February. As well as practical archiving experience with staff, we guided Emer, the harper, to the online Stephen Grier Manuscript Collection. Emer takes up the story of her time in ITMA ...

A guest blog from Colombian harper Emmanuel Rivera Angel.  Emmanuel is studying for an MA in Musiclogy and Performance in Maynooth University and spent time in ITMA researching and presenting this blog as part of his coursework.