The first year of the pandemic, 2020, was a difficult year for many, and it was the year that we lost a much beloved and talented fiddle player, Brendan McGlinchey. This blog by Aoife Kelly, takes a look back at his life with reflections from some people who knew him best.

This guest blog was written by Orla Dillon, a student on the Masters in Musicology at Maynooth University. As part of her course Orla completed a five-week internship in ITMA and undertook the task of listing Northern Irish harper Derek Bell’s previously unlisted and unexplored manuscripts of classical compositions, donated as part of the Derek Bell Collection.

A monthly series showcasing compositions of tunes by contemporary composers in the traditional idiom.

To mark the anniversary of the death of Liam O'Flynn, 14 March 2018, Neil Martin shares his memories of a deeply enriching friendship and musical journey with the master uilleann piper spanning over five decades.

To celebrate International Women's Day 2022, Mick O'Connor pays tribute to the role of Sligo fiddle player Kathleen Harrington, née Gardiner, in promoting Irish traditional music during her lifetime.

To celebrate Lá Fhéile Bríde/St Brigid's Day 2022, the Irish Traditional Music Archive, in collaboration with the Department of Foreign Affairs, commissioned three traditional artists to compose new works inspired by lore relating to Brigid: Louise Mulcahy (uilleann piper and flute player); Síle Denvir (harper and sean-nós singer), and CaitlÍn Nic Gabhann (concertina player and dancer).

Concertina player Brenda Castles' interest in collecting unusual versions of well known tunes in the tradition has taken her on a journey of archival discovery to find out more about how tunes evolve over time and distance. To accompany the release of her latest album 'The Light Side of the Tune' Brenda shares her research on five particular tunes from the album: Jenny's Welcome to Charlie, The Cook in the Kitchen, The Limerick Lasses, Merrily Kiss the Quaker and The Connaughtman's Rambles.

ITMA's photographer-in-residence 2021, Peter Laban, is not a Clare native but has spent many years living and working in the county.

Another series of compositions commissioned by the Rolling Wave on RTÉ Radio and supported by ITMA.

To mark the publication of the second edition of 'The Songs of Elizabeth Cronin Traditional Irish Singer', editor and grandson of Bess Cronin, Dáibhí Ó Cróinín, shares insights into the life and legacy of the iconic singer.

Peter Laban is the ITMA Photographer-in-residence for 2021. Over the course of the past year Peter has been preparing his extensive photographic collection for donation to ITMA. He has been scanning negatives, identifying people and places, and carefully selecting images for the ITMA website. In this blog Peter reflects on some of the recent images that he has donated to ITMA. More photographs from Peter are available at the following links:. A gallery from Peter Laban, ITMA photographer-in-residence 2021More images from Peter Laban, ITMA photographer-in-residence 2021Photographs from Peter Laban, Willie Clancy Summer School

Uilleann piper Máire Ní Ghráda reminisces on a day of music in 1975 captured by Cork photographer, the late Domhnall Ó Máirtín. Domhnall's collection, a rich visual history of Cork’s musical life in the 1960s, 70s and 80s was generously donated to ITMA by the Ó Máirtín Family.

Catherine Ann Cullen is the inaugural Poet in Residence at Poetry Ireland, and an award-winning poet, songwriter and children's writer. ITMA is delighted to host a new blog on her recent research into the life of an all but forgotten 19th century Dublin street poet and ballad seller, Joseph Sadler. As well as enriching our knowledge of Dublin history and song, this substantial piece of research provides important context for Sadler material found in ballad sheets held in the ITMA Collection.

ITMA hosts a number of interns as part of their professional career development. During 2021 Annie Hughes, a TCD MPhil in Digital Humanities and Culture student, focused on the digital infrastructure of the Góilín Song Project.

During National Heritage Week, 14–22 August 2021, the Irish Traditional Music Archive (ITMA) shared online some wonderful images from its 2021 milestone collections: Cnuasach an Bhreathnaigh (the Breandán Breathnach Collection) and the Gráinne Yeats Collection.