Month: June 2026

Morgan and I left Spokane, Wednesday, June 24 and after flights from Spokane to NYC then to Shannon, Ireland, we landed approximately 10:30am Thursday, rather bleary but happy to have arrived. It was hot and humid, felt a bit like Mexico, this in a country that we’ve always experienced as mild, often rainy no matter what time of the year. Waiting for our luggage and James and Bridget to arrive from the UK gave me time to reflect on the wonder of modern travel, where it’s possible to begin from home and arrive to another location half way around our little blue planet in less than a day. 

The luggage was slow to come and I was most concerned about my instruments. I’ve brought two this trip, my trusty Sobell Cittern and the bouzouki I finished about one month ago. I had Calton make a custom flight case for my new instrument. I waited at the oversized carousel and found them both. Upon opening each case I was relieved that they arrived in flawless condition. Thank you Calton for my new case and Main Stage for the Sobell case which has served my instruments so well.

James and Bridget arrived about 15 minutes after we settled in for coffee at the airport cafe. After greetings, a snack and coffee James and Bridget went to the Hertz kiosk to rent a car. We packed our gear and headed south to Bantry. I’m so grateful for James’s ability to negotiate the small Irish roads, he’s not intimidated by them at all. About 1 1/2 hours in we stopped at a small pub looking for tea and a snack. Bridget stepped in to see if they could serve us some tea. She found a large fellow sitting at the bar with his pint of lager and inquired. His response was “I’m not the proprietor”. Bridget came out and gave us his response so we went back in and this time the proprietor was present and he said certainly. We seated ourselves in the cozy and cool interior and soon we had 4 steaming cups of tea in front of of us. Bridget asked if biscuits were available and not long after there was a plate of oatmeal biscuits spread with fresh butter and a small slab of cheddar cheese on each. The gentleman asked what brought us to Ireland. We told him how we play Irish music at home and pool the money to pay for our vacations to Ireland. He informed us that they had their own session on a Wednesday each month. The publican, we don’t know if his name is Pat, stood behind the bar and sang us the Ballad of John Williams. The four of us looked at one another and said “we’re back in Ireland”. As we were leaving the publican said to Bridget “you’re not like other Americans that come here”. Bridget said “how?” His reply was “because you’re so social”. This took us a bit aback, we’ve loved the sociability of the Irish, their curiosity and willingness to engage but I guess that some Americans don’t take to it.

After a delightful bit of banter we paid for our tea and biscuits snack, bid farewell and continued our journey to Bantry. If you find yourself on the road to Bantry stop in at Pat Barry’s, Donoughmore cross, Co. Cork. You’ll be sure to get a warm welcome. 

We continued south to Bantry and arrived late afternoon. The GPS or SatNav as it’s called here, took us down some very small roads to get here, roads so small we were beginning to doubt that we were on the right track. Finally we could see Bantry Bay in the distance and at last we were dropped out to a main road and saw signs pointing to Bantry. We found our rental home just southwest of Bantry near Durrus. The home is lovely and looks out across the water to the Sheepshead peninsula where we’ve stayed several time now.

 It’s beautiful country, but uncharacteristically it was very hot. None of us has ever experienced Ireland so warm but this first evening there was a spectacular thunder and lighting show and now we’re back to the Irish weather we’re so used to. 

We had fish and chips in Bantry then went up the street to Ma Murphy’s Pub to meet some of Morgan’s compatriots. I forgot to mention earlier that one of the reasons we’re in Bantry this trip is that Morgan was invited to exhibit his work at an exhibition of Violin and bow makers. Morgan knows nearly everyone who will be here. At Ma Murphy’s we met Niall, Andrew and his partner Pia and Kees. Niall and Kees are bow makers like Morgan and Andrew and Pia make violin family instruments. They share the build of the instruments, build as a couple, which isn’t common. The attendees are International Belgium, France, Ireland, the USA, etc. Morgan introduced us and they’re great people. My instrument making put me in a position to speak “shop” and it wasn’t long before Andrew, Pia and I were deep into a discussion about varnish making. Yes, to an outsider we’d be geeky but in our circle this is life! After a wonderful night we all said good night and home to bed.

June 26 & 27

As often happens on our explorations here in Ireland these postings get delayed because we’re having too much fun and there’s no time to sit down and reflect on the days events. I’m combining June 26 and 27 in one post.

We traveled up to Cork city June 26. We needed to trade cars for something that had more storage space and also to play a session at The Corner House. Our last trip in 2024 we met the young bouzouki maker and superb player Macdara O’Faolain and his wife Victoria who is an extraordinary musician herself. They lead sessions in Cork and  we were invited to come play. We fondly recalled our previous session and were very excited to take part in another. I’d been in contact with Macdara the last two years as we both are building instruments and like many individuals in the craft he likes sharing information and talking about the art of crafting instruments that sing. We’ve been writing one another since 2024 and he knew I was wanting to complete a bouzouki to bring with me this time. I was looking forward to having him see my latest and hear his opinion.

After trading cars at Cork Airport we headed into the city only to be greeted with Friday rush hour traffic. The session begins at 5:00 and we thought we’d allowed enough time but had not factored for the traffic. Bridget drove us like a pro and got us there just in time. We were warmly welcomed and we wedged ourselves into the small corner allotted to the session and I sit down with my Sobell Cittern next to a friendly man named Jorma. Jorma is from Finland and has been in Cork for a mandolin workshop that Macdara and Marla FIbish had been leading. Jorma is also holding a Sobell Mandolin, not a common sight, and we form the Sobell Corner of the session. There are two other mandolinists, an older fellow like myself playing  5 string banjo and singing, Macdara on fiddle and bouzouki, Victoria on banjo, a young woman who plays Uillean pipes and is very good, James on flute, Morgan on fiddle, and myself. A little after things start a young couple join us, he on banjo and she on concertina. The two hours fly by and there’s lots of great craic (banter) between tunes. Jorma wants a photo of he and I holding our Sobell’s. He’s in email contact with Stephen Sobell and wants to send him the photo of us holding our instruments.

Macdara wants to see my new instrument and is very complementary. I’m looking at his as well and soon we’re talking about neck attachment, finishes and other details. One of the mandolinists, who is from Berkley, CA also builds mandolins, so we had lots of fun talking shop. I inquired about Macdara’s new workshop. When we were last over he was beginning to build his new space out. He seems quite happy with his new space and hopefully we’ll get a chance to see it. Macdara has some playing engagements on the continent and doesn’t return until July 12. 

So ends day 2.

Day 3  

Yesterday all of us slept in. It’s extraordinary for me to ever sleep past 7:00-7:30 but I woke up close to 10:00, Morgan later than I and Bridget wandered down shortly after I woke. I’d been contacted by good friends Karen and Paul Lindholdt from Spokane. They’re Floating Crowbar fans as well as friends. They’ve been traveling in Scandinavia and wanted to join us for a couple of days and see how we adventure. They drove down from Dublin and we linked up yesterday afternoon at Ma Murphy’s Pub. They were both remarking how much they were enjoying Ireland and the Irish. It turns out that Karen, who is a lawyer is working with Bridgets cousin, Bridget Condon. Circles within circles, it’s a small world. We told them to meet us later at Ma’s that there would be a session.

Before we met up with Paul and Karen we all went to the schoolhouse where the Exhibition for Violin and Bow Makers is. Morgan knows most of the participants. It’s in a large room and the tables are all arrayed with some extraordinary contemporary work. There are 11 violin makers and 8 bow makers. Many of them are working at makeshift benches and the public are encouraged to visit. I loved looking at the bows, violins and violas. The skills displayed are incredible. Niall asked to see my bouzouki so Bridget and I went out to the car and grabbed it. Niall was highly complementary as was Kees. Receiving their praise means so much to me, these are both skilled practitioners of their craft who don’t hand compliments out easily. One of the bow makers is Noel Burke. Noel is internationally known, as are many who are here are. His older brother is Kevin Burke. For those of you reading this who aren’t into the history of modern Irish Trad music I’ll do a slight digression. Kevin Burke is a fiddle player, born in London to Irish parents. He studied fiddle at a young age and was playing professionally by age 13. He was the fiddle player in The Bothy Band, one of the seminal revival groups of the 1970’s and early 80’s. He then formed Patrick Street with Andy Irvine (Planxty), Jackie Daly and Arty McGlynn. They toured extensively, I was privileged to see them in Spokane in 1986. Kevin is one of a handful of highly influential players who keep the flame of Irish Trad music alive. The torch has been passed to younger players but Kevin is revered for his part. He’s still active.

Noel Burke is a revered bow maker and plays flute. So, after the exhibition closed for the day Noel and Morgan walked over to Ma Murphy’s and spoke with the owner Mary about whether we could come in and play some tunes. She agreed that that would be great. The four of us bid farewell to Paul and Karen who are going to come back for the session and we went home for dinner. James  skillfully whipped a puntanesca together for the four of us. We got back to Ma Murphy’s at 9:00, met Noel, a French bow maker Eric Fournier and a few others. We went to a large room where a large group of the exhibitors were having dinner. Paul and Karen met us and got a feel for how things roll here. At one point Karen said to James, “do you find yourself drinking more in Ireland?” James burst out laughing. The session was wonderful, several of the exhibitors play so we had Jeremy and Noemie join Noel, James, Morgan and I. We didn’t stop until after midnight. On our way out our new friend Doug, whom we met in the Super Value market (that’s how it is in Ireland, you find yourself in a friendly conversation and soon you’ve a friend). Doug’s a talker and a story teller and he regaled us with tales of an uncle who ran away to sea and had some larger than life, outrageous adventures. I’ll try to piece those together and post them later.

So ends day 3

June 28

We spent the morning slowly getting it together, we’re living the lives of traveling musicians and sessions go late. Bed time is closer to 2:00am and sleep lasts until 10:00am. I never sleep like this at home. Bridget decided to spend the morning walking about the hill that our rental home is on. A stone circle is shown on the map so she thought it would nice to check it out. The three of us drove into Bantry and stopped at the exhibition to see how things were going. There were a number of young orchestra players trying out bows and instruments. These players were/are at a very high level and the snippets of music coming from the instruments was remarkable. Niall sold a bow while we were there and another of his was out with a performer who was quite certain they were going to purchase it. Three bows were sold from the stock in the hall.

Morgan, James and I went for a break and wanted to find some coffee. We walked up the high street and found a shop that we visited the day before that has an espresso bar. The coffee was good and the atmosphere restful. The weather is back to alternating between sun and clouds, wind and rain, warm and chill. It doesn’t matter, we’re here for more than the weather. Morgan needs to be at the exhibition for a meet and greet with visitors, so Bridget drives him back after we’ve had a quick meal.

Noel Burke has secured the small room at Ma Murphy’s for a 9:00 O’Clock session. Back we go to Bantry to meet the crew. We see Richie Tisdall in his car outside Ma Murphy’s. We met him at a house session ten years ago at Hugh Quinn’s in Skibereen. He’s considered one of Cork’s treasured musicians. Paul and Karen are already there so we put our instruments in the room and visit. Mary, the daughter of the owner greets us warmly and treats us like treasured guests. Gives us a tour of the pub front to back, explaining how it originally was the combination general store and pub. The snug where the women were relegated to visiting while the men folk drank in the pub proper. Mary and her siblings grew up in the rooms above the pub. The room were playing in used to be the family kitchen. Mary said there wasn’t a door at the bottom of the stairs that led to their living space above, so people would drift up uninvited and often the women whose husbands were in the pub would use the family toilet upstairs. The town was the extended family! 

Everyone starts drifting in and the session is underway. We’re happy as can be, the room is quiet except for the music. We can all hear one another and play with nuance. It’s the exact opposite of the night before. Mary comes in with desserts, a minute later she’s offering a large plate of sandwiches to everyone in the room. Irish hospitality at its best! Tyler that American from Boston we met the night before joins us. At one point he wants to sing and asks if he can play my bouzouki. I hand it over and he plays it. It’s nice to be on this side of it listening. The peace lasts for all of an hour and soon people are drifting in to listen, but their conversations get louder and louder and a young man wanders in, three sheets to the wind. We find out later that he’s just returned from Australia and has been on a two day bender. He’s loud, he’s obnoxious. Taking video with his bright flash on, whistling, yelling “I love you Richie, I love you guys”. Taking a players stool when they get up for a break. Uninvited he squeezes in, between Noemie and Richie and mumbles his monologue. Disgusted Noemie steps out for a few minutes and when she returns he puts his hand on her. Morgan comes unglued and lays into him. “Stop shining that light in our faces, keep your hands to yourself, don’t you ever touch her like that.” The offender was led out of the room by friends only to return. We’ve been here before, this isn’t rare. Noel looks uncomfortably to me, Kees, sitting next to Noemie trades perplexed looks with me, we’re all squirming. Despite all that it’s a mighty session. Tyler says to me as he’s leaving, “love your instrument man, it sounds great and plays well”. Icing on the cake.

What is it about an Irish Pub that draws James, Morgan, Bridget and I to it? Firstly, it’s not a bar. Some are actually named as such. Dan’s Bar, O’Sullivan’s Bar, etc. but they’re still pubs, not at all like an American establishment. People talk to each other, greet strangers, swap stories, tell jokes, and smoke cigarettes on the patio but the difference is it’s face to face. They’re not staring at a big screen barely acknowledging one another. I’ll give you a recent example. I was walking out the door of Ma Murphy’s and a man was sitting on the stool closest to the door. He catches my eye and I acknowledge him with a greeting. He’s got good eyes. He inquires, noticing my case, about what we’re doing in Bantry. I tell him we’re here for the music and culture and he asks if I’m attending the Bantry Festival. I admit that I wasn’t aware of it and he filled me in on the Classical Music festival going on at Bantry House as well as other venues. He clearly has a passion for it. I stand talking with him for several minutes, I ask his name, it’s Brian, and tell him I hope we meet again. The warmth and sociability of the Irish and by extension the Irish Pub is wonderful. There’s nothing like it in the states, not where I’ve been anyway.

Another feature is many of them are a piece of history. I’ll extend on the description of Ma Murphy’s in a previous post. When you enter the front door you notice it’s very narrow. There’s another inner door of the same width that opens into the pub space. If you look closer though you see a tiny room with benches, it’s the snug. Many old pubs have snugs, they can be tiny or pretty large, plain or decorated with etched glass and padded seats. When Ma’s was built it was a modest space. The snug was where women were relegated to sit while the men folk rollicked in the pub proper. The women also used them for matchmaking and I’ve no doubt they enjoyed their private chats away from the men. Mary tells us that her father took it over in 1981 and the snug was still in use. Most of his customers were farmers but it sounds like he was forward thinking and didn’t think that situation should stand. He kept encouraging the women into the pub and soon the snug was no longer obligatory. It’s use now is as a private space you can have a pint and a chat in. If you look up above the partition of the snug you’ll see shelves up to the ceiling. They run from the window down behind the bar itself. They were once stocked with essentials, food household items, whatever was needed. These transitioned into the back counter of the bar and the shelves there held bottles of whiskey and whatever else was stocked.

There’s another narrow door that leads past a staircase that goes upstairs to the living area and used to lead to the kitchen. The kitchen space is now the small room we played in last night. There’s a reverence about it, it carries the memories of Mary and her siblings running through the place, Pa and Ma managing the store and pub, the customers not always aware that the stairs they found themselves climbing were leading to private family space. When Mary was in the old kitchen space we were playing in she described where the family table sat and where the cooker was. Out back in what would have been part of the garden there used to be a forge. It’s full of memories and if you allow yourself to, you can feel them. It’s a community treasure and places like this need to be preserved. I highly recommend the film/video The Irish Pub. It’s a lovely documentary on the importance of the pub in Ireland.

https://thewildgeese.irish/profiles/blogs/the-irish-pub-reviewed-the-perfect-pint-and-a-fabulous-film