Limerick musician is keeping an ancient art and tradition alive

WHEN she was just 10 years old with a strong nudge from her music-loving grandmother, Fiana Ní Chonaill began learning the harp.

Harps are synonymous with all things Irish - they are on our official Government documents, our currency is used to proudly bear the harp, and Ireland is one of very few countries with a musical instrument as the national emblem.

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The instrument also has UNESCO recognition as being part of Irish folklore. 

Harp player Fiana from Castleconnell has now made it her career to keep the tradition of the harp alive through teaching and she keeps it contemporary through her own compositions.

It is only fitting that her new album, being released this week, is called Something Old Something New. 

The harp is a large and impressive instrument, not something you see every day.

 Fiana  recalls how she would have learned on a full size adult harp, but now there are harp makers who create smaller ones specifically for children and there is also an option to rent the instrument.

“You can see the children light up when you give them an instrument that matches their size.

“People still tell me they’re surprised to see the harp when I’m playing. The harping world is a small one, but there is definitely a revival of people taking up and learning the harp,” Fiana says. 

Fiana is a harp teacher with Music Generation and teaches children and adults in Limerick and Galway. 

“A six-year-old is the youngest I’ve taught and it’s really funny when you hear a five or six-year-old say ‘I’ve always wanted to learn it’ and they’re so small, but it’s lovely.

“When I was small, I looked up to all of the other harp players and now suddenly I am the current tradition bearer - I am continuing to safeguard the tradition.”

As a child, Fiana first started playing keyboard, but she grew up having two aunts who played the harp.

“My grandmother Rita O'Dowd senior, championed the  harp, she played fiddle and cello herself and in later years took up woodwork and made some instruments.”

Fiana's grandmother ensured that she got to lessons and that the tradition of harp playing would continue for another generation - a responsibility  which Fiana now carries herself through her classes.  

“I teach all ages, adults and children and it's really rewarding. 

“I couldn't imagine doing anything else for my career,” she says laughing. 

Speaking about what draws her to the harp and why it's so popular at weddings, Fiana says that despite its size, it's a very unassuming instrument. 

“It has that kind of vibe, it creates an atmosphere without being too intrusive.

“When I play at weddings, it gives that lovely gentle background and atmosphere.”

Fiana is launching her new Irish harp CD, Something Old Something New, this week on Friday, February 13 at 7pm in the Kilmurry Arts and Heritage Centre in Castletroy and entry is free.

She says that the album is an eclectic mix of traditional pieces and modern compositions.  Like the folklore and traditional pieces of music of old, Fiana bases her own compositions on her life and celebrations of people and events in it.

One of her original compositions is about Inis Cluain and the local stories she has heard about the island off Castleconnell. Another is a piece she wrote for her husband for their wedding and a piece she wrote for her aunt. 

“At the launch, I will tell the stories behind each piece and that bit is as important as playing the music,” Fiana says. 

The album is a collaborative effort and features a host of well-known and acclaimed musicians from all over the country. The album has Alan Reid  on bodhran and bouzouki, Malcolm Bushby is on fiddle, Denise Kennedy provides a piano accompaniment and Una Heaney is on violin, viola and cello.

Artist Meadhbh Ní Eidhin from Spiddal in Galway designed the album cover and she painted a response to each of Fiana's original compositions to echo the music in art.