The Fiddler of Dooney fiddle trophy for this year was won recently in Sligo by Caoimhe Flannery of Rochchapel, Co. Cork.
This coveted accolade ranks as the most prestigious award in the world of Irish traditional music. Since the inception of the competition in 1965, it has now been won thirty-one times, with the list of winners being a veritable roll-call of the best in Irish traditional fiddle-playing.
Traditional Music Star
Caoimhe Flannery is a rising traditional music star, with a number of All-Ireland titles to her name in various age categories.
In 2018, she was invited to the North Atlantic Fiddle Convention in Aberdeen Scotland. In 2019, she was awarded the Oireachtas Crotty Cup for an outstanding performance.
Her music displays a confidence and maturity, as well as depth of feeling that belie her age.
She is a keen student of the Sliabh Luachra style and repertoire, and is in regular demand to perform at concerts and recitals. She is also a fluent Irish-language speaker.
Irish Fiddle Tradition
For the Fiddler of Dooney competition, she chose a selection of pieces which linked very much to seminal sources within the Irish fiddle tradition, while still displaying her own very vibrant creativity.
Her jig, ‘Páidín Ó Raifeartaigh’, owed a huge amount to the Sliabh Luachra Fiddle-Master, Pádraig O’Keeffe, and her slow-air, ‘Caoineadh Uí Dhomhnaill’, referenced both Pádraig and Denis Murphy.
For the hornpipe, she drew inspiration from the great Séamus Connolly, himself a winner of the competition in one of the early years.
Setting a Benchmark
Her reel, ‘O’Dowd’s Favourite’ was a tour-de-force with a stellar performance that set a benchmark for others to emulate.
Coincidentally, her teacher and mentor, Matt Cranitch, played the very same reel when he won the competition in 1969.
Caoimhe’s music goes from strength to strength. And yet again she has tasted victory, this time at Oireachtas ‘22 in Killarney when she and her sister, Éimhear, won the senior duet competition.
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