Work
Stories from the Old World
for voice, uilleann pipes and string quartet
About
This piece is based on four stories as narrated by the famous Kerry Storyteller Peig Sayers. Each story is set to music with String Quartet accompaniment; uilleann pipes provide musical interludes with the Quartet.
Stories I, II and IV are narrated, Story III is a song sung by a traditional Irish 'sean-nós' singer. Each story is followed by an instrumental section which is inspired more by the music that came before it than the text.
The musical material is almost entirely influenced by sounds and techniques found in Kerry traditional music and uilleann piping. The rhythms of Kerry Slides and Polkas are used, as are Slip Jig and Reel rhythms; these intertwine with poly-rhythmic and poly-metric material in the Quartet. There is some influence from Zimbabwean Mbira music in the use of very close canonic material, indeed the use of close canons is central to the piece. The music is primarily modal in nature, centred on D and G modes, reflecting the modal nature of the uilleann pipes.
The definitive version featuring Brendan Begley (voice), Mick O'Brien (pipes) and the String Quartet of the Irish Memory Orchestra was released as the title track to the 2018 album Stories from the Old World.
Commissioned note
Commissioned by Kerry International Chamber Music Festival with funds from the Arts Council of Ireland
Contents note
- An file agus an sprid (The poet and the spirit)
- Mas le gigeog a mhallais i... (If it was with a fart I won her....)
- An piobaire agus bean an tabhairne (The piper and the landlady)
- Na Sean Cailleacha (The Old Hags)
Text note
Based on old Irish stories and poems as told by Peig Sayers (1873-1958)