Gilmore, Rabbitte and Quinn built strong track records of success

IT was GK Chesterton who said about the Irish that "the great Gaels of Ireland, Are the men that God made mad, For all their wars are merry, And all their songs are sad". I don’t know about the wars, but the mournfulness of the songs is the reason I’ve never been a huge fan of Irish traditional music, if the truth be told.

Until last week. My missus and I, among hundreds of others, had the rare privilege of watching and listening to the Clare Memory Orchestra in a cave. They made astonishing music. Composed by their founder Dave Flynn, their long piece ‘Music for the Departed’ was simply unforgettable. Haunting (and yes, mournful in places), vibrant, and elemental towards the end. I’ve never seen musicians work together so brilliantly together and with such intensity. Their “artists in association” Martin Hayes and Denis Cahill are simply world-class. If you ever get a chance to see them together, pay any price you can afford!

I mentioned the cave. Not so much a cave, actually, but half way down the passage that leads into the electricity generating station under Turlough Hill in the Wicklow mountains. I don’t suppose it was ever envisaged as a concert venue, although it has wonderful acoustics, and a cathedral-like atmosphere when it’s lit for a concert.