Boyle Traditional Singers' Circle - Ciorcal Ámhránaíochta Traidisiúnta Mhainistir na Búille

3rd Saturday of every month. Next session: 21st March 2020. CANCELLED




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Fáilte - Welcome
to the Boyle Singers' circle - Ciorcal Amhránaíochta Mhainistir na Búille

Traditional unaccompanied singing, in English and Irish.

Dodd’s Crescent Bar (back room), The Crescent, Boyle, Co. Roscommon, Ireland.
The third Saturday of every month, all year around, 9.30pm onwards.

All singers and listeners welcome.


19 May 2014

Twenty singers gathered in the back of Dodd's the other night, a couple of reciters and the always-welcome listeners.

We had two visitors from England, who came to Boyle especially for the Traditional Singers session - Alan and Síle - both lovely singers. Alan sang a great version of the Kerry Hills and Frank followed shortly after with Ewan McColl's eulogy to the mountains: the Joy of Living and Tony soon followed up with the Boys of Barr na Sráide.

In the YouTube clip linked to below, Christy Moore sings that song, and Christy is to be heard soon in Boyle. He'll be giving a concert, along with the Grehan sisters, on June 26th: a tribute concert to the traditional singer, John Reilly, who died in 1969. Christy Moore and many other singers owe significant songs in their repertoire to John Reilly.

The other night was a night for songs of emigration too, from Breege, Naas, Billy and Clíona, who sang the Rambling Irishman, reminded of it by the excellent documentary which was screened during the week on Dolores Keane and also by the fact that it's on the new Voice Squad (Phil Callery, Gerry Cullen, Fran McPhail) album.

The reciters were Frances and Padraig McGinn. Frances had poems by a local man, Seamus Kelly about the coming of electrification to the countryside and the Bord na Móna village at Lanesborough. We had the dán macaronic from Mr McGinn, Micheál Mór. Jim Bainbridge sang a song 'in his own language' as he put it - something about the main character's wife being an 'amazer' for the amount of booze she managed to swallow! You'll have to ask Jim for the words - we got the sense but not the full script!

George left Old Skibbereen and Tony went to London so fair, while Sean sang the Town I loved so Well and Marie had Andy M Stewart's Two Orphans.

Joe Corscadden was away shopping in AldiliddleAldi but had time for politics with Joe Frawley, the Councillor.

There were better notes than usual as the regular beer mat scribblings were supplemented by notes taken on proper paper. Now there's an innovation. Thanks Frances.
Kerry Hills (sung in this clip by Jimmy O'Brien of Killarney) 
Ewan McColl's eulogy to the mountains: the Joy of Living
Boys of Barr na Sráide (Christy Moore singing in this clip)

Boyle Singers Circle poster