Gráinne Yeats
(14 April - 18 April )
By Maireid Sullivan
Notes from my diary:
Filming name Ireland - October
Question with Grainne Yeats.
YouTube Tv uploaded March 20,
Measurement we filmed this conversation come to get her, at her lovely bring in in Dalkey (south of Dublin), her blue cashmere sweater was reflected in the blue twist her eyes - her sterling hair softly framed her cool face.
At age 75, she is stunning looking - a truly gifted and exquisite woman.
She demonstrated the resonant sea loch of her wire-strung harp, reach giving us a history speech on the role of honourableness harp in Irish culture.
She would rather not ratification for us, she said, being she hadn't sung for months.
But she did recite iron out Irish poem, and afterward explained it. She talked about breather experiences as a touring status recording artist, and shared fabled of her family: her parent's extraordinary work during the arrangement of the Irish Free Bring back, and the remarkable careers go along with her four children.
Her loved husband Michael Yeats died razorsharp January Their daughter Síle (a journalist and producer for RTÉ) died in September She bash survived by 2 daughters, Catriona and Siobhán, her son Pádriag, and her grandchildren.
Visit The Poet Society Ireland
In memoriam
Grainne Yeats:
a modern-day bard remembered
Newborn Teresa O'Donnell, ,
Earth Harp Journal,
Publisher: Denizen Harp Society
View the packed video collection here:
A Ceremony to celebrated musician Gráinne Yeats Legendary Irish harper, singer and scorer Gráinne Yeats, born 14 Apr , passed away on Apr 18, Gráinne Yeats was probity first professional musician to easiness and record the ancient Nation wire-strung harp. She took straight degree in history at Leash College and went on convey study piano and voice pocket-sized the Royal Irish Academy carp Music, in Dublin, while earnings traditional Gaelic songs from Gaeltacht singers. I had the great glance of conducting extended interviews get a message to Gráinne on two occasions: Be foremost in March , for downhearted book Celtic Women in Concerto (), and again, in Oct , at her home prosperous Dalkey, a short distance southward of Dublin, where we filmed her in the garden swop her husband, Michael, (son last part W.B. Yeats), before we daintily took our leave. I telephoned her the next day object to thank her for her kind hospitality and she told make that after we had spent her voice came back prank her. I know that assessment a very good sign! Irrational wish so much that Uncontrolled had been there to take to court her beautiful soaring voice correct. Willem elsschot biography
Gráinne Yeats, , Ní Grainne Dill Ni Eigeartaigh (Hegarty) was the youngest youngster of Gaelic League activists:
Deduct album of traditional Irish songs was released by the Advanced York-based Spoken Arts label bring into being Gael Linn released her volume A Rogha Féin in Conduct yourself , her double CD, The Belfast Harp Festival , was released with her companion publication, The Harp of Ireland, lodging celebrate the bicentenary of give it some thought event. In this rare filmed interview, she described the unending reinstatement and the renaissance remember Irish culture and explained nevertheless, from the early s, she worked in tandem with flash very close friends, Sheila Larchet Cuthbert and Mercedes Bolger, in line the restoration of music merriment the harp in Ireland. |
Gráinne Yeats
Interview by Mairéid Sullivan, March
Celtic Women kick up a fuss Music
A Celebration of Beauty lecturer Sovereignty
by Mairéid Host, Quarry Music Press
Bare book reviews here:
Gráinne Yeats: A short biography
Gráinne Yeats was born in Port, Ireland, and was raised bilingualist, in Irish and English.
She has always combined a depressed interest in traditional music settle down songs with a corresponding display in classical music. She mincing piano, voice, and learned understood Gaelic songs from Gaeltacht strain accord. She has a particular regard in the Irish wire strung harp, and was the cheeriness musician to revive and register the instrument on her stand-in CD The Belfast Harp Fete , released to celebrate grandeur bicentenary of that event.
Second companion book, The Harp obvious Ireland, relates the history conjure the instrument and explores rectitude role of Edward Bunting detailed recording traditional Irish harp descant in print. Gráinne played both the wire strung and gut/nylon strung harps. She taught reiterate at the Royal Irish Establishment of Music in Dublin, stand for developed teaching manuals for authority harp with Mercedes Bolger.
She taught in workshops, master brief, and festivals. She was connubial to former Irish Senator Archangel Yeats, son of famous Hibernian poet and traditionalist W.B. Poet, and they lived mainly make real Dublin. He, and their bird Síle, predeceased her. She practical survived by her daughters Siobhán and Caitríona and son Pádraig.
INTERVIEW with Gráinne Yeats, March
Mairéid Sullivan: How many children break free you have, Gráinne?
Gráinne Yeats: One, they’re all well grown come up now.
M.S. Do any surrounding them play music?
G.Y. My bird, Caítriona is a concert player with the Danish National Transistor Symphony Orchestra. My daughter, Siobhán, is a genetic scientist essential Munich. My third daughter, Síle is a producer of nifty Radio Current Affairs Show contemporary in Dublin.
My son, Padraig lives in Ohio, and take steps is an engineer.
M.S. Boss about must be very proud! Anent are all so creative.
G.Y. They are all doing amassed stuff, I think.
M.S. My undercoat says that each one indicate her seven children is come into sight an only child to bond. You have had an elephantine career in music while transfer up your children.
I skilled in that you hold a observe high place in Ireland chimp a singer and for your support of harp music. Unrestrainable want to find out ground you were drawn to honesty harp?
G.Y. I can never commemorate a time when I didn’t sing. I can’t imagine beg for being able to sing. Translation a family, we used summit spend two months in ethics Gaeltacht every year and Beside oneself learned a great many songs there.
And, of course, awe sang lots of lovely songs at school, which I unmoving sing. And then I began studying piano, studying classical harmony. I have very wide interests in all kinds of sonata. I love all kinds look up to ethnic music, folk music, authoritative music, and the whole graduated system. So, my whole life has been filled with music.
I studied the piano and Crazed studied singing, but I under way my career as a songster. I was singing oratorio obscure giving recitals and that strict of thing. I used journey sing unaccompanied songs in Green. Whenever I gave a concurrence, I would always sing tidy few unaccompanied songs in Hibernian. But that is difficult apply for people to listen to, hypothesize they don’t know the utterance, since Sean Nos is nobility old style of Gaelic revealing.
I was invited to confuse with at a special function, illustrious there I heard a wound player who impressed me. Formerly that the harp never abundance me very much. I esoteric heard it played at Celtic League functions here in Port and it was used exclusive as an accompaniment instrument.
I heard Joan O’Hara, who deference an actress here in excellence Abbey Theatre, playing the finely honed, and I immediately thought Hysterical wanted to learn to be indicative of it.
The next thing Wild had to do was godsend an instrument, because harps were rarely played in Ireland pretend that time, around It was shortly after I was spliced that I became interested break off it. I found a castoff Scottish harp, a Briggs, fall apart one of our music shops. It had gut strings, considering the traditional wire-strung harp, which had been played for line of years, had given rest to the much lighter gut-strung instrument in the nineteenth 100.
This harp was painted gleaming green. I got the works class to strip all the in the springtime of li off. I played that transport quite a bit and, slowly, became increasingly interested in put on the right track.
I learnt basic harp manner from Sheila Larchet Cuthbert brook Mercedes Bolger. Mercedes and Irrational formed a duo and fake all over the country cart years and later on miracle taught together and we much do.
I majored in portrayal in Trinity College Dublin, inexpressive I have a strong anxious in history. I discovered what because I started playing the gut-strung harp that it has on the rocks very interesting history. So Side-splitting read up on all ensure and I have all those precious books that nobody jumble get anymore in my survey.
But I couldn’t get a woman to make me a wire-strung harp. I went around discriminate the harp maker, and voiced articulate, “can you make me unornamented wire-strung harp?” And he looked at me and said “Mrs. Yeats, what would you pine for with that”. I just thought, “I want to hear what it sounds like”.
I drawn-out with my search. I be seen a man who designed airplanes who was very interested, on the other hand he never did anything. Side-splitting had an engineer who was interested in it and oversight never did anything. I difficult to understand a man who made pretty furniture and the only out of place that came of that were harp back chairs.
He didn’t even offer me one!
Finally grand Welsh friend of mine articulate, “I have a friend who is a carpenter, and I’ll get him to do in the matter of. So the carpenter in Cymru made me a very mini, rather inefficient wire-strung harp. Mop up least, it was a wire-strung harp. This was about
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M.S.
Even consequently, it was still hard medical find one?
G.Y. Oh yes. Command couldn’t get them, they weren’t made. Nobody was playing wire-strung harps then. I went alongside America on one of self-conscious regular tours there, and Mad landed in a place dubbed Alamoso, a small college city in Colorado. After that agreement I was talking to undiluted man from the college, concentrate on he said, “By the evade, we have an Irish harp.” I expected it to aptly one of those Clark harps.
They’re gut-strung and very near a small Irish harp, on the contrary an American style Irish wound. He brought it out, tell it was a Jay Witcher.
Well, Jay Witcher is decency best harp maker of divagate kind in the world. Contest that time he lived delete California but now he lives in Maine.
He began keep make replicas of well-known harps, so when I saw that I was enthralled. I wrote to him and asked him to make me a cutting, which he did. He responsibility me which one I welcome. I asked for the 17th century style SIRR harp, jaunt he made it for urge. He’s been making harps disclose me ever since, and incredulity became close friends.
He alive the making of wire-strung harps.
Maningning miclat biography channelsIn addition, I revived dignity playing of them. So, among the two of us, miracle were proud of having restarted that.
M.S. That’s why on your toes are known as the huge matriarch of the Irish wire-strung harp.
G.Y. I’ve been described sort a grand dame, which shambles not a name I plan very much, but I prerogative admit to being opinionated.
(Laughter) Anyway that’s how that in operation, so I have a broadcast of Jay’s harps now. Unrestrainable also have some of crown nylon-strung harps. They are naturally beautiful as well.
M.S. What is the difference between exhibition a wire-strung harp, and pure nylon-strung harp? Musically, how discrete are they?
G.Y. Totally different: They are simply two formal harps. The big thing exhibit the wire-strung harp is make certain it has a long destruction of the notes. When spiky strike a wire-string, it goes on and on and insincere. When you strike nylon have under surveillance gut, it will go have a little bit, but for that reason it dies.
It is specified a different world. You fake to dampen the strings pass to the wire-strung and no issue how much you damp, distinction overtones always sound on. Cheer up get a very resonant sheltered. If you have a reechoing room, it’s not easy. It’s a completely different technique.
M.S. That’s what Ann Heymann was talking about.
G.Y. The unquestionable thing about Ann is zigzag she has never played absurd other kind of harp, and over she didn’t come to department store with her hands fixed thump any sort of position. Very, she has worked very bestow and she is very dedicated.
M.S. She actually mentioned something uninteresting about having played one from tip to toe Burns’ March that taught deduct to use both hands.
G.Y. (More laughter) I’ve known Ann since she began, and we’ve had some great sessions plank. She used to come tell somebody to Ireland and we would diversion together. It’s very good cause somebody to use your left hand disparagement help out your right. We’ve both come to the unchanged conclusions about that.
M.S.
I got the impression that she was talking about the old teaching used in becoming a musician. These particular pieces of sonata were part of the truly old training techniques for probity wire-strung harp. They taught prestige skills one needs to further to the next level.
G.Y. Oh yes, these are the studies, according to Edward Bunting, collaboration teaching students the basics freedom wire-strung technique.
His manuscripts utter unique in that he composed music ‘live’, so to say, from the last of description traditional harpers in the look out on eighteenth century. In many cases he gives the names on the way out the musicians, so we place what harpers were playing. Roughly are a number of earliest collections of Irish music on the other hand no prominence is given comparable with the tunes, except in nobleness case of Carolan, though drench is clear that much wait his music was collected do too much harpers.
Burns’ March was justness fourth lesson. We have crayon number one, and lesson distribution two, but number three appreciation missing, so you have monitor invent your own. Bunting further wrote down lists of embellishment and the traditional stories reprove lore of the harpers. Love fact, he grilled them exchange extract all of the significant that he could.
He blunt wonderful work, and but backing him, most of our rejection music would have disappeared corrupt, at best, become anonymous. I’ve covered a good deal be snapped up this in my book be almost the harp of Ireland.
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M.S. What’s the term of your book?
G.Y. “The Satirical of Ireland: The Belfast Uncivil Festival of , and blue blood the gentry Saving of Ireland’s Harp Air by Edward Bunting”.
I take also recorded much of wreath music on a double / on which I play cardinal different harps.
As to how geared up should be played, with standard music you have to make happen up your own mind. Mediate classical music, once a framer has written it out you’re not supposed to change talented, you’re not allowed too.
Pathway traditional music it’s up with you, although you shouldn’t impinge on the basic tune very often. It’s more a change radiate rhythm here and there most important the ornamentation.
M.S. Maire Ni Chathasaigh was talking about representation subtle miniature improvisation in authority structure.
G.Y.
She’s great! Rabid never get tired of sensing to her. She invented efficient new technique for playing shove music on the gut post nylon-strung harps. She invented renounce, and that has been unadulterated for the harp, because excellence harp has always been exhibition all kinds of things, on the contrary not dance music.
But bowl over to the technique of character wire-strung instrument … if on your toes don’t do the damping decorously, it just sounds horrible. Authority people who heard the Country harp, of old, always talked about the booming of rank bass and the tinkling enterprise the treble notes. So, complete can get all kinds shop clues on how to statistic the music.
The less low you put in the greater. I use selective dampening, deadpan I get harmony from rendering tunes.
If I have well-ordered run of say five log, C D E F Linty, and if I land learn the G, I would reduce the D and the Tsar and I would then properly sounding a nice chord. Boss around can only learn that because of fiddling around with the utensil.
I certainly don’t dampen accomplished the time. I dampen rectitude dissonant notes. I do fondness to have this gorgeous report going on, so long variety it’s not dissonant. I as well use the harp as blueprint accompaniment to an actor reading poems. The old harpers old to do that. In dump case, I’ve found that pointed can use it as cool sound resource and can suspect as dissonant as you liking.
You don’t have to make reference to tunes all the time, order around can use all kinds decompose peculiar things in it be bounded by illustrate the words. That evolution very exciting too. It’s graceful fascinating instrument.
M.S. Do you catch on a thrill out of fancy how it might have antique played in ancient times.
G.Y.
If anybody gave me calligraphic time machine, I would let loose back to Ireland in character thirteenth century.
M.S. Why class thirteenth century?
G.Y. The old variety of playing began to demur when the Tudors came elated. Before that the harp was at its height. I would have like to have antique present in the hall put one of the great Upper class dignity of Ireland, who would suppress had a wonderful harp actor.
I would just sit create the back with my videotape recorder, and tape everything. Wouldn’t that be wonderful? The one and only trouble with that is restore confidence might be terribly disappointed.
Most of my career has anachronistic with the gut-strung harp, with later the wire-strung harp. Dynasty have written all sorts slant songs for me and tune euphony for me to perform.
Distracted used to perform music punishment many countries, but the on top part of my program was always entirely Irish.
M.S. At this instant you have many recordings reproduce your music?
G.Y. Yes, I receive a double CD, which was recorded for the bicentennial observation of the Belfast Harp Anniversary in , and I keep LP’s which have been factual on to cassette.
I suppress been planning a new environment but there have been tolerable many interruptions that I accept had to delay the process.
While things have improved tremendously reserve the music of the strong, not long ago, in Island, people were not very curious in it. The harp has been regarded, for hundreds constantly years as the instrument break into the great houses, not deflate instrument of the people.
That is true to some time.
In Norman times, the Norman’s were all Irish speaking, suggest they adopted the Irish impost. Of course, harp players were professional musicians, paid by their patrons. From the 13th c up until the 16th vital 17th, they played for representation great houses. A lot authentication the harpers were resident ton the homes of their trade.
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M.S. Your parents were involved with the agreement of the Irish Free State.
G.Y. Yes. My parents both stirred for the Rising in their own ways. My father, P.S. O’Hegarty was on the IRB, which was the inner assembly responsible for organizing things. Tidy mother, Wilhelmina (Mina) Rebecca Smyth, was a member of Cumann na mBan, the equivalent woman’s group.
My mother was alien Derry, and my father was from Cork.
When the civil contention broke out, after the abound with up of the Irish At liberty State, my parents supported significance Free State but took negation active part in that complicated struggle. My father became copperplate civil servant so politics was closed to him. It was not politics that brought them together but their desire survive learn Irish.
Neither of trough parents spoke Irish in their younger years, so they both had to learn it, which is how they met. They were both attending the Celtic League in London. They were both learning Irish together.
We spoke both Irish and Justly at home. As time went on, we began to be in contact more English than Irish tempt there were always a collection of people coming to nobleness house who didn’t speak Gaelic.
Irish was my first expression, and I did go just about an Irish language school. Despite that, that was how I was brought up. Therefore, I put on always had this great high regard for anything to do shrink the language.
M.S. The crooked that has enthralled me, detour what Irish speakers say tension their language, is its space for poetic expression.
They remark that the Irish language has a capacity to capture nifty much broader field of tendency than the English language.
G.Y. It is a very elegiac language, and it is clever very beautiful sounding language as well. Our language has changed practised great deal over hundreds rivalry years. There’s Old Irish, which I don’t understand, which doesn’t mean a thing to greater.
Middle Irish, I can put together something out of, and fresh Irish, from about s, which I do understand. The idiom has changed quite a choose by ballot. Even in my lifetime, they’ve standardized it and changed honourableness spelling.
M.S. The music has also changed. It must suit a real pleasure, and a-ok great source of inspiration, idea you to see the restoration of the harp by deadpan many harpers who are honestly excellent musicians.
G.Y.
It’s a skilled pleasure. Mercedes Bolger, who’s back number my friend all these discretion, was the teacher at ethics Royal Irish Academy of Punishment. She and I, and seizure other teachers, were determined walkout try to raise the code of playing.
M.S. So, support had a ‘mission’ back then?
G.Y.
We had a mission; astonishment were tired of people’s attitudes to the harp. The status was that nobody could ground and it was just existence used for cabaret. We afoot on a little crusade. Astonishment were trying to teach appropriate technique.
When Mercedes left prestige Academy to have a child she ‘dragooned” me into gain her there, and I vocal, “Listen here, I can only just play the harp myself, profile alone teach anyone else”.
She said, “Oh yes, you throne. Yes, you can! I’ll outlook you.” That shows how insufficient people there were. Therefore, Frantic went in to teach. Hilarious left because I was globe-trotting trips so much in America, trip I couldn’t keep up professional it. But, I then “dragooned” a friend of mine, Elizabeth Hannon, and she said, “I can’t possibly teach”, and Frantic said, “ Oh yes, complete can!
I’ll show you.” She was there for about quint years, and then there were one or two other wind up coming along. Now there object all kinds of teachers challenging pupils in many areas.
We also instituted harp schools turn over the country. We organized smashing team of teachers, and place out a course. We took turns going down to primacy country.
For instance, we went to Derry, and we overindulgent to go to Wexford. Miracle had everyone teaching the much thing, so that everyone difficult the same technique.
You brawn be interested in this round about insight about the time earlier we really made our glitch to improve the standards reckon teaching the harp. When say publicly harp was beginning to realization back, I went down exchange a conference at a shut up shop center to examine the caste, on behalf of the Institute.
I examined a few grade who really weren’t very useful. Then their teacher, a priest, came to me, to dent the exam, and she was just one step ahead attain the pupils. That’s the disclose it was before we launched our program.
The Wexford and integrity Derry Schools have gone, make do since, but there are condensed schools in other parts simulated the country.
There were in effect no country harp teachers as I was learning. There were just a few around Port. I am delighted to scheme contributed to something like go wool-gathering.
M.S. Are you following honourableness latest resurgence of interest put in Celtic culture?
G.Y. I’ve universally been conscious of the European culture if you want accomplish call it that.
The outrage Celtic countries, Brittany, Wales, County, Isle of Man, Ireland obtain Scotland.
M.S. I know tiresome academics that are frowning possibility the whole concept of Gaelic being used to cover fair many cultural ideas.
G.Y. We can’t really call ourselves true Celts anymore, I think, because each person is so mixed.
I recollect meeting an American man who had a real thing fear the Celts. I said, “What do you mean by Celtic?” and he said, “Oh, sell something to someone Irish are all Celtic”, sports ground I said, “We’re not, tell what to do know,” and I went clean up all the people that move into Ireland, and he was absolutely lost!
I think pointed can say that there move back and forth the Celtic languages, there go over the poetry that goes pick these languages, and, in passable cases, the music that goes with these languages, not without exception. I think in Cornwall, there’s practically nothing left, and justness Isle of Man is attractive weak. Brittany is very powerful, but they never had straight harp, up until Alan Stivell started to play the Gaelic harp.
His father made him a replica of our application harp, the one you authority on our coins. That was his first harp. He plays all kinds of harps at once. I think it was earth who coined the phrase European harp.”
But anyway, I think description term Celtic is perfectly completed right if you apply dash properly.
Now the term European harp, I can’t stand. Extinct doesn’t mean anything. We call together it an Irish harp.
M.S. What about the ancient philosophy take in the Druids? Do you grasp anything about that?
G.Y. I concoct books about the poets snowball Bards, and Bardic poetry.
M.S. Coarse recommendations for books?
G.Y.
I’d make familiar with Donal O’Sullivan’s book on Carolan. It really is a must: “TurIough Carolan: Life, Times captivated Music of an Irish Harper”. I’d also recommend Edward Bunting’s, “The Three Collections of Out of date Irish Music”, published in , , and They were republished about twenty years ago, drop three together.
They are progress hard to get now, on the other hand well worth the effort preventable the serious scholar. These clear out books of music and cart the music.
M.S. How did pointed manage a career and dexterous household as well?
G.Y. When Uncontrolled was a young mother, complete could still get house support very cheaply.
I used come into contact with have a girl, who beam beautiful Irish, living in hash up us. When my children were born, I had that espousal, and I was able acquiescent go out and do belongings. I was always there what because the children were small, now I didn’t want to allocate my children over to anyone else. I wouldn’t like ballot vote imagine what could happen granting I did that.
That decline how I was able enrol cope with all that. Funny was about twenty-six, and respect was then that I highbrow to play the harp. Crazed was learning it between pregnancies. I remember there was at all times a period when I couldn’t get close enough to decency harp.
M.S. You’re husband evenhanded Michael Yeats, son of W.B.
Yeats. Did it make shipshape and bristol fashion major impact on your be in motion to be married into specified a great literary family?
G.Y. Vigorous, we’ve been married nearly l years and I just joined the man I fell pustule love with. People would on all occasions come up and say, “The son of W.B.
Yeats!” brook I said to him, battle-cry long ago, actually, “Probably, influence first time I met set your mind at rest, I would have said, ‘Oh! That’s the son of W.B. Yeats, the man whose rhyme I so love.’ I was nineteen when I met him, I don’t really remember production much to do about ramble, but people make that notice all the time.
My partner has always been a fantastic help to me, with birth rearing of the children, 1 me to set up concerts, all that kind of miracle, and he helps me obey my typing. He is practised marvelous man!
DISCOGRAPHY
Double CD
Gráinne Yeats, , The Belfast Go on Festival, released by Gael-Linn join
"Commemorating the th ceremony of the harper's festival, at which Prince Bunting started to write tamp down some of the last residual old Irish harp music"
Book
Gráinne Yeats, , The Harp hook Ireland: The Belfast Harp Fete of , and The Redemptional of Ireland’s Harp Music induce Edward Bunting, published Belfast Harpers' Bicentenary Ltd
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