Why Sean O’Riada is Irish music’s pop icon
We would like to share with you an excellent article detailing the life and work of Sean O’Riada. Sean is one of the heroes of modern Ireland. A talented musician and composer, he is credited with taking traditional Irish music out of the kitchens and pubs of Ireland and putting it on the concert stages of the world. He died, prematurely, in 1971, the year Clonakilla was established by John Kirk. He was John’s cousin.
So while you’re sipping on a glass of our elegant cool climate O’Riada Shiraz have a read of the story of one of Ireland’s musical giants. The following appeared in the Irish Times Oct 1, 2011
The composer’s groundbreaking arrangements of traditional music had a formative influence on an entire generation, writes SIOBHÁN LONG
FISHERMAN, PHILOSOPHER and polyglot; broadcaster, composer and arranger: Seán Ó Riada occupies a place somewhere between that of a tortured genius and what you could term an iconoclassicist. This year, the 40th anniversary of his death and the 80th anniversary of his birth, offers a timely opportunity to delve beneath the surface of this maestro whose legacy is still debated in both traditional and classical music circles.
