This article is from page 14 of the 2011-04-05 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 14 JPG
FRIDAY was a special night for one of Clare’s best-known musical clans as four generations of the O’Donoghue family shared the stage in Ennis. Paddy O’Donoghue (83), his son Cyril, granddaughter Leanne O’Donoghue and great-granddaughter Aoibhinn Begley performed together at ‘The apple didn’t fall far from the tree’, the first in a series of concerts due to be performed at Glór, Ennis, which celebrate Clare musicians who have inherited their love of music from their parents. The family performed the ‘Rose of Killagh’, a song that appeared on bouzouki player Cyril O’Donoghue’s 2008 album. “Leanne actually sang on the album when she was 10. It was great to get everyone together on stage. Four generations, it’s unusual that you’d get them altogether,” explained Cyril. Paddy O’Donoghue, a founding member of the Tulla Céilí Band is one of Clare’s best-known musicians. Cyril said Friday was a very proud night for his father. He added, “He was delighted, over the moon of course. He brought his first album three years ago. He has been sick so it was great to get to get the album done. There was a book of his music that came out a few years ago, Ceol an Chláir .” Cyril, who now lives in Shannon, recalled how he learned to play music from his “father and grandfather and all the musicians around east Clare”. He added, “The whole family is nearly involved in music. We’ll always be playing something. You come into the house and there are instruments all over the place.”