Darach O'Cathain
Encyclopedia
Darach Ó Catháin was an Irish
sean-nós
singer. Ó Catháin was born in Maimin, Lettermore
, Connemara
seventh in a family of twelve children, in 1922. In 1935 his family moved to new government created Gaeltacht
of Rath Cairn
, Co. Meath. His love of singing and many of his songs were learned from his mother. By the late 1950s he was established as one of the finest Sean-nós song | sean-nós singers in the country. In the early 60s Seán Ó Riada
had begun to broadcast a series of radio programmes, Reacaireacht an Riadaigh, on RTÉ Radio 1. These programmes were to transform the traditional music
. Darach Ó Catháin was the singer in those programmes. In 1962 a commercial recording was issued. Out of all of this came Ceoltoiri Cualann and eventually The Chieftains
. But - in the meantime - Darach disappeared.
Darach fell in love and married when he was 19.
While he was performing with O Riada he was also working as a labourer on the building sites of London
and the north of England
. By 1963 he'd become convinced his family's future was in Leeds
. In that year his wife, Brid, sold the family home and moved to Yorkshire
. In the intervening years Darach released another recording, Traditional Irish Unaccompanied Singing" (1975). It cemented his reputation as a singer. Indeed, for many it established him as the greatest of the sean-nós singers. Darach Ó Catháin became an iconic figure within the Irish music tradition.
But Darach Ó Catháin was never wholly Darach Ó Catháin, he was also Dudley Kane, the name by which he was known to his family and friends. Darach Ó Catháin was a stage name, the name O Riada gave him. When The Kane family sold their family home and moved to Leeds they were beginning an experiment that would not prove a total success. The Kanes are still in Leeds.
'Dudley Kane - Darach Ó Catháin - is here in Leeds' (RTE) follows that journey through the eyes of three of Darach's seven children and their mother, Brid. When the family made that journey the eldest daughter, Barbara, was 16 and already in Boston
. She was later to rejoin her family. Bridie (15) and Monica (9) recall their early days in Leeds, their sense of dislocation - at loss in a language they had little knowledge of and the love they had for their father and his musical inheritance.
He was also the subject of a major television documentary "Cérbh É? Darach Ó Catháin" on TG4, first broadcast in November 2009. In this programme, one of a series in which major figures in contemporary traditional music, profile and pay homage to a master of their craft from a bygone age, Iarla Ó Lionáird traced the life and legacy of Ó Catháin. This can be viewed for 35 days after transmission on the channel's Webcast website www.tg4.tv (then select 'Ceol Cartlann' and the programme is called 'Cerbh E' (in Gaelic with nglish subtitles).
"When you've music in you, you're hearing music always." Darach Darach Ó Catháin
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
sean-nós
Sean-nós song
Sean-nós is a highly ornamented style of unaccompanied traditional Irish singing. It is a sean-nós activity, which also includes sean-nós dancing...
singer. Ó Catháin was born in Maimin, Lettermore
Lettermore
Leitir Móir is a Gaeltacht village in County Galway, Ireland. It is also the name of an island, linked by road to the mainland, in which the village of Lettermore is situated. The name derives from the Irish Leitir Móir meaning great rough hillside . The main spoken language of the area is Irish...
, Connemara
Connemara
Connemara is a district in the west of Ireland consisting of a broad peninsula between Killary Harbour and Kilkieran Bay in the west of County Galway.-Overview:...
seventh in a family of twelve children, in 1922. In 1935 his family moved to new government created Gaeltacht
Gaeltacht
is the Irish language word meaning an Irish-speaking region. In Ireland, the Gaeltacht, or an Ghaeltacht, refers individually to any, or collectively to all, of the districts where the government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant language, that is, the vernacular spoken at home...
of Rath Cairn
Ráth Cairn
Ráth Cairn is a small Gaeltacht in County Meath, Ireland. It is about 55 km northwest of Dublin....
, Co. Meath. His love of singing and many of his songs were learned from his mother. By the late 1950s he was established as one of the finest Sean-nós song | sean-nós singers in the country. In the early 60s Seán Ó Riada
Seán Ó Riada
Seán Ó Riada , was a composer and perhaps the single most influential figure in the revival of Irish traditional music during the 1960s...
had begun to broadcast a series of radio programmes, Reacaireacht an Riadaigh, on RTÉ Radio 1. These programmes were to transform the traditional music
Folk music of Ireland
The folk music of Ireland is the generic term for music that has been created in various genres in Ireland.-History:...
. Darach Ó Catháin was the singer in those programmes. In 1962 a commercial recording was issued. Out of all of this came Ceoltoiri Cualann and eventually The Chieftains
The Chieftains
The Chieftains are a Grammy-winning Irish musical group founded in 1962, best known for being one of the first bands to make Irish traditional music popular around the world.-Name:...
. But - in the meantime - Darach disappeared.
Darach fell in love and married when he was 19.
While he was performing with O Riada he was also working as a labourer on the building sites of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and the north of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. By 1963 he'd become convinced his family's future was in Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
. In that year his wife, Brid, sold the family home and moved to Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
. In the intervening years Darach released another recording, Traditional Irish Unaccompanied Singing" (1975). It cemented his reputation as a singer. Indeed, for many it established him as the greatest of the sean-nós singers. Darach Ó Catháin became an iconic figure within the Irish music tradition.
But Darach Ó Catháin was never wholly Darach Ó Catháin, he was also Dudley Kane, the name by which he was known to his family and friends. Darach Ó Catháin was a stage name, the name O Riada gave him. When The Kane family sold their family home and moved to Leeds they were beginning an experiment that would not prove a total success. The Kanes are still in Leeds.
'Dudley Kane - Darach Ó Catháin - is here in Leeds' (RTE) follows that journey through the eyes of three of Darach's seven children and their mother, Brid. When the family made that journey the eldest daughter, Barbara, was 16 and already in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
. She was later to rejoin her family. Bridie (15) and Monica (9) recall their early days in Leeds, their sense of dislocation - at loss in a language they had little knowledge of and the love they had for their father and his musical inheritance.
He was also the subject of a major television documentary "Cérbh É? Darach Ó Catháin" on TG4, first broadcast in November 2009. In this programme, one of a series in which major figures in contemporary traditional music, profile and pay homage to a master of their craft from a bygone age, Iarla Ó Lionáird traced the life and legacy of Ó Catháin. This can be viewed for 35 days after transmission on the channel's Webcast website www.tg4.tv (then select 'Ceol Cartlann' and the programme is called 'Cerbh E' (in Gaelic with nglish subtitles).
"When you've music in you, you're hearing music always." Darach Darach Ó Catháin