In Flow
Given his long-established reputation as one of the leading concertina players in the country – as co-founder of TG4 Gradam-winning group, Ensemble Ériu (with Neil O’Loghlen), as section leader with Dave Flynn’s Irish Memory Orchestra, as collaborator with Cormac Begley (Na Fir Bolg) and with Noel Hill (Concertina), and as a guest musician on so many acclaimed albums – there is an inevitable air of expectation about the release of Jack Talty’s first solo recording.
IN FLOW reflects the many years of dedication Talty has given to traditional music – as performer, producer, recording engineer, researcher, and teacher – and to developing a distinctive musical voice of his own within an approach that is passionately engaged with the music of his predecessors and contemporaries.
Echoing Paddy Kavanagh’s philosophy of finding the universal in the parochial (“The parochial mentality … is never in any doubt about the social and artistic validity of his parish. All great civilizations are based on parochialism - Greek, Israelite, English.”), this album displays an artist digging deep into the tunes and metres of his own culture to enjoy the rich musical expression that it offers the world.
With accompaniment on various tracks from John Blake on guitar and Ruairí McGorman on bouzouki, and playing six different concertinas across the album, Jack flows through tunes he has picked up down the years from friends and from recordings, tunes he has written himself and some unusual versions of familiar melodies.
The release of IN FLOW will be marked at a series of launch concerts this month:
•Ennis Trad Festival: The Queen’s Bar on Saturday, 12 November, 8pm
•The Crane Bar, Galway on Saturday, 19 November, 9pm
•The Cobblestone, Dublin 7 on Thursday, 24 November, 9pm
•Birmingham Traditional Festival on Saturday, 26 November, 1pm
•O’Sullivan’s Courthouse Pub, Dingle on Sunday, 27 November, 9pm
The album – with artwork by Maurice Gunning – is available as CD or digital download at