Temple Bar Music Festival 2008. Photo: Colin Gillen


Photo: John Slavin


From a young Co Kerry musician, to travelling the world with Riverdance and The Carlos Nunez Band, to touring as a solo musician, and now more recently to playing in a Basque – Irish trio, Niamh Ní Charra is no


stranger to stretching boundaries. Marloes Van Amerom chats with Niamh about her period in Riverdance, the universality of folk music and her new album.


“I


come from Killarney in the South West, where I grew up surrounded by local musicians, so I guess it was inevitable that I would have some sort of musical career. The area just outside Killarney, known as Sliabh Luachra, is very well known for its set dancing and the particular playing style associated with that, so I grew up listening to that and going to Céilis and house parties where I would play for the dancers. But I was also influenced by music from all over Ireland, in particular Galway in the West, where my father is from. I don’t really remember ever not playing, but apparently I started playing the whistle when I was about three, and what I do remember is getting my first concertina from Santa Claus when I was four! I started the fiddle a year later.”


Niamh continued to develop her skills, and became a greatly accomplished player both on the concertina and the fiddle. She went on to win several music awards and to play with some of the finest Irish artists on the scene at that time. She also began performing her music further afield, representing Ireland at festivals in the UK and France.


MARLOES: Of course you were already relatively well known among many folk music lovers for years, but your participation in Riverdance from 1998 quickly raised your profile further. How was that experience for you?


“I really loved my time with it, actually. Being in a big production which was very theatrical was a lot of fun. I was the lead instrumental soloist and during my solos I didn’t just play but ran all over the stage! I was a performer really, rather than merely a musician, and my part involved a lot of stage work. Being in Riverdance also greatly improved and stretched my musical skills. It required me to play melodies in many time signatures not normally found in Irish music and alongside instruments which were equally uncommon. We also used in ear monitors which took some getting used to and played along with a click track which ensured we played at exactly the same speed every night.”


“Apart from the music, performing in theatres and onstage gave me a chance to perfect my ‘stage craft’. Learning how to move around the stage in such a way that everyone in the hall can see you while making contact with them was important. It often meant running backwards, and doing this without knocking over another performer is quite


a skill in itself! Also, before joining Riverdance I was working as an electronic engineer and had never thought I could have a career in music. Thanks to Riverdance I realised I could pursue a career in music if I wanted to. In fact I liked Riverdance so much I stayed for eight years – after that I felt it was time to move on and start something new.”


And so, in 2007, Niamh released her first solo album, Ón Dá Thaobh / From Both Sides, which received rave reviews and was the only the only Irish album to be included in MOJOs Top Ten Folk Albums for that year. Going from strength to strength, she then released Súgach Sámh / Happy Out in 2010. With the success of these albums, and with her reputation now firmly established within the traditional world, Niamh is even more in demand as a live performer, both as a soloist with her band, and with outfits such as The Carlos Nunez Band. Her touring itinerary is relentless!


MARLOES: You are a very active musician, having just finished a tour around Europe and the US. And I understood more touring lies ahead of you. What is it like being on the road that much?


“On the whole I really enjoy it. It is great to meet the people that like my music and to meet new ones that hopefully will (laughs). And the traveling can be interesting. But touring also takes up a lot of energy and requires a relatively disciplined life. You need to be pretty fit to be able to perform and to keep your voice. So for me no late night partying with lots of drinking during concert tours - or at least not that often! I also try to look after myself well to avoid tendonitis, which is


The Living Tradition - Page 31


getting pretty common among musicians whose fingers make the music! So lots of stretching and massage. Then of course eating healthily as much as possible, and getting good sleep is important. A rule of the road is, ‘eat when you can, and sleep when you can!’ It’s important to do this to keep yourself from getting sick, because getting sick is not an option!”


MARLOES: Is there something you would like the audience to take away from your performances?


“Errmm, well, three things I guess, which are all important traits of folk music as I see it. I want people to enjoy themselves - you want people to leave happy. Get them up dancing! Which is why after playing a sad song, like Paddy’s Lamentation about the Irish in the American civil war, I will usually shift back to something more cheerful and ensure my show ends on that note. Also, I feel it is important to give people value for their money. You want to give people a lovely enjoyable evening, and have them glad they bought the ticket and hopefully leave them wanting more.


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