Niall Vallely

Concertina player Niall Vallely is currently touring the country to promote his recently released album, Beyond Words. His performance at Whelans last night was impressive.

He was accompanied by four musicians - Gerry McKee (bouzouki), Frank Torpey (bodhran), Noel Barrett (bass guitar), and Gerry Culloty (snare drum) but Vallely was always the centre of attention, exhibiting some extraordinary virtuosity and making the humble concertina sing.

They opened with a set of jigs, Vallely presenting the tunes in crisp, clean style, syncopating gently to contrast with McKee's rigid bouzouki accompaniment. Barrett made excellent use of his fretless bass guitar here, sliding softly into notes and playing brief passages in unison with the concertina (occasionally during the concert his playing became unnecessarily elaborate, but not here.)

Vallely continued with one of his own tunes, Ludwig's. A reel with a light, Breton feel, it was beautifully arranged, incorporating soft bouzouki chords and brushes on the snare drum.

In fact, Vallely's own tunes provided several of the evening's highlights. The first set ended with two hectic dances - The Pitbull Spiders and The High B. Vallely tore into them, creating a maze of ornamental detail while retaining a clear sense of structure.

His slip-jig, The 30th Anniversary, was a particularly complex tune, with odd phrasing. Vallely made sense of it, and was aided by a precise accompaniment from snare drum and bodhran.

Two Scottish hornpipes found him in playful form - The tune of The Mathematician ascends gracefully, then tumbles downward in a flurry of detail. Vallely's humorous performance brought out the contrast.

There were a couple of guests - he was joined by his brother Cillian (uilleann pipes) for a series of duets; then by singer Karan Casey, who sang an impressive unaccompanied version of The Snows They Melt the Soonest. An excellent evening.