The poet Seamus Heaney was among the many friends of Ciarán MacMathúna who paid tribute to him at his funeral Mass at Terenure College Chapel this afternoon when hundreds of people joined his family to pay their final tributes to him.
Musicians, poets and artists all took part in the funeral Mass where the chief celebrant, Monsignor Tom Stack, described him as a “truly great Irishman, broadcaster and friend”.
He said “it was fitting Ciarán MacMathúna was laid to rest to the sound of sweet music”, at the Mount Jerome crematorium.
Born in 1925, he was a recognised authority on Irish music. A native of Limerick, he joined Radio Éireann as a radio producer in 1954.
He won two Jacob's awards for his radio programmes promoting traditional Irish music.
His Sunday morning radio series Mo Cheol Thú ran from 1970 to 2005, when he retired from broadcasting.