Sligo is getting ready to pay a musical tribute to Dervish sound man Finn Corrigan, who died last year, writes Siobhán Long
Spirit they christened the album. And spirit is what Dervish plan to celebrate during a festival next Friday and Saturday in memory of their sound engineer, Finn Corrigan, who died last Christmas Day.
Sligo, Dervish's home place, and Corrigan's adopted home, is bracing itself for the onslaught next weekend. What began as a tentative plan for a concert has ballooned into what promises to be one hell of a party with Yeats county natives and blow-ins threatening to hold the town hostage to its collective hornpipes, reels, jigs and back beats.
Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill, Lúnasa, Mairtín O'Connor, Kila, Danú, Sliabh Notes, Four Men And A Dog, The Saw Doctors, Those Nervous Animals and Dervish are just some of the outfits who've inked the dates in their diary: each artist claiming if not first-hand kinship, then at the very least, second-hand allegiance to the county from whence everyone from Pat McCabe to W.B. Yeats, Dermot Healy, not to mention Westlife, has drawn inspiration and no small amount of succour.
Although Sligo is inclined to hide its musical light under a bushel, it's often the destination of choice of artists keen to give the brighter lights a wide berth. Cathy Jordan, Dervish's lead singer who embodies the band's name in her mesmerising choreography, is quick to pin-point the attraction.
"I think it's the environment there, something so healing and encouraging about having Ben Bulben's big arm around you all day," she says. "Sligo doesn't come to the tip of everybody's tongue, it doesn't crow too loud but there's a strength and diversity in its music that really stands out. There are some serious jazz players here, as well as a plethora of young rock bands and of course a load of traditional musicians - and what's different here in Sligo is that the musicians hang out with one another across the genres. I haven't experienced that first hand anywhere else."
Contrary to the notion that traditional musicians inhabit a singular existence where only tunes and songs from the past survive, Jordan is quick to name the vast swathe of musicians and styles which have burrowed their way into the band's collective sub-conscious, with many of them introduced to the band by Finn Corrigan.
"Captain Beefheart, Ian Dury and The Clash were some of the bands he introduced me to and even when they didn't grab me initially, when I saw how much Finn was into them, it was contagious. To this day I'm a big Ian Dury fan, thanks to Finn. I have such good memories of mad parties in Finn's house on Good Friday with bands playing all day long. So I know in my heart of hearts that this is a very fitting tribute to Finn."
Brian McDonagh, Dervish's mandola meister and their chef d'équipe of tunes, is a Dubliner long-resident in Sligo. He too is quick to finger Sligo's musical diversity. "When I came here first, I was bowled over by the incredible mix of music you could hear any night of the week. Finn was involved in a number of bands including Auto Da Fé, Those Nervous Animals and The Headless Jellybabies, and it was a revelation to me, just to see the mix of music on offer."
McDonagh credits Corrigan with dragging Dervish out of their own comfort zone to a place where they could really let the tradition breathe free. "Finn took our sound from being simply folk to more rock 'n' roll. I'm not quite sure how to describe it, but it's certainly not music that you'd sit in the corner and listen to. His work with us on our live gigs and in the studio had a huge influence on how Dervish's sound has developed over the years."
Martin Hayes, one of the festival's biggest artists, sees it as an opportunity to underscore the vast inheritance that Sligo offers the tradition. "It is fair to say that there is no regional music style in Ireland that hasn't in some way been influenced by Sligo music. Many aspects of the Sligo style have been co-opted into the mainstream of the tradition, this is particularly true in the case of fiddle playing."
These days, the sound engineer plays a significant role in ensuring that that very style survives the vicissitudes of the live music setting, as Hayes emphasises.
"The role of the sound engineer has become increasingly important to the performance of Irish music. "Amplifying acoustic music is more complex and difficult than electric music. For Irish music, the retention of subtle acoustic properties in large concert venues has become critical to presenting the music in all its detail and power. Finn was a great engineer and a great person and I am glad to be a part of the upcoming event to honour him. Everyone who knew him was shocked by his passing."
In tandem with theatre weekend concerts, Dervish will release Sympático, an album celebrating Finn Corrigan's musical contribution to Sligo and beyond. As well as including songs donated by performing bands, there will be four original tracks, including one from Martin Hayes, a re-mixed Auto Da Fé track, Twist, on which Corrigan played, a waltz composed by Felip Carbonell, the band's manager, and a song which Cathy Jordan borrowed from Israel with lyrics written by Brendan Graham, and cello from Neil Martin. The album will be available at both concerts.
The Sympático festival takes place on November 28th and 29th in Sligo Southern Hotel. Information and bookings, telephone 071-9151143. www.dervish.ie