Michael Dwyer absorbed the natural glory of the Beara peninsula and spun it into magical tunes on his tin whistle. When you met him walking on a village street or a quiet boreen he would, as likely as not, announce a new composition and, there and then, whip out the whistle and give you an impromptu rendering of the piece.
A restless and often solitary man, the music was his constant preoccupation as he rambled the byroads of his native place, marvelling at the ever-changing manifestations of nature and the seasons. He was a gifted performer on tin whistle and fiddle and composed more than 100 tunes for the whistle. The evocative titles include The fly on the butter and The bird in the bush, and he also documented musically the impact of significant local events - creating, for example, an original lament for a drowned fisherman friend.
Homage from his peers
House wake
Talented family
His artistic stature has been realised more fully since he himself was tragically drowned in Kenmare Bay on June 9th, 1997. Irish traditional musicians, far and wide, paid homage and many travelled to his funeral. During the 1960s and '70s, Michael had spent time in London and Dublin playing with many renowned musicians.
A fortnight ago, in the small village of Ardgroom, Co Cork, near his home place of Cailroe, hundreds gathered for the first Michael Dwyer Memorial Festival. With a memorial Mass, traditional concerts and music and dancing workshops, tribute was paid to the man who was national tin whistle champion in both Ireland and England and took first place in many Feiseanna Ceoil.
Set dancing was a particularly strong feature of the festival, with groups from throughout Co Cork and further afield competing for a memorial cup. The hotly-contested senior competition was won by the Crossroads Set from Glengarriff.
Michael was often heard to say that he wished to one day see musicians of standing gathered together in Ardgroom. It is hoped to make the festival, organised by a small group of his friends, an annual event and a signal date on the traditional music calendar.
Michael was born into a family of exceptional musical talent, and his brother, John, is at present preparing his compositions for publication in book form. But perhaps the most important legacy he has left is the burgeoning of a vibrant new musical tradition at the western tip of Beara.
Much loved friend
The festival weekend, sadly, coincided with the passing of another much loved member of the community who, like Michael, brightened the lives of his many friends.
The measure of a man's life achievements may be taken in various ways, many of them worldly and spurious. Quinlan Hanley never accumulated wealth or power, but his candour and open-hearted friendship and honesty were gifts, beyond measure or price, bestowed liberally upon stranger and acquaintance alike.
Remarkably, many young people in his community were in tears after the news of his death - a true mark, surely, of how special he was. "Quin" might be described, quite inadequately, as a simple working man. But his love of people, and of his native West Cork, was infectious and inspiring to all who met him.
He will be remembered and mourned in England, where he spent eight years, and in Dublin, where he worked for many more before retiring to his birthplace at Ballydonegan, Allihies, until his death at the age of 71. After a traditional house wake, friends vied for the privilege of shouldering his coffin down the steep village street to the graveyard.
A true Christian
It is not often that the journalist's computer keyboard is in danger of being short-circuited by tears - it is, needs be, a hardbitten occupation. However, the passing of one who was a Christian, in the true and gentle sense, is an occasion when the heart cannot be denied.
On behalf of all those whose lives he touched and enriched, from the fishing rocks and fields of Allihies to The Flowing Tide in Dublin and the Irish taverns in Camden Town, the last message is relayed: "Quin - we salute you".