Paddy Reynolds remembered in music

Moyne, Co. Longford -- In the traditional music realm, the image of the country crossroads is a very strong one whether you are talking about the humble roadsides gathering spot of olden times in Ireland, or a more weather-friendly indoor local where the country people came together to play, dance and share one another’s company. 

Or it can be a simple happenstance where like-minded individuals meet and begin a cultural exchange that can be truly historic. 

Those notions all came to mind recently I when I made my way out to the parish of Dromard, the townland outside of Moyne in Longford where the late fiddler Paddy Reynolds was born where a night of music helped celebrate a legacy that touched many people.

It was my first visit to Longford, and the occasion would be memorable for a number of reasons, most of them revolving around the legendary musician who spent over 57 years in New York as part of the storied New York Sligo fiddling masters who dominated the trad music scene for decades, from Coleman to Conway.  

A night of music was organized by John Daly, a Cork man and fiddler who befriended Reynolds and who, shortly before Reynolds died back in 2005 produced a CD entitled Paddy Reynolds: Classic Recordings of an Irish Fiddle Master from a treasure trove of tapes found in Reynolds’ Staten Island home. 

Daly, who was a leading musician out in Chicago before being recruited for a job back in Ireland, wanted to have a CD launch in Paddy’s home place with some of his family and friends that included his one surviving sister Peggy. Making it extra special was the availability of one of Paddy’s foremost American protégées, his one-time Brooklyn neighbor, Tony Demarco, who was on his own Irish tour launching his CD The Sligo Indian to be the evening’s special guest.

Demarco was a young high school student back in Brooklyn with a curiosity for expanding his musical horizons when he was sitting on a park bench playing the fiddle when Reynolds came walking along.  Paddy saw some potential and invited the young Italian American with one quarter Irish heritage over to his house to learn a few Irish tunes. 

It began a life-long friendship as Reynolds influence helped make Demarco one of the leading fiddlers in the Irish scene in the country, garnering respect on both sides of the Atlantic. While Reynolds was a formative influence on the young Demarco, Tony’s own fascination with Irish music led him to many other influences that are in evidence on the new Demarco recording.

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Nster.com