Mathgamhain Music. music projects by Lorcán Mac Mathúna

This is the projects page of Lorcán Mac Mathúna. An improvisational singer with roots in sean-nós and traditional singing and a destination far beyond in improvisation and composition.

Defying boundaries and genres his music takes you on unexpected and revealing journeys. He has “opened the door a little, and you have taken a glimpse inside. It is a door to the other side of an imagined and more cerebral world. You can hear the voice and the music and the colours and landscapes are strikingly different.“ -Tony Lawless Trad Connect

"a deeply expressive voice"
-Siobhán long The Irish Times

His projects include:

-An Táin musically enacts the words of 8th century Irish bards using their own words and language as they recorded it in the Book of Leinster.

-Northern Lights combines songs of the kingdoms of the Viking age, of Ireland and Scandinavia, and illustrates what are the most important things to man-kind. What are the themes that are so important that we must express them in our music.

"a man of great imagination"
-Dai Jeffries Folking.com

An Táin
by Deep End of The Ford

A specially commissioned piece by the William Kennedy Piping Festival, An Táin Bó Cuailnge is the central epic in the Ulster Cycle.

This Iron age heroic epic of a tribal ireland is the formative tale of a Gealic Identity which unites the peoples of Celtic Ireland in a bloodletting saga of heroes, greed, and ambition. The words for this 8 part descriptive piece come form the 12th century Old irish manuscript The Book Of Leinster.

An Táin

Northern Lights

Irish-Norse entanglement. Delves into the shared intrinsic themes of Norse and Irish music and folklore:

More at Northern Lights and on myspace.

From Derry to the Sea

A special commission for Derry city of Culture 2013 based on Derry's connection to the sea and how the Foyle shaped so many lives from the first exile Colmcille right up to the cities present citizens.

More at Derry to the Sea

The evolution of Sound

Compound timing, multilayered, rhythmic music derived of explorations of the musical and rhythmical quality of the Irish mediaeval syllabic poetic form.

Sound files and description here on evolution of sound

Táisc is Tuairisc (Death notice and Account)

New composition based on the doomed Franklin expedition in search of the North West Passage. Words by Lorcán Mac Mathúna, Music by Simon O' Connor.

Tasc is tuairisc -for videos and info

Old words New music (Common Tongue)

Collaboration with composer Ian Wilson and sax player Cathal Roche using old lyrics to compose new melodies mixed with Jazz and electronic music. myspace

The arrows that murder sleep
by Deep End of The Ford

Duet collaboration with Martin Tourish New music compositions for 8th century Gaelic poetry.

More info at the arrows that murder sleep

Duos - Daire Bracken, James Mahon, Joey Doyle, Maitiú Ó Casaide, Martin Tourish

Voice and chanter/fiddle/flute/accordion. Tight musical duos with melodic debth.

Lorcán Mac Mathúna on myspace

Explorations and experimentations to seek the essence of Sean nós. Find out more and on myspace

The band, Coupla heads

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