Restringing The Stone Fiddle

A performative reading of Paddy Tunney’s The Stone Fiddle, taking us on a journey through his stories, songs and poetry. With John Tunney & Mary Tunney.

John Tunney is a Clare-based singer and song writer who grew up in a multi-generational family of Irish traditional singers. The Tunney family repertoire is one of the richest in the entire Irish tradition, and John has appeared at numerous festivals throughout Ireland, on radio and television and on several albums, most recently a solo CD ‘The Immigrant: A Stone on the Cairn of Tradition.’

In 2023, John and his family founded the Tunney Song Tradition Trust. The trust is dedicated to the preservation and promotion of the collected works of Paddy Tunney, ‘The Man of Songs.’

‘Restringing The Stone Fiddle’ is an evocation of the oral tradition of fireside culture with its colour, charm and richness. Featuring diverse line-ups, the show has recently been performed at a variety of festivals including Belfast TradFest, the Ulster Fleadh, Ceol na Coille, and Fleadh Cheoil na h-Éireann in Wexford. On this occasion, John will be accompanied by his wife Mary.

Paddy Tunney (1921-2002) was one of the most celebrated figures in traditional Irish music, renowned for his rendition of ‘big songs’ such as ‘Mountain Streams’, ‘Where the Moorcock Crows’, ‘Murlough Mary’ and ‘Highland Mary’.

He counted Willie Clancy, Liam Clancy, Tommy Makem and Séamus Ennis among his friends, and he recorded a total of eight solo albums. He also published several books, including the autobiographical ‘The Stone Fiddle: My Way to Traditional Song.’

In 1979, when The Stone Fiddle first appeared, The Irish Times wrote that “Paddy Tunney’s book is much more than a collection of songs … only infrequently can a study be said to reveal a culture from within. When such an event occurs, the result can be electrifying, and such is the effect of The Stone Fiddle, undoubtedly a of piece literature, and yet so directed by the oral tradition that the pages dance with a degree of life denied to most literary works.”

Now, after many years out of print, Tunney Song Tradition Trust is making this 1970s’ classic available to a new generation of traditional song and music enthusiasts. This performance celebrates not only Paddy Tunney’s stories, but also some of the 60 songs that are included in the book.

Journeying On…

A family affair, the Tunney Song Tradition Trust works to ensure the continuation of the songs and stories that evoke memories of past celebrations and gatherings whilst guaranteeing their presence at all those yet to come.

In that spirit, after the main performance, we ask you to share your own songs and stories with us in a traditional Rambling House.

This event is part of Sound Out 2024, a celebration of spoken word, story and song in Kilrush, Co. Clare.