Sean McAloon

Sean McAloon (1923-1998) was a piper and pipe maker from Ireland. Originally from the Rosslea area of County Fermanagh, McAloon's first instrument was the fiddle. However, he is best known as a master of the Uilleann pipes. He emigrated to the United States in 1964, but after a year he returned to Ireland. He spent eight months working as a builder's laborer in Dublin, but moved to Belfast in 1966 to be closer to his family. There, he got a job working for the Corporation Parks Department.

His major inspirations as a piper were Phil Martin, who he saw playing at a feis in Rosslea, and Leo Rowsome. In addition to being a fine player, McAloon eventually became a respected pipe repairer and a highly regarded reed-maker. He produced about twenty sets of the instrument in his lifetime.

John McSherry owns a McAloon half-set.

Discography

* John Rea & Sean McAloon, "Drops of Brandy", Topic 12TS287, 1976
* Various artists, "Irish Traditional Music", Temple COMD2079, 2000 (compilation culled from three Topic releases, including 12TS287)
* Sean McAloon, "Stor Piobaireachta (Piping from the Archives)", Na Píobairí Uilleann, 2004

References

*Liner notes for "Drops of Brandy"
*Vallely, Fintan (1999), "The Companion to Irish Traditional Music", New York University Press. ISBN 0-8147-8802-5.