- Mary Bergin
-
Mary Bergin (born 1949) is an Irish folk musician who is widely acknowledged as one of the great masters of the tin whistle. She plays in both the Irish Traditional and Baroque styles.[1]
Contents
Biography
Born in Shankill, County Dublin, to parents Joe and Máire (melodean and fiddle players, respectively), Mary started learning to play the tin whistle at the age of nine.[1] She won the All Ireland tin whistle championship in 1968[citation needed]. Her two virtuosic recordings of solo tin whistle, Feadóga Stáin (1979) and Feadóga Stáin 2 (1993), have been critically cited as "outstanding and unequalled.".[2]
Bergin moved to Spiddal, County Galway in the early 1970s and played with many of the up and coming stars of the Irish music scene, notably De Danann and Ceoltóri Laighin.[1] She is currently a member of the group Dordán, who perform Irish traditional music and Baroque music.
In addition to releasing two solo albums, which aided the popularisation of modern traditional Irish tin whistle playing, and three albums with Dordán, she has taught hundreds of students, in Ireland, across Europe, and in the United States, to play the whistle.[3]
Playing Style
Bergin was exposed to the music of many renowned musicians from an early age, but her style is particularly influenced by flute player Packie Duignan and the whistle playing of Willie Clancy. She plays the whistle "left-handed", with the right hand covering the upper tone holes, unlike most whistle players who play with the left hand on top. [3]
Bergin's playing is characterized by great feeling, technical virtuosity, and a respect for the music. Music scholar Fintan Vallely has described her playing as "brightly ornamented but uncluttered", with "crisp articulation."[4] Writer and flute player Grey Larsen uses similar terms, describing her playing as "precise", "elegant", and "streamlined."[3]
Discography
Mary Bergin
- Feadóga Stáin (1979)
- Feadóga Stáin 2 (1993)
Dordán
- Irish Traditional and Baroque Music (July 1, 1991)
- Jigs to the Moon (October 18, 1994)
- The Night Before...A Celtic Christmas (August 25, 1998)
- Celtic Aire (July 13, 1999)
External links
- Mary Bergin discography at MusicBrainz
- http://www.rogermillington.com/tunetoc/overthebridge.html Mary Bergin's performance of Over the Bridge with comments and score
- http://maryberginwhistle.com/ Official site
References
- ^ a b c Walsh, Tommy (1989). Irish Tin Whistle Legends. Dublin, Ireland: Waltons Publishing. pp. 12. ISBN 9780786616046. http://books.google.com/books?id=thWnY_yXxeIC&pg=PA12&dq=Mary+Bergin+whistle&hl=en&ei=AnLITIO0F8WqlAfW3az_BQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CDIQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=Mary%20Bergin%20whistle&f=false.
- ^ Vallely, Fintan; Piggott, Charlie (1998). Blooming Meadows: The World of Irish Traditional Musicians. Nutan. Roberts Rinehart Publishers. pp. 28–33. ISBN 1-86059-067-5.
- ^ a b c Larsen, Grey (2003). The Essential Guide to Irish Flute and Tin Whistle. Mel Bay Publications. pp. 405. ISBN 0-7866-4942-9.
- ^ Vallely, Fintan (1999). The companion to Irish Traditional Music. NYU Press. pp. 28. ISBN 9780814788028.
- Ronan Nolan. "Mary Bergin". RamblingHouse. http://www.iol.ie/~ronolan/bergin.html. Retrieved 26 January 2006.
- Ryan Foley. "Irish Folk: The Bluffer's Guide". Stylus Magazine. http://www.stylusmagazine.com/articles/weekly_article/irish-folk-the-bluffers-guide.htm. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
Categories:- 1949 births
- Living people
- Irish tin whistle players
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