Andy Irvine

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Andy Irvine (2016)

Andrew Kennedy "Andy" Irvine (born June 14, 1942 in London ) is an Irish folk musician , singer and songwriter.

Life

Irvine grew up as an only child in an artistic family. The father, a Scot from Glasgow , was a musician. The mother, Irish from Lisburn , County Antrim , stopped acting after the birth of her son. Due to family problems, he himself had to leave the family early and go to boarding school. As a child he got a role as an actor. He later played in a BBC theater company for two years before moving to Dublin . He learned to play the guitar at the age of twelve and came into contact with musicians from the folk scene such as Derroll Adams at the age of 17 . Woody Guthrie became his role model. He fled his rather unloved environment to Ireland and moved to Baggot Street in Dublin. He acted without being able to make a living from it.

Like many musicians of the time, Irvine kept afloat with occasional appearances and found a second home in the O'Donoghue couple's pub. Here he was influenced by musicians like Luke Kelly and Ronnie Drew . He began to work more intensively as a musician. In 1965 he traveled through Ireland and Europe, where he made street music in Munich and Vienna with Joe Dolan (from Galway, not the pop singer). After returning to Ireland, he founded the group Sweeney's Men , of which he was a member for two years. He then undertook a longer journey through Eastern Europe, especially the Balkans , and was strongly influenced by the folk music there. This influence can be found in many of his projects to this day.

After this trip, Andy Irvine first met Dónal Lunny , then Christy Moore and Liam O'Flynn . They founded the Planxty group , which also made it well known internationally. By this time Irvine had developed into a virtuoso Irish bouzouki and mandolin player.

Planxty was temporarily dissolved in the mid-1970s. In 1975 Irvine married and toured Europe with Mick Hanly ; In 1976 he played briefly with De Danann . However, he found his way back to Planxty, who had reunited with the flautist Matt Molloy in a slightly different formation . He released his first solo album Rainy Sundays, Windy Dreams , in 1979 and started several successful projects after Planxty split up again in the early 1980s. The most famous bands that came about in this way are Mozaik and Patrick Street , which still exist today.

There has been a close friendship between the two musicians Andy Irvine and Peter Ratzenbeck since 1980, and they often play concerts together.

Since 2002, Irvine and Dónal Lunny have also led the international group Mozaik , which includes Nikola Parov , Bruce Molsky and Rens van der Zalm , with whom he has toured several times and released four albums by 2019. In 2004/2005 Planxty got back together in the original formation for a few concerts.

Irvine has lived in Donnybrook, a district in the south of Dublin , since 2009 and continues to go on concert tours, mainly with the bands Patrick Street and Mosaic , but also solo. In 2012 and 2013 he appeared as a member of the band LAPD, whose name stands for the first letters of the band members Liam O'Flynn, Andy Irvine, Paddy Glackin and Dónal Lunny. He last toured Germany in autumn 2016.

stylistics

LAPD with Irvine (2nd from left) and (from left) Dónal Lunny , Liam O'Flynn and Paddy Glackin (2012)

Andy Irvine is considered an introverted person. Often absorbed in himself, he plays on stage in a style that is probably unique. The command of the instruments is exceptional. He mostly plays the mandolin and bouzouki, whose influence on Irish music was largely shaped by him. Irvine hardly plays chord-oriented anymore, but accompanies himself and others with sophisticated harmonies that make up his unmistakable style. In this way of playing he is comparable to the virtuoso guitar playing of Dick Gaughan , whose joint publication Parallel Lines is considered a milestone in acoustic folk music.

repertoire

Irvine has written numerous songs that are well known and have become classics, such as The West Coast Of Clare . However, he also interprets traditional and contemporary songs. The combination of Irish music with melodies and rhythms from Bulgaria, Macedonia, Hungary and Turkey is characteristic.

Discography

  • 1976: Andy Irvine (with Paul Brady )
  • 1979: Rainy Sundays… Windy Dreams (solo)
  • 1980: Parallel Lines (with Dick Gaughan )
  • 1991: Rude Awakening (solo)
  • 1992: East Wind (with Davy Spillane ; Tara)
  • 1996: Rain on the Roof (solo)
  • 2000: Way Out Yonder (solo)
  • 2010: Abocurragh (solo)
  • 2013: Parachilna (solo)

as well as numerous albums as a band member and compilations

literature

Web links

Commons : Andy Irvine  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Portrait of Andy Irvine ( Memento from June 20, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) (English), accessed on August 12, 2015
personal data
SURNAME Irvine, Andy
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Irvine, Andrew Kennedy (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Irish folk musician, singer, songwriter
DATE OF BIRTH June 14, 1942
PLACE OF BIRTH London , UK