The Leitrim Arts Office

Patrick Sweeney
Dec 7, 2014
3 min read

Leitrim County Council Arts Office became very interested in our work, not only from the perspective of a scientific exploration, but in the wider context of connecting cultures through birdsong and music, encouraging intercultural dialogue and broadening an appreciation and understanding of diverse music practices.

Following an initial meeting we have continued to collaborate with Leitrim County Council Arts Office in the development of a parallel project funded by Leitrim County Council which underscores the scientific process with an artistic one working with a traditional Irish musician and an African musician of the highest calibre, namely Padraig McGovern and Niwel Tsumbu.

Padraig McGovern is a renowned Uilleann Piper and currently a musician in residence with Leitrim County Council’s Leitrim Equation Traditional Music Development Programme. As well as a noted musician, Padraig is equally known for his encyclopaedic knowledge of music, particularly older music archives. Niwel Tsumbu has become one of the most renowned African musicians living in Ireland since moving to Dublin from the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2004. His knowledge of music is broad to say the least and he has performed with Mel Mercier, Liam O Maonlai, Xiaohui Ma, Buena Vista Social Club, Michael O Súilleabháin, Kila, Cathy Jordan (Dervish), Steve Cooney and Nigel Kennedy among others.

In late January Padraig and Niwel will come together to take part in this birdsong project. After a period of exploring each other’s practice and repertoire, the two musicians will improvise new music together using the birdsong of the Wood Warbler and Swallow as inspiration and melodic theme. While no outcomes are pre-defined at this stage, it is hoped that this may continue as a strand of enquiry under the Leitrim Equation Programme leading to the development of new music and the creation of cultural and artist exchanges between Leitrim and African musicians and festivals.

Niwel Tsumbu was born in 1982 in Democratic Republic of Congo (ex Zaire). As a teenager it became clear that Niwel had an innate ability to learn and play the music of his ancestors - soukous and rumba and at seventeen he enrolled in Music College. Following a move to Ireland in 2004, Niwel quickly became involved with the Irish music scene and formed many groups as well as starting a long-time collaboration with percussionist Eamonn Cagney. Niwel’s elegant and fluent guitar playing draws from African rhythms, Rumba, Jazz, Classical, flamenco and more. Playing electric & acoustic guitars Niwel sings mostly in his native 'Lingala' and French. He composes and plays a range of music that stretches from contemporary versions of Congolese traditional music from the 1930s & 40s to modern jazz. With Trasna (Mel Mercier, Liam O Maonlai) Niwel performed at the Festival of World Cultures and in China at Expo 2010 alongside Xiaohui Ma and over the last few years has performed with musicians and groups as diverse as Buena Vista Social Club, The Wailers, Michael O Súilleabháin, Kila, Cathy Jordan (Dervish), Steve Cooney and Nigel Kennedy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxREGqqD6A0

Padraig McGovern hails from Ballymagovern on the Leitrim-Cavan border. Padraig was taught by master piper P.J. Flood from Belturbet, Co. Cavan and heavily influenced by the Button accordionist Vincent Tighe. He developed his music as a member of the Ceolas Céili Band under the tutorship of the renowned music collector Fr. John Quinn through which Padraig inherited a rich repertoire of music resurrected from the manuscripts of Stephen Grier and Alex Sutherland. He is a widely respected teacher having taught for many years at the ‘Joe Mooney Summer School’, ‘Scoil Éigse’, and ‘Ag Seinm’ and more recently at ‘The Irish Music School of Chicago’ and the ‘Dublin-Ohio festival’ in Jackson MS. He has toured extensively with CCÉ and performed with many household names such as Téada, Dervish, Lúnasa and many more. He spends most of his spare time teaching Uilleann Pipes and researching traditional Irish Music.