Mossie Scanlon

Mossie's Story

Mossie with Mike Daneen O Se
in Galway

I was born in Baile an Lochaigh, a little village in the West Kerry Gaeltacht district of Corca Dhuibhne, at the foot of Mount Brandon, the fifth in a family of thirteen - ten boys and three girls. We were brought up on a small farm of 30 acres. Irish was our daily language in the community around us. Although we used to have lessons in English at St Eirc's school we didn't use it much until we had left the district, only now and then if a non-Irish speaking stranger came. In fact it took some time after we had left home for good, before we felt comfortable speaking English.

Gaelic Heritage

I was immersed in Irish music and culture from the cradle. On my mother's side, the Moriartys, were themselves steeped in traditional song for generations back. Among my earliest 'heroes' were my aunt Kathleen and uncles Páid, Tony and Mike Moriarty. They were a great influence on me. I well remember when my aunt Kathleen used to come home from America they often would all come together at our house and we used to get great enjoyment from the music and the songs, most of them in Irish. top

Traditional Community

Concertina Player Lex Paton and I discussing my trip.

Looking back on my childhood, it seems that nearly everyone I knew had a song or two, or could play a few tunes on the `box' if called upon. Songs were often strongly identified with a particular singer, I remember Thady Flaherty, an old man and a great singer. I was no more than ten years old when I first heard Thady sing Róisín Dubh, but I will always remember it.

There were some very fine traditional singers, musicians and seanchaithe in the district at that time (and there still is, thankfully) who were known throughout Co Kerry and far beyond it. My own father, Tom Scanlon, was recognised as a fine speaker of Irish and a noted seanchaí. He had that agility or nicety of speech which he inherited from his ancestors and which was highly prized among the old people. It brought frequent visits to our house by Irish scholars and academics from Cork University and other places of learning in those days. top

Meeting President McAleese
in Australia.

Ofcourse we had songs in English too, in my boyhood, some traditional and a few modern songs. These latter came from 'the wireless' which was coming into some houses around that time, but mostly from our own people coming home on holidays from England and America. Raidió Éireann (now RTÉ) and Radio Luxemburg were the two stations we listened to when we had the time, but there was very little Irish to be heard on air then, if I remember correctly. It was only in later years I began to understand the true situation the Gaeltacht people found themselves in - small isolated communities, their young people leaving and under moral pressure from language enthusiasts to hold fast to the language. Yet there was very little practical support from the authorities then in comparison to what is available now, to fight against the influence of creeping Anglicisation.

Today however, it is everywhere acknowledged that traditional music and singing and especially the language itself, are essential to our self respect and identity as a small nation. And isn't it great that songs are being written again in Irish? After being 'uncool' for so long, the language is fighting back and even recovering lost ground in daily life. top

A Migrant Family

Meeting Mary Robinson
in Australia.

In the 'seventies, when I left school, there was very little opportunity to earn a living at home and, like many more young people at the time I had to bid farewell to my native place. After some time working in various parts of Ireland I set sail for London to join two of my brothers there. It was in London some time later that I met and married my wife, Marie. After some years in London the urge to travel came over us again but this time we decided to break with tradition and head for Australia. We arrived in 1981 when our first son Paul, was only five months old, and although we struggled for a while as most migrants do, we soon came to grips with the ways of our new country. Our second son Sean, was born here in 1989. top

With Seamus Begley in Dingle.

Shared heritage

There is an obvious Irish influence in Australian traditional music, even if folk music and the bush song tradition seem a bit marginalised these days. This is a pity because it’s from these songs I learned about the penal and colonial days, the life of the pioneers and the sad history of the Aboriginal people. They appealed to me from the start and it was that I think which first sparked the interest in the songs and history of Australia which I still have. top

Re-connecting

I wasn't long settled in Epping on the outskirts of Melbourne,when the chance came to re-connect with my beloved Irish language, something I had missed very much. A newly established multicultural radio station was looking to get an Irish language group together and as a native Irish speaker I was invited to be a part of it. Starting from broadcasting to the Irish speakers and enthusiasts across Australia once a fortnight we were soon having regular weekly gatherings and the group was growing from month to month. Because of the number of new people coming who wished to learn the language we formed The Irish Language Association of Australia - running regular weekly classes at all levels and an annual residential summer school (Daonscoil Victoria as it is called). Upwards of 45 people attend regular classes through the year and many more at the summer school from all over the country. Our problem these days is the scarcity of native/fluent speakers to help carry the administrative and teaching load. top

My songs

Most of the songs on my albums are in Irish because it is the language that came naturally when I was growing up. I never formally learned to sing, just picked up that style which is still beloved of the people of West Kerry. It is called an sean-nós, which means 'the old style'. The phrase can be applied to any of the old ways and customs of course but, where singing is concerned, it means much more to those who have a real interest in Irish culture. top

Going 'home'

Aunt Caitlin and my son Sean.

Early in 2003 I received an invitation to my sister's wedding back in Kerry. Around the same time I began to get good reports of how Téanam Ort! was doing in Ireland. So we decided to take a six-week trip 'home', the first in 18 years. And what a trip we had! Early in June 2003, Marie, Sean and I set off and had our first stop-over in Los Angeles. We stayed overnight just to get a glimpse of the place, then it was on to Boston the next night. We spent a week with my brother Andrew in that city and took in some of the sights of Boston and New York with him. Off with us then to Shannon airport and at last we were on Irish ground. The plane had barely come to a halt when to our amazement we were greeted by a gang of family and friends wearing Téanam Ort! Tee-shirts. After them came a TG4 camera crew to film the event for a special program and we had an impromptu mini-concert on the airport concourse. Then we were whisked away to a big breakfast at Bunratty Castle. After that the TG4 team and I recorded another couple of songs for the TV show 'Abair Amhrán'. Only then did I finally get a chance to have a chat with family and have a few drinks with them. It was pretty late in the evening before we got to my sister's place in Dingle where we were to stay, but I could not resist taking the short run further out to my old village, Ballinlochaigh. It was wonderful to see Mt Brandon again after so long, and still nestling there at its foot the little fields, the narrow boreens and the village itself.

Myself, Liam O Maonlat and
Shane Howard in Melbourne.

The next few weeks were a whirlwind around the provinces of Munster and Connacht. I had a 'gig' at the 'Willie Clancy Summer School' in Miltown Malbay, and after that a launching of Téanam Ort! in the Taibhdhearc Theatre in Galway. My old friend and neighbor Maidhc Dainín Ó Sé was my MC and as the guest speakers I was honored to have my cousin Séamas Ó Scanláin of Galway University and Dr Pádraig Ó hÉalaí, the son of my first teacher ever.

Next day we headed for Ring, Co Waterford, and another 'launch' at Mooney's pub, conducted by Ann Mulqueen the famous singer from that district, afterwards Ann and I sang a few songs together. Dr Louis de Paor was a guest speaker. It was good to see Louis again after our years together in Melbourne.

Back to Dingle and there was no chance to draw breath. We had a great day at the wedding and sent the happy couple on their way in great style. I had several more 'gigs' arranged in and around Dingle over the next few days, the Blasket Centre and Kruger's among others, not to mention the nightly 'sessions'. I also had invitations to do interviews at several local radio stations. But time was running out fast and then there was one more big night left, a final 'launch' of Téanam Ort! at Tigh Uí Scanláin, my brother Colm's new pub in Ballinlochaig. My cousin Dónal Ó Síthigh was MC and did a fine job. Members of the Begley family and Lena Ní Shé were guest singers during another unforgettable evening.

Filming Aibir Amhran
with T. NA G

It is difficult for me to express the joy I felt at being among my own people again, speaking our own dialect, travelling familiar byways and meeting old friends, some I had not seen since our schooldays. So many people were so generous with their time and hospitality to us it would easier to make a roll-call of the parish than to list them, but I must mention two in particular, Jaic Ó Muircheartaigh of Raidió na Gaeltachta, who went out of his way to support me, and my old friend Séamas Begley who practically adopted me for the duration of my visit. You can't beat the Gaeltacht people!

Lastly, I would like to express my deepest thanks to the members of my own family who looked after us so well, particularly Ann Marie who has managed everything superbly in Ireland on my behalf ever since Téanam Ort! was first released there, and Cáit Máire who was so generous to us. top

God spare them all until we meet again.

Mossie Scanlon