Willy Clancy recording- Which set of pipes?

piobaire mor · Post by **piobaire mor** » Wed Apr 20, 2005 4:34 pm

I've been listening recently to a great recording of Clancy made in 1958 made by Ivor Browne. The pipes on the recording have an extremely rich tone on the chanter. Does anyone who has this recording know which pipes are being played?. He is joined on the recording by Bill Kelly, fiddle player.

kenr · Post by **kenr** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 5:33 pm

I don't have the recording, but reading the notes in Pat Mitchell's book it would probably be a Rowsome. Willie traded in his first full set - a Coyne C - to buy a concert set around the late 1940s from Leo Rowsome. In 1962 he got the loan of Sean Reid's Rowsome which I believe later was passed on to Liam O'Flynn, and in '69 he was given the Taylor which he is seen playing on the Claddagh records.

There is another picture of Willie at Bettystown in 1968 in the Mitchell book, playing what looks like a Crowley, based on the "thistle" style tuning pins and the round regulator keys. I don't know anything about the history of that set.

Given the choice of pipe makers at the time, I would guess you have a recording of Willie playing the Rowsome he got about 10/12 years previously. He presumably played the same set on the BBC recordings with Bobby Casey in London in 1956/7 and they certainly are a bright set of pipes. I'm surprised Peter Laban or Thomas Johnson hasn't expressed an opinion.

Ken

L42B · Post by **L42B** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 6:41 pm

The recordings I have of Willie Clancy (Seoltai Seidte album [Claddag Records]). I believe he is playing a Bn set. Even for a B set it has a wonderfully sweet and almost nolstalgic feel in comparison to some B sets today. I'm not sure who made the set though. I think it said something about the set in the blurb. From memory I think it was a Kennan set but I could well be wrong. I'll check latter on and correct the post as nessecary.

Cheers L42B

Patrick D'Arcy · Post by **Patrick D'Arcy** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 6:43 pm

Willie's B set was a Coyne.... :roll:

Not sure which D set he's playing on those other recordings.... Peter? Probably the Rowsome if he only got the Taylors in 69... speculation on my part... of course

Here's the man himself playing a Moss Kennedy set. Here's what Jimmy O'Brien-Moran said about the photo on my site... "The set that the Clance is playing in the pic is a Moss Kennedy set (Alf is the son) completed around 1968 or 69 and owned by Sean P. MacCiarnain. It was almost new at the time of that tionol and there are several well known photos of the Clance playing this set. It used to be the picture on the WCSS programme complete with Easter lily on the lapel of his suit."

Patrick.

Kevin L. Rietmann · Post by **Kevin L. Rietmann** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 7:24 pm

I was told that the set in B Willie's playing on that tape belonged to Ivor Browne, Ronan's father, and is the Harrington Ronan plays now. Ronan also has a Harrington C, right? What an *******. Give someone else a chance, ya!
The pipes on the Gael-Linn 78s were Moloney, and pitched between Bb and B, this is explained in the Pat Mitchell book, also that Sean Reid blew the drones on those records while Willie played the chanter, for some reason.

Willie had his own Rowsome set, which he traded the Coyne with Leo to build. What was he thinking! You can hear the Rowsome not really working so well on the Folkways records. There are some tracks on the Folkways "Music from Kerry and Clare" or whatever it's called, from the early 60s, he might be playing the set Liam O' uses now - he was borrowing it around that time - it's much more in tune than the set he was using in the 50s. Those are very well recorded, too. The Topic stuff from later on - Minstrel From Clare, etc., was from right when he started using the Taylor, hence lots of malfunctions there too. There are some echoey recordings on the Pipering records that were taken from an Interview in '72 that Uilleannobsession has for download or a link? Those have the Taylor working much better.

Jim McGuire · Post by **Jim McGuire** » Thu Apr 21, 2005 8:38 pm

Willie's Coyne B is now played by Muiris O'Rochain's son.

Cayden · Post by **Cayden** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 12:13 am

The Gael Linn 78 rpms were done on Sean Reid's B Maloney, with Sean blowing the drones to WIllie's chanter playing.

On the Paddy Hill recording also from 1958 Willie played a Coyne set, a C (if the tape wasn't speeded up that is). Quite possibly he was playing the Browne B for the two Bill recording, was too lazy to look up the tape to check to be honest.

piobaire mor · Post by **piobaire mor** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 9:21 am

Great help!!