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In conversation with Tipperary musician Cáit Ní Riain

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Ahead of her appearance at this year’s Eats + Beats festival we caught up with Cáit Ni Riain, an Irish musician whose life has been steeped in music from a young age.

Her earliest musical memories are that of being in her father's arms as he sang Percy French's 'The Darling Girl from Clare'. Her dad would leave some words out, prompting her to fill in the gaps.

Chatting to Cáit, it is clear that growing up in a pub with a vibrant traditional Irish music scene played a significant role in shaping her musical identity.

“I grew up in Jim of the Mills, a Tipperary pub with great singing and traditional Irish music, so I don’t really remember a time without music as a part of my life. My bedroom was above the main session room so there were always tunes and songs going on as I drifted to sleep. I learned so many songs that way, listening, lots and lots of listening.”

Her musical influences are as diverse as the environment she grew up in. The people who frequented the pub where she was raised, like Tom Joe Spillane, her Dad, and Paddy Lacey, all left a lasting impression. She describes them as not only talented singers but also captivating characters.

On car journeys to music lessons, her mother would play  different genre’s of music, exposing Cáit to artists like Tom Waits and Dolores Keane. Local traditional musicians like Martin Hayes and Joe Heaney were also influential figures in her musical development.

Describing herself as “having a heart that lies with traditional songs and tunes” she also acknowledges the influence of artists like Tom Waits and Joni Mitchell in her own song writing. When pressed to describe her genre, Cáit says, "I wouldn't put myself in any box, but if I'm pushed to I'd say traditional/folk/singer-songwriter-ish!"

She admits the creative process as being deeply connected to her emotions and often, common themes and messages reappear.

“When I’m going through something deep - be that deep sadness, or deep love, deep desire, deep beauty, they are the places that draw the music out of me. If I’m sitting down to write songs at the piano, I’ll bring a moment/a person/ a place that inspires that great feeling in me - and let it flow from there. It has to be connected to emotion for anything to happen.”

“When it comes to specific themes I would say nature features heavily, the beauty of the natural world, the place of women as stewards of Earth MaGIC  and Wisdom, the need for us to decolonise mind, body, spirit, culture, love, the power of love, the ecstasy of love. I’m also very attracted to yearning as a theme.”

One of Cáit’s biggest challenges in her musical career has been gaining confidence in her own abilities. However, she has grown over time to trust her creative instincts and the music that flows from them. The most rewarding experiences come from those moments of deep connection with her fellow musicians.

“Those simple and profound moments when I’m playing with another musician I love, when all parts of the musical jigsaw fit, and you enter that deep flow state, where every breath, every note, every tone is free and beautiful and just right! It’s a hard feeling to beat. Real magic.”

That human connection is also found in her other work. In between writing and performing music, Cáit works in the space of the healing arts, teaching sacred sexuality and holding spaces for women to reconnect with their bodies, their womb and their sexuality, something she would probably be doing more of if she wasn’t so busy with the music.

We discussed at length the impact of technology, and in particular phones, on the music industry, with Cáit expressing concern about how constant connectivity is shortening our attention spans and is making it difficult for artists to enter the deep state of focus required for true creativity.

“It’s a massive sadness (perhaps the greatest), that they are making us very distracted and caught in loops of checking behaviour….texts, whatsApp, notifications. Our attention span and ability to enter deep presence is deeply affected by having the phone around - this is a nightmare for getting into the creative space where any really good and beautiful work can come from. So I feel a lot of peoples innate creativity is being murdered by the machines. On the other side, they are a very helpful tool to share your work with a large audience - especially if you are an artist like myself who is living in a rural area, I want to live deep in the country but yet want a place to share my music and news of shows etc. So it’s to use it as a tool, and be very aware of how it can subtly take a lot of your awareness and presence”

Discussing festival season Cáit reminisces about her favourite experience to date while outlining her plans for the next few months.

“My favourite festival ever was Fire on the Mountain in Wales with my band ‘The Weaving’. What a beautiful festival”

“I’m touring with The Weaving this summer, we’ll be playing at different venues around Ireland, then a couple of solo gigs in August and of course the Eats + Beats Festival which I can’t wait to get down to. I’m also in the process of working on my first album of traditional songs and my own newly composed songs. The Weaving are also working on our first album together.”

“Outside of that, I run an epic 6 month journey for people interested in the sean nós singing tradition, where we go into the embodiment of song, and we travel to various places in Ireland to connect  with the tradition and songs of that area. It’s one of my favourite things in the world, watching people explore, unpack and build their relationship with their voices, and fall in love with the songs.”

Cáit with be joined on stage at Eats + Beats with Ed Dwan and special guests Niamh O’Brien & Aisling Urwin. Many other musicians, bands and DJ’s are also booked for the August festival. For news and updates you can follow the festival on Instagram @eatsandbeatskerry. For tickets head over to www.eatsandbeatskerry.com

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Con O’Leary: Killarney loses a vibrant and popular personality

Killarney Chamber of Tourism and Commerce has led the tributes to the late Con O’Leary, an extremely popular and very successful businessman in the town, who passed away in the […]

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Killarney Chamber of Tourism and Commerce has led the tributes to the late Con O’Leary, an extremely popular and very successful businessman in the town, who passed away in the early hours of Sunday.

Con was a vibrant and popular personality in Killarney where he operated The Laurels on Main Street, a thriving bar and restaurant, which he inherited following the passing of his father, Thado.
The business organisation said from a social perspective, The Laurels became the beating heart of the town and it was a landmark at the Market Cross in the same way as Clery’s clock was in the capital city.
Chamber said Con’s passing really marks the end of an era as he was one of a golden age of inspirational local business people who developed and built Killarney, through hard work, bravery and great commercial flair, and helped create the wonderful tourist attraction and holiday destination it is today.
“Con was very proud of Killarney and he played a very active part in progressing the town at many levels.
“He was a man that was never short of great ideas and his contribution to the business life of the town and as a director of Killarney Race Company was immense,” Chamber said.
“He was ahead of his time in many respects with the introduction by what became known as “the singing lounge” many years ago and The Laurels always led by example through its successes in the annual Killarney Looking Good competition”.
The business representative organisation noted that the O’Leary family has always been very supporting of the town and Con’s daughter, Kate, was a very dynamic Chamber President and is still a very valued member of the executive.
Chamber expressed deep sympathy to Con’s wife, Anne, children Kate, Niall, Tara and Lorna, sons-in-law, grandchildren, sisters, relatives and friends as well as the dedicated staff in The Laurels, past and present, who Con always had great time for and a great rapport with.

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All Roads Lead To Kerry For National Road Safety Conference

Kerry County Council is to host a two-day road safety conference at the INEC Killarney on May 28 and 29. The ‘Safer Roads’ road safety conference is an inter-agency event […]

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Kerry County Council is to host a two-day road safety conference at the INEC Killarney on May 28 and 29.

The ‘Safer Roads’ road safety conference is an inter-agency event focused on improving road safety, reducing traffic-related incidents, and sharing knowledge and best practices for safer road use. It encompasses various strategies and efforts across multiple domains, including road design, engineering, enforcement, forensic collision investigation, technology, education, collision trends, occupational driving, cycling and scooting, e-mobility, active & sustainable travel and on-road events.

In addition to this, AI, Virtual Reality and Driver Simulation will play a significant role at the conference, in improving safety by predicting and preventing accidents, optimizing traffic, and aiding the development of autonomous vehicles.

This ‘Safer Roads’ conference is a non-public event where road safety professionals, speakers and service providers from across Ireland, other EU countries and the UK will attend, including transportation experts, government and local authority officials, roads policing and vehicle inspection agencies, road safety advocates, educators and promoters, collision responders, cycling bodies and community safety networks.

Kerry County Council’s Road Safety Officer Declan Keogh said:
“Road safety has evolved over the years to a much broader scope, in terms of e-mobility, sustainability, technology and engineering for instance. It’s not just about the road or the vehicle anymore, but also about how technology, human behaviour, enforcement, and education intersect to reduce risks and prevent collisions. The ‘Safer Roads’ conference will involve and include every branch of the road safety tree, right across the board, and in doing so, we aim to increase road safety awareness, improve road user behaviour and decrease the collisions and carnage we see on our roads every day,”

The two-day conference also provides an opportunity for exhibitors to attend, and interested state bodies, businesses and service providers are invited to exhibit at the event to showcase their products and services and engage with delegates and officials at the conference.

Further information about the conference and how to register or exhibit can be found here. https://www.kerrycoco.ie/safer-roads-road-safety-conference/

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