Ben Lennon & Tony O'Connell: Rossinver Braes

BEN LENNON & TONY O'CONNELL: ROSSINVER BRAES

Ben Lennon: fiddle

Tony O'Connell: concertina

Charlie Lennon: piano

Alec Finn: bouzouki

Jerry McNamara: guitar

The Lennons are undoubtedly one of the best known and most celebrated musical families in Co. Leitrim. This is in no small part a result of the long devotion to traditional music shown by one of the family's patriarchs, Ben Lennon, who just turned 80 last year, has been playing fiddle for seventy of those years, and continues to be an active participant in the tradition, both as a teacher and as a player with several albums to his credit. Lately, he has been enjoying a special musical partnership with Limerick concertina player Tony O'Connell, and this CD is the result of it. O'Connell's talent will be no surprise to those who have heard O'Connell's 2005 CD with fiddle player Andy Morrow, but, as Lennon's son David puts it, "Tony is probably the most empathetic musician I have heard my father play with. There is an understanding of phrasing, time and nuance that one finds only rarely in any musical form." Indeed, this has a very different feel from the Morrow/O'Connell duets, and yet O'Connell sounds perfectly at ease with this more restrained, more deliberate, at times rougher-at-the-edges, form of music-making. Although most of the tunes are well-known, this gives the listener a chance to enjoy how a veteran player play like Lennon can still inject fresh ideas into familiar melodies. Among the exceptions are a lovely pair of barndances, "Lord Leitrim" and "The Earl of Thomond," composed by Ben's brother Charlie in his trademark harmonically-rich style. And with accompanists of the caliber of Charlie Lennon and Alec Finn, the two are further encouraged to make lovely music indeed.

Rating: ****

Price: $27.99