Search - John Vesey :: Sligo Fiddler

One of the all-time GREATEST Irish fiddlers!!

john gibbs | Kaneohe, Hawaii | 12/05/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Sligo style of Irish music is one of the most sophisticated of all Celtic traditional music forms. John Vesey is probably second only to the great Michael Coleman . There are a lot of Irish fiddlers recording today, especially with the "New Age/Celtic" revival. Many are excellent players, but if you want to hear a master craftsman perform according to a strict, concise traditional Irish music form, then John Vesey is the one to hear. Vesey was taught in the traditional Irish manner and had great musical mentors - both in Ireland and the United States (Michael Gorman and Paddy Killoran included). I had the privilege of being a student of Vesey's some years ago. A humble, self-effacing and generous man, he was dedicated to passing on the Sligo style to others (very few musicians on his level make themselves available in such a manner). I met a humble, self-effacing genius who was often victimized by interpersonal jealousies in the local Irish music scene (an all-too common aspect of our firey Irish personalities). But if others were jealous it was understandable - Vesey was possibly the best living Irish fiddler of his time. "Sligo Fiddler" belongs in the library of any serious Irish musician or lovers of the genre."