Music, Song and Dance of Ireland

A taste of traditional Irish music, songs and dance from the television archives.

RTÉ Archives take a look back at special moments of traditional Irish music and dance from the television archives. This exhibition features a taste of traditional music, song and dance from some of the top 'trad' musicians in the country, with performances taking place in a variety of social settings.

Specialist programmes on RTÉ Television such as 'Come West Along the Road', 'Country Airs', 'The Pure Drop' as well as programmes like 'The Late Late Show' have provided a platform to promote Irish artists and traditional Irish music and dance. From solo to céilí dancing, instrumental musicianship to sean nós singing, the selected clips celebrate the unique style of traditional Irish music and dance.

While many of the traditional songs and airs have a familiarity, they have unknown origins and go back hundreds of years, passed on from generation to generation. The notion of 'traditional' often conjures up images and sounds of the past. However, the performances presented here are testament to the continued popularity of traditional Irish music on our television screens. RTÉ has been associated with recording of traditional music since the 1940's and this exhibition provides a taste of the holidings from the television archives.

The accompanying image shows the Oranmore Céilí Band perform during the recording of RTÉ Television's 'The Mountain Lark', in February 1985.