Junior Crehan facts for kids

Junior Crehan (born Martin Crehan on January 17, 1908) was a famous Irish fiddle player. He created many tunes that are still very popular today in traditional Irish music. He lived until August 3, 1998.

Junior Crehan's Early Life and Music

Junior Crehan grew up in a place called Bonavilla, near Mullagh in County Clare, on the west coast of Ireland. His mother played the concertina, and their home was often filled with music. People would gather there for social events, so live music was always a big part of his life.

Junior first learned to play the concertina. But then he found an old fiddle in his house. He decided to fix it up himself and started teaching himself to play. A well-known fiddler named Thady Casey heard Junior play in a pub. Thady offered to teach him more. Junior learned the basics of fiddle playing from Thady. He also learned a lot about musical style from both Thady and his brother, Scully Casey, who was also a respected fiddler.

After learning from the Casey brothers, Junior became a very popular musician. He often played for country house dances. These were social gatherings where people danced in their homes. However, these dances became less common after the 1930s. A new law called the Public Dance Halls Act of 1935 made it harder for people to hold dances in their homes.

Junior was also influenced by a famous Uilleann pipes player named Johnny Doran. Later, in the 1950s, there was a big interest in traditional folk music again. Junior was very happy about this. He became involved with Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann, which is an organization that promotes Irish traditional music. At one point, he even served as the president of the Comhaltas branch in County Clare.

Junior Crehan's Playing Style

Other musicians who knew Junior Crehan said his playing was "sweet" and "emotive." This means his music sounded lovely and made people feel strong emotions. They also described his bowing as "economical." This means he used his bow in a very efficient way, without wasting any movement.

Junior focused more on changing the rhythm of the music than on adding lots of fancy decorations. When he did use decorations, he often used long rolls. He also frequently used "double-stops." This is a technique where a fiddler plays two notes at the same time. Some people think he learned this from his friends, the uilleann pipers Willie Clancy and Johnny Doran.

Junior Crehan's Compositions

Junior Crehan wrote many tunes that are still very popular in Irish traditional music today. One of his tunes is called "Poll an Mhadra Uisce." This means "The Otter's Holt." He wrote it because he saw otters near his family home. They would even come closer when music was played!

Another very famous tune he wrote is "The Mist Covered Mountain." He was inspired to write this tune by Mount Callan. He could see this mountain from his home in West Clare. Many famous musicians have recorded "The Mist Covered Mountain." These include Matt Molloy, Dervish, Kevin Burke, and Kevin Crawford.

Recordings Featuring Junior Crehan

Junior Crehan did not record his own albums as the main artist. However, he did play on some songs on other recordings. These include:

• Ceol an Clair, Vol. I (Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann CL 17)
• An Irish Dance Party: The Laichtin Naofa Ceili Band (Dublin Records LP 1007)

Fun Facts About Junior Crehan

Junior Crehan often played music in a place called Gleeson's Pub in Coore. He played there for about 70 years!