‘Trumpa Dubh’ may make another appearance tonight after leading the procession through the streets of Trim on Saturday night. He is very scary and brings Halloween to life!
This delightful upbeat performance/presentation by Simon and Maria O’Dwyer of Ancient Music Ireland begins by bringing the audience on a journey through the ages, starting with the earliest habitation of Ireland and progresses through the Irish Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age and ends in Early Medieval times. It is a celebration of the great Irish instruments of the first millennium BC. Each period is highlighted through the progression and development of musical instruments, (of which Ireland is very rich) the playing of instruments and stories from legend. Simon is an outstanding story teller and musician and has the audience on the journey with him every step of the way. It is the perfect balance between musical accuracy and visual perfection. Instruments include reproduction pairs of Bronze Age horns and trumpets from Northern, Western, Central and Southern Ireland – circa 1,000 – 600 BC. Two pairs of Iron Age parade/ceremonial trumpets like those which would be contemporary with the Hill of Ward, Tara and Uisneach will be played and discussed. The Iron Age Ard Brin trumpet reproduction from Co. Down will also be played. Two Psalter horns – accurate reproductions of the river Erne – Early Medieval horn which are depicted in the 8th Century Vespasian Psalter. The recent research on the possible meaning of our ancient instruments is presented and demonstrated in ‘Voices of Deities’.
Voices od Deities
Our ancestors in 3,000 BC knew about science, mathematics, geometry and astronomy. Prehistoric legends and early history tell us that in pre-Christian Ireland it was vital that the female ‘Earth Goddess’ and the male ‘Sun God’ existed in harmony. At the Stone Age and UNESCO World Heritage Site of Brú na Bóinne, the great megalith of Newgrange facilitates a beam of sunlight illuminating the central chamber on the first day of the new year celebrating the renewal of life. Music is at the heart of the this astronomically aligned megalith. The later Bronze Age horns and trumpets found in pairs represent male and female. We believe that a male bronze trumpet and female bronze horn were played at the inauguration of Kings and at majestic ceremonies. The ‘Earth Goddess’ and the ‘Sun God’ come together to ensure the continuity and wellbeing of people, crops and livestock. Thus, suggesting the ancient horns and trumpets as the voices of the ‘Goddess’ and ‘God’. Ancient Music Ireland tell this story.