Kevin Burke

Biography

Kevin Burke (born 1950) is an Irish master fiddler considered one of the finest living Irish fiddlers. For nearly five decades he has been at the forefront of Irish traditional music and Celtic music, performing and recording with the groups The Bothy Band, Patrick Street, and the Celtic Fiddle Festival. He is a 2002 recipient of a National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. He is also regarded as a fiddle-singing pioneer.
In addition to his solo albums, Burke has had successful project collaborations with Christy Moore, Andy Irvine & Paul Brady, Mícheál Ó Domhnaill, Jackie Daly, Ged Foley and Cal Scott.

Early life

Kevin Burke was born in 1950 in London, England to parents from County Sligo in Ireland. Inheriting a love of Irish music from his parents, he took up the fiddle at the age of eight, studied under Jessie Christopherson, and eventually developed an advanced technique in the Sligo fiddling style. He travelled frequently to Ireland to visit relatives and immersed himself in the local Sligo music. By the age of thirteen, he was playing with Irish musical groups.

Career

Burke joined a céilí band, the Glenside, and played weekends at various Irish dance halls around London. In 1966, the Glenside performed at the céilí band competition at the All-Ireland Fleadh in Boyle in County Roscommon and won the competition.
In 1972, Burke met American singer-songwriter Arlo Guthrie in a pub in Milltown Malbay in County Clare. Impressed with Burke's fiddling, Guthrie invited him to Los Angeles to play on his album Last of the Brooklyn Cowboys (1973). Burke's exposure to the musicians he met in the United States—including accordionist Joe Burke and fiddler Andy McGann—inspired him to make a career of playing music. In 1974, Burke moved to Dublin, where he teamed up with singer-songwriter Christy Moore, a former member of the Irish band Planxty. Together with Jimmy Faulkner and Declan McNelis, they played throughout Ireland for the next few years.

In 1976, Burke became a member of the Irish traditional music group The Bothy Band; the band, active for three years in the late 1970s, was well-known for its enthusiastic and highly skilled performances. Burke replaced Tommy Peoples on fiddle, and soon became an integral member of the group, appearing on three of their albums: Old Hag You Have Killed Me (1976), Out of the Wind – Into the Sun (1977), and After Hours (Live in Paris) (1979). Burke developed a friendship with the band's guitarist and vocalist, Mícheál Ó Domhnaill, and soon the two began appearing together as a duo. When the Bothy Band disbanded in 1979, they toured the United Kingdom and Europe together, and recorded the album Promenade×Promenade1979 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 8 tracksA1The Pigeon on the Gate / Lafferty’s Reel / Matt Peoples’ Reel4:07A2Lord Franklin3:54A3Walsh’s Hornpipe / The Old Torn Petticoat / The Bank of Ireland6:18A4Coinleach Ghlas An Fhómhair6:32B1The Promenade3:44B2Ar A Ghabhail Go Baile Átha Cliath Domh5:15B3The Whole Chicken in the Soup / The Bird in the Bush / The New-Mown Meadow / The Silver Spear4:50B4The Reverend Brother’s Jig / Sean Ryan’s Jig3:16 (1979). In 1980, Burke and Ó Domhnaill moved to the United States and toured throughout the country before settling in Portland, Oregon, where they recorded a second album, Portland×Portland1982 · Studio albumSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 9 tracksA1Maudabawn Chapel / The Wild Irishman / The Moher Reel3:02A2Éirigh a Shiúir4:03A3Breton Gavottes2:46A4The Rolling Waves / The Market Town / Scatter the Mud3:59A5Aird Uí Chumhaing3:39B1Paddy’s Return / Willy Coleman’s / Up in the Air4:34B2Lucy's Fling / S’Iomadh Rud a Chunnaic Mi / Some Say the Devil Is Dead4:21B3Is Fada Liom Uaim Í4:17B4Tom Morrison’s / The Beare Island Reel / George White’s Favourite / Dipping the Sheep4:58 (1982).
In 1985, Burke joined the Legends of Irish Music tour, where he played with Irish musicians Andy Irvine (vocals, bouzouki, mandolin and harmonica) and Jackie Daly (accordion). Together they formed the group Patrick Street. During the next two decades, the group released nine albums (excluding two compilations): Patrick Street (1987), No. 2 Patrick Street (1988), Irish Times (1990), All in Good Time (1993), Cornerboys (1996), Made in Cork (1997), Live from Patrick Street (1999), Street Life (2002), and On the Fly (2007).
In 1992, Burke recorded the solo album Open House×Open House1992 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1The Bus Stop Reel / Miss McCloud’s Reel / Lost Indian4:382Frailach4:093Open House / Two to the Bar / Porter for Three3:254Bourées3:135Crowley’s Reel / The House of Hammill / The Mullingar Races3:566The Humours of Ennistymon / Old as the Hills3:547Untitled Reel / Queen of the May / The Congress4:378Glory in the Meeting House2:509La Partida3:4510The Long Acre / Clyde’s Banks3:2011Mickey the Moulder / Stan Chapman’s Jig3:3012Barn Dances2:57 with Mark Graham (harmonica, clarinet, vocals), Paul Kotapish (guitar, mandolin, cittern, bass), and Sandy Silva (percussive dance). These three comprised the core of his band and together, as the group Open House, they recorded two other albums, Second Story (1994) and Hoof and Mouth (1997). In the early 1990s, Burke started touring and recording with Scottish fiddler Johnny Cunningham and Breton fiddler Christian Lemaître as the Celtic Fiddle Festival. Together they released six albums: Celtic Fiddle Festival (1993), Celtic Fiddle Festival: Encore (1998), Rendezvous (2001), Play On (2005), Equinoxe (2008), and Live in Brittany (2013).
In 2002, Burke was awarded a National Heritage Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts, the highest honour given in the United States for folk and traditional arts. In recent years, Burke partnered with Ged Foley to record In Tandem (2006), and collaborated with documentary film composer Cal Scott on the album Across the Black River×Across the Black River1 January 2007 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 10 tracks1The Surround / The Red Stockings3:532The Green Fields of Woodford / Seanamhac Tube Station4:393Paris Nights3:304The Lighthousekeeper's Waltz3:065The Long Set: The Boys of the Lough / Crowley’s / Sean sa Cheo / Reel of Rio / Paddy Ryan’s Dream / Wind That Shakes the Barley9:356Minnie Foster / The Forgotten Chateau4:307Last Train to Loughrea / Across the Black River4:018Evening Prayer Blues4:099The Doon Reel / The Reel of Mullinavat / Maud Miller3:5110For Johnny3:20 (2007) and follow-up album Suite×Suite8 March 2010 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 9 tracks1The Rabbit’s Ear / The Stirabout Road / Kiss the Bride4:272The Boys of Ballisodare / The Gooseberry Bush / The Dunmore Lasses / The Galway Rambler6:323Stella’s Waltz3:484The Irish Session Suite: Four Jigs (1st Movement) – White Petticoat / Luck Penny / Cliffs of Moher / Tom Billy’s Jig6:495The Irish Session Suite: Hornpipe (2nd Movement) – Kitty O’Neill4:596The Irish Session Suite: Air (3rd Movement) – Cailin Deas Crúithe na mBó (The Pretty Girl Milking Her Cow)3:467The Irish Session Suite: Four Reels (4th Movement) – Paddy Fahy’s Reel / Beare Island Reel / Dowd’s Favourite / Boys of Malin6:448Clancy’s / Flexible Flyer3:539Dan O’Keefe’s / If I Had a Wife / Leave Well Alone3:53 (2010). In 2007, Burke started an independent record company, Loftus Music, to release his own recordings. Burke continues to tour throughout the world, including performances in Australia in 2013.
In 2016, Burke was awarded the "Gradam Ceoil" (Musician of the Year) in the traditional-music awards presented by the Irish-language TV channel TG4.
He currently lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife and two children.

Playing style

Burke's fiddle playing style was heavily influenced by the Sligo style playing of Michael Coleman, Paddy Killoran, and James Morrison. Burke described the style as being "the best of both worlds"—combining the driving rhythm of Donegal style and the smooth lyricism of Clare style. While acknowledging that his playing is "based on" the Sligo style, he also acknowledges being influenced by many different musical styles outside of Irish traditional music. For example, one of the distinctive features of his playing is the "strong backbeat he applies to many reels, with emphasis on every third quaver", presenting the emphasised beat with an up bow, versus the traditional approach of playing that pattern with an emphasised downbow. Burke also emphasises the strong beat by playing "an adjacent open string as the bow digs in".

Instruments and equipment

Burke currently plays a fiddle made by Michiel De Hoog, a Dutch violin maker working in Dublin. In 2000, his old Tony Martin fiddle had become unstable, despite several repair attempts. Looking for a more stable instrument to play on the road, he turned to his friend De Hoog, who had just finished an instrument. After playing it in the shop, Burke purchased it and has been playing it almost exclusively since. Occasionally, he will play his old Tony Martin fiddle or a fiddle made by Jeff Manthos of Oregon.
Burke uses Obligato strings made by Pirastro and rosin made by Gustave Bernadel. The bow he uses exclusively was given to him by his brother Noel Burke, a bow maker, in 2000 for his fiftieth birthday. He carries his fiddle and gear in a Maurizio Riboni case from Cremona, Italy. To amplify his instrument, Burke uses an MBC-603 condenser microphone on a stand. Sometimes he uses a Swiss-made Kurmann Soundpost pick-up designed by Ronnie Arber Audiotechnik along with the microphone.