Lomax in Éirinn receives Spirt of the Festival award at Celtic Media Festival
Date Posted: June 11, 2019
Documentary film ‘Lomax in Éirinn’ was the recipient of the ‘Spirit of the Festival’ award at this year’s Celtic Media Festival.
Winners were selected from a range of programmes and films submitted from six Celtic countries.
Lomax in Éirinn features Clannad’s Pól Brennan who uncovers the story behind Texan song-collector Alan Lomax’s trip to Ireland in 1951. The film, which was made by Aisling Productions for TG4, received funding support from Northern Ireland Screen’s Irish Language Broadcast Fund and the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland.
Taking advantage of two new inventions in technology (the LP and magnetic tape), he was determined to record and to preserve the folk music of the world before it was smothered by the new corporate and monotone mass-media. His mission brought him to Ireland, leading to the first LP of Irish traditional music in 1955. 20 years later, his recordings inspired the 1970s revival by the likes of Planxty, The Bothy Band and Clannad.
The documentary features exclusive musical performances from contemporary artists paying homage to the music that Lomax preserved. Steve Earle, Clannad, Slow Moving Clouds, The Tulla Ceilí Band, Mississippi bluesman Sam Mosely and the youngest ever winner of sean-nós competition Corn Uí Riada, Nell Ní Chróinín all make significant contributions throughout. The film’s soundtrack also includes some of the best recordings made by Alan Lomax throughout the world.
Contributors to Lomax in Éirinn include Iarla Ó Lionáird (The Gloaming), John Spillane, Brian Mullan, Ian Lee, Grace Toland, Danny Diamond, Nicholas Carolan and Deirdre Ní Chongaile.
Lomax in Éirinn screened at the Galway Film Fleadh in 2018 before its transmission on TG4. It has since been invited to screenings and festival appearances in New York, Washington, Seattle, Liverpool, Wurzberg (Germany), Alberta and Liverpool.
The trailer for Lomax in Éirinn can be viewed here.
