Denis Murphy (14 November 1910 – 7 April 1974) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, the ...

r and traditional musician. Murphy was born in Lisheen,

Gneeveguilla Gneeveguilla, ( ), officially Gneevgullia (), is a small village in the Sliabh Luachra region of East County Kerry, Ireland. It lies about east of Killarney, close to the County Kerry/County Cork border. Location Gneeveguilla is situated in a ...

County Kerry County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...

one of eight children of Bill and Mainie (née Corbett) Murphy. His father played

fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross ...

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedles ...

and

and had a fife and drum band. It was a house where music was played a lot with neighbours calling in. He and his sister

Julia Clifford Julia Clifford (19 June 1914 – 18 June 1997) was a fiddler and Irish traditional musician. Julia Murphy was born at Lisheen, Gneeveguilla, County Kerry, part of an area in west Munster known as Sliabh Luachra. Her father Bill played flute, ...

were taught

by Pádraig O'Keeffe. He later played with the Lisheen Fife and Drum Band. Murphy emigrated to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

, and in 1942 married Julie Mary Sheehan. They returned often to

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

and returned permanently to Lisheen in 1965. While in the United States he played with the Ballinmore Ceili Band, with such players as

Paddy Killoran Patrick J. Killoran (1903–1965) was an Irish traditional fiddle player, bandleader and recording artist. He is regarded, along with James Morrison and Michael Coleman, as one of the finest exponents of the south Sligo fiddle style in the "go ...

, James Morrison,

Andy McGann Andy McGann (1928-2004) was an Irish-American fiddle player and a celebrated exponent of Sligo-style fiddling. He was born in New York to immigrant parents from County Sligo, living first in west Harlem before moving as a child to Mott Haven in th ...

, Lad O'Beirne and Charlie Mulvihill.

Discography

*''Denis Murphy: Music from Sliabh Luachra'', solo, RTÉ CD 183 *''The Star Above the Garter'', with sister Julia Clifford, Claddagh Records CC5CD *''Music from Sliabh Luachra Volume 1: Kerry Fiddles'', with Pádraig O'Keeffe & Julia Clifford, Topic 12T 309 / TSCD309 and Ossian OSSCD10

External links

Ronan Nolan's Biographical website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Murphy, Denis 1910 births 1974 deaths Irish emigrants to the United States Irish fiddlers Musicians from County Kerry 20th-century American violinists 20th-century American male musicians Claddagh Records artists People from Gneeveguilla