James or Jim Morrison (3 May 1893 – 1947), known as "The Professor", was a notable South
Sligo-style
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 ...
fiddler.
Life
Morrison was born on 3 May 1893 near
Riverstown
Riverstown, historically called ''Ballyederdaowen'' (), is a village in County Sligo, Ireland. Known for its musical tradition it is located at a bridging point of the River Unshin (Arrow), 17.2 km (10 miles) south of Sligo town and 4 ...
, County Sligo at the townland of Drumfin. Morrison grew up in a community steeped in traditional Irish culture especially music and at the age of 17 he was employed by the
Gaelic League
(; historically known in English as the Gaelic League) is a social and cultural organisation which promotes the Irish language in Ireland and worldwide. The organisation was founded in 1893 with Douglas Hyde as its first president, when it emer ...
to tutor the
Connacht
Connacht ( ; ga, Connachta or ), is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the west of Ireland. Until the ninth century it consisted of several independent major Gaelic kingdoms ( Uí Fiachrach, Uí Briúin, Uí Maine, Conmhaícne, and Del ...
style of
step dancing
Step(s) or STEP may refer to:
Common meanings
* Steps, making a staircase
* Walking
* Dance move
* Military step, or march
** Marching
Arts Films and television
* ''Steps'' (TV series), Hong Kong
* ''Step'' (film), US, 2017
Literature
* ' ...
at the Gaelic League school in
County Mayo.
In 1915, at the age of 21, he emigrated to
America and settled in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
. In 1918, Morrison won the fiddle competition at the New York Feis. Morrison become associated with other leading Irish musicians such as
Michael Coleman,
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 "gol ...
who were also from County Sligo.
Morrison was one of the leading Irish music teachers in New York in the 1930s and '40s. In addition to the fiddle, he could play the
flute, tenor banjo and
button accordion
A button accordion is a type of accordion on which the melody-side keyboard consists of a series of buttons. This differs from the piano accordion, which has piano-style keys. Erich von Hornbostel and Curt Sachs categorize it as a free reed ae ...
(and wrote a tutor on the latter) and taught hundreds of young Irish-American students to play traditional music.
Style and repertoire
The Sligo style of fiddle music Morrison played was typically highly ornamented and fast, with a fluid bowing style. Recordings of Morrison's playing were imported to Ireland in great numbers, and had an extraordinary impact. In many areas, local playing styles fell into disuse because of the popularity of the style and repertoire of Morrison and Michael Coleman. This repertoire included predominantly reels, rather than jigs and hornpipes, and were often played by Irish musicians in the same order as on the original recordings. According to Seamus MacMathuna, "More than thirty years after Coleman's death ... one seldom hears 'Bonny Kate' without 'Jenny's Chickens'. 'Tarbolton' is inevitably followed by 'The Longford Collector' and the Sailor's Bonnet'." The great Canadian fiddler
Jean Carignan was much influenced by Morrison. James Morrison is well regarded by
Frankie Gavin: "the approach he had to fiddle playing and the approach he had to any tune he touched just...can't be beaten...nobody can play like that today."
[Nuala O'Connor (1991) ''Bringing It All Back Home''. London: BBC; pp. 87-89]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morrison, James
1890s births
1947 deaths
Irish emigrants to the United States (before 1923)
Irish fiddlers
Musicians from County Sligo
Vaudeville performers
American fiddlers
20th-century American violinists