Dáithí Sproule (born 23 May 1950) is a guitarist and singer of

traditional Irish music Irish traditional music (also known as Irish trad, Irish folk music, and other variants) is a Music genre, genre of folk music that developed in Ireland. In ''A History of Irish Music'' (1905), W. H. Grattan Flood wrote that, in Gaelic Irela ...

. He is the grandson of Frank Carney and uncle of singer Claire Sproule.

Biography

Born and raised in

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, at the age of 18 he moved to

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, where he attended university. Growing up, he listened to

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

Bert Jansch Herbert Jansch (3 November 1943 – 5 October 2011) was a Scottish folk musician and founding member of the band Pentangle (band), Pentangle. He was born in Glasgow and came to prominence in London in the 1960s as an acoustic guitarist and ...

, the

Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

, British folk songs and traditional Irish music. It was in Dublin that he entered the music scene which was prominent in Ireland at the time. As a teenager he had met the Ó Domhnaill family during trips to the

Gaeltacht A ( , , ) is a district of Ireland, either individually or collectively, where the Irish government recognises that the Irish language is the predominant vernacular, or language of the home. The districts were first officially recognised ...

area of

Rann na Feirste Ranafast or Rinnafarset, officially only known by its Irish name Rann na Feirste (), is a Gaeltacht village and townland in the Rosses district in the west of County Donegal in Ulster, the northern province in Ireland. Name Ranafast, or someti ...

in County Donegal, and while in Dublin they formed a band,

Skara Brae Skara Brae is a stone-built Neolithic settlement, located on the Bay of Skaill in the parish of Sandwick, Orkney, Sandwick, on the west coast of Mainland, Orkney, Mainland, the largest island in the Orkney archipelago of Scotland. It consiste ...

, who would go on to have a great effect on Irish traditional music. Sproule is well known as a guitarist and was one of the first guitarists to use the DADGAD guitar tuning for Irish music after the originator

Davy Graham David Michael Gordon "Davey" Graham (originally spelled Davy Graham) (26 November 1940 – 15 December 2008) was a British guitarist and one of the most influential figures in the 1960s British folk revival. He inspired many famous practitioners ...

. In 1992 he joined Irish supergroup Altan with whom he sings and plays guitar. Of his use of DADGAD tuning, Sproule says, it "just seemed to instantly gel with Irish music. The nature of the tuning meant that you didn't really produce anything that was terribly, drastically, offensively wrong to people. I was always a singer, but when I started playing with instrumentalists in sessions and pubs, I was able to develop a style by just playing along with them quietly and tactfully." He was deemed "a seminal figure in Irish music" by '' The Rough Guide to Irish Music''. Sproule is also a member of various other bands and has recorded further solo albums; he also teaches DADGAD guitar and traditional songs at the Center for Irish MusicCenter for Irish Music official website: http://www.centerforirishmusic.org/ in St. Paul,

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

Discography

Solo albums

* ''The Crow in the Sun'' (2007) * ''Lost River, Vol. 1'' (New Folk, 2011) * ''A Heart Made of Glass'' (1995)

with Altan

Other bands

* Bright and Early (with Paddy O'Brien and Nathan Gourley - 2015 - New Folk Records) * From Uig to Duluth (with Laura MacKenzie and Andrea Stern - 2014) * The Pinery (with Laura MacKenzie – 2009 – New Folk Records) * Seanchairde (with Tara Bingham and Dermy Diamond – 2008 – New Folk Records) * Fingal (with Randal Bays and James Keane – 2008 – New Folk Records) * Snug in the Blanket (with Jamie Gans and Paddy O'Brien – 2004) * Overland (with Randal Bays – 2004) * Trian II (with Liz Carroll and Billy McComiskey – 1995) * A Thousand Farewells (with Martin and Christine Dowling – 1995) * Trian (with Liz Carroll and Billy McComiskey – 1992) * Stranger at the Gate (with Paddy O'Brien – 1988) * The Iron Man (with Tommy Peoples – 1984) * Carousel (with Seamus and Manus McGuire – 1984) * Spring in the Air (with James Kelly and Paddy O'Brien – 1981) * Is it Yourself? (with James Kelly and Paddy O'Brien – 1979) *

(

– 1971)

Guest appearances

* Four & Eight String Favorites (Bone Tone Records) 2021 - Eric Mohring & Friends * Merrijig Creek - Fintan Vallely * Spinning Yarns (Two Tap Records) 2015 - Norah Rendell * Heigh Ho, The Green Holly (New Folk Records) 2015 - Laura MacKenzie * Minnesota Lumberjack Songs (Two Tap Records) 2011 - Brian Miller * Side by Side (Dawros Music) 2010 - Liz and Yvonne Kane * 40 Acre Notch (New Folk Records) 2008 – the HiBs * The Essential Chieftains (RCA) 2006 – The Chieftains * Blue Waltz 2004 – Julee Glaub * Evidence (New Folk Records) 2003 – Laura MacKenzie * Over the Water (Heart Productions) 2002 – Ross Sutter * Little Sparrow (Sugarhill) 2001 –

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, actress, and philanthropist, known primarily as a country music, country musician. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton's debut album ...

* Lost in the Loop (Green Linnet) 2001 – Liz Carroll * Shine (Swallowtail) 2001 – Katie McMahon * Persevere 2000 –

The Proclaimers The Proclaimers are a Scottish Rock music, rock duo formed in 1983 by twin brothers Craig and Charlie Reid (born 5 March 1962). They came to attention with their 1987 single "Letter from America (song), Letter from America", which reached No. 3 ...

* Water from the Well (RCA) 2000 –

The Chieftains The Chieftains were a traditional Irish folk band formed in Dublin in 1962, by Paddy Moloney, Seán Potts and Michael Tubridy. Their sound, which is almost entirely instrumental and largely built around uilleann pipes, has become synonymous w ...

* Tis the Season (Compass) 1997 – Laura MacKenzie * Irish Women Musicians of America (Shanachie) 1995 – Cherish the Ladies * Heartsongs (Sony) 1994 –

* Mamma, Will you Buy Me a Banana? (Heart Productions) 1991 – Ross Sutter * Blue Mesa (Red House) 1989 – Peter Ostroushko * Liz Carroll (Green Linnet) 1988 – with Liz Carroll * Sean O'Driscoll (Shanachie/Meadowlark) 1987 – Sean O'Driscoll * Capel Street (Capelhouse) 1986 – James Kelly * The Streets of My Old Neighborhood (Rounder) 1983 – Peter Ostroushko * Sluz Duz Music (Rounder) 1982 – Peter Ostroushko

Compilations

* A Harvest Home: Center for Irish Music Live Recordings, Vol. 5 2013 * Strings Across the North Shore 2009 * Young Irish Musicians Weekend Live! 2008 – with James Kelly and Paddy O'Brien * New Folk Records Sampler 2007 (New Folk Records) 2007 * Masters of the Irish Guitar (Shanachie) 2006 * The Independence Suite (Celtic Crossings) 2005 – with Randal Bays * Simply Folk Sampler 3 (Wisconsin Public Radio) 2005 * Festival International des Arts Traditionnels de Québec (Folklore) 2004 – with Trian * The Ice Palace – Irish Originals from Minnesota (IMDA) 2001 * The Last Bar – Irish Music from Minnesota (IMDA) 2000 * Alternate Tunings Guitar Collection (String Letter) 2000 – with Trian * As They Pass Through (Kieran's) 2000 * Best of Thistle and Shamrock, Vol. 1 (Hearts of Space) 1999 – with Altan * Celtic Colours International Festival – the Second Wave (Stephen McDonald) 1999 – with Altan * A Winter's Tale (Universal) 1998 – with Altan * Gaelic Roots (Kells) 1997 – with James Kelly, Paddy O'Brien and Gerry O'Connor * Celtic Music from Mountain Stage ( Blue Plate) 1997 – with Altan * Hunger No More (Éire Arts) 1997

References

External links