Page 170 - WDT MAGAZINE IRELAND ISSUE WINTER 2018

Hitting the Right Notes

Dublin Musical Pub Crawl

By Sharon Whitley Larsen

“You must go on the Musical Pub Crawl!” fiddle, she noted--as diners videotaped the dance routine
a friend exclaimed when I told her I was returning to with iPhones--”The dancing came first--I play to her danc-
Dublin for my third visit. ing. Her body is quite rigid, feet moving really fast, legs
So, one sunny, early spring evening my husband Carl going crazy!”
and I joined about 40 others at Oliver St. John Gogarty I was breathless just watching Erin perform these fun,
pub in Temple Bar to pick up our pre-booked tickets, sip fast steps!
a drink, and meet some of the other pub crawlers. We
then stolled as a group to the nearby Ha’ Penny Bridge
Inn to a private upstairs room. As we enjoyed a glass of
beer or wine, Brenda, our musician leader--who has been
performing Irish music since age 5--welcomed everyone,
explaining a bit about Irish music.
“Bar managers in Temple Bar want to play what they
think you want to hear,” she said. “But Irish music has a
lot more to offer.” She then showed us several Irish in-
struments: the harp; Bodhran (“bow-rawn”), a large drum;
fiddle, and Uilleann pipes.
In between listening to the foot-stomping music, we
learned a bit of Irish music history and anecdotes, as
Brenda encouraged us to sing along to the chorus of one
song: “I know you’re from all over the world, but today
you’re all Irish people!”
And we were from all over the world: Texas, Denmark,
California, Wisconsin, The Netherlands, Canada, Poland,
England, Montana, India. Yes, music certainly has an
international flair, drawing people together!
“There’s music happening all the time in Dublin!” she
said. “One of the beautiful things about being Irish grow-
ing up is that you can go to the pub to play music. But
none of us wanted to be harpists,” she chuckled. “You
need your parents to help carry the harp!”
During the three-hour musical crawl--which included
the last stop at lively Flanagans for dinner--we learned
about Irish songs and composers, the history and educa-
tion of the country’s musical instruments.
Charming Erin, age 20, performed Irish Step Danc-
ing as the enthusiastic dinner crowd tapped feet and
cheered her on. As Brenda accompanied her on the

170 WDT MAGAZINE WINTER 2018