Captain Francis O’Neill’s collection 1001 Gems: The Dance Music of Ireland (1907) is so important to the world of Irish traditional music that it’s sometimes called the Bible or simply, “The Book.” Starting as a pandemic project, the Irish composer and musicologist Seán Doherty, Dublin City University, analyzed all 1,001 tunes in this influential collection. This project revealed the four melodic patterns most common in this repertoire. In this lecture and performance, Doherty will discuss the music along with O’Neill’s biography and will play tunes linked to key moments in Chief O’Neill’s life.
Captain O'Neill donated his personal library to the University of Notre Dame, where it is held at the Hesburgh Library. Doherty’s research visit is supported by the Keough-Naughton Library Research Award in Irish Studies.