Vince
Jordan's
Blog
Vincent Jordan shares his story from a 14 years old playing a few tunes to Uachtarán (President) of Comhaltas.
My Story
30th of October 2024
"My Father, John Jordan, was fiddle player from County Mayo and my Mother, Mary Clare, was a singer from Consett in County Durham. One of my earliest memories was of my Father and his Brother Tom, Austin and Patrick gathering to play their fiddles. I was enthralled by the beautiful music they were creating. Likewise, my Mother would meet with her Father and her Sisters, Anne, and Veronica to sing together and create fabulous harmonies. With such an upbringing, it was inevitable that my Sister Mary, my two Brothers Chris, Mike (RIP) and I would take up Irish Traditional music.
I was 14 years of age, in 1968, when my family had enrolled me in the Birmingham Branch of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann. The branch at the time was run by Mrs Elizabeth Lawrie and her family, it was the gathering place for all the local enthusiasts of Irish Traditional music. Her daughter Katheleen was my accordion teacher and she taught me how to play a few tunes in a short period of time. There were some really great musicians and singers in Birmingham at the time and of course I greatly benefited from their influence. To name a few, we had fiddle players Kevin Cullin and Paddy Ryan, drummer Tommy Boyle, as well as singers Mick Hipkiss and Margarete Lawrie. There were more but the list would never-ending. There truly was a great sense of belonging in my Comhaltas branch.
Another aspect of the branch that I remember is happy memories of visiting and playing music with other branches from Liverpool, Nottingham, Tyneside, Manchester, Glasgow, Coventry, Newport, London and many other towns and cities. These experiences strengthened that sense of togetherness and community I felt from learning about Irish music and culture.
In 1969, as part of the Birmingham Junior ceili Band, I took part in Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann in Cashel County Tipperary for the first time. It was a wonderful experience, much to my amazement, people were playing tremendous music out in public in street sessions. The quality of sound and music was unforgettable! I have visited numerous fleadhanna in Ireland and Britain since then, which added to the enjoyment and cemented that sense of community and family.
For many years, Comhaltas would organise concert tours visiting Ireland, Britain, North America, Canada and also Australia. I have been very lucky to be part of those concert tours playing my accordion. I even had a short musical visit to Shanghai. Throughout these events and all of the Comhaltas activities that I attended, I’ve met friends who are still part of my life today.
One thing I came to notice was that these activities didn’t happen by accident. A great deal of work and expertise was due to the time and efforts of hundreds of volunteers who helped to create them. When I was 20 years old in 1974, the South Birmingham Branch of Comhaltas was formed by Mick Lyons, Sarah Smith, Martin Earlis, Michael McCarthy, Evelyn, and my Dad John Jordan, with a mission to establish affordable music lessons in the South of the City. I became the Chair of this branch in the 80’s, (we twinned our branch with Rosslea County Fermanagh where I found a lifelong friend in fiddle player called Gary Lynch), until I became Cathaoirleacht (Chair) of Comhaltas na Breataine (Comhaltas in Britain). I continued in this role till I became Uachtarán (President) of Comhaltas in 2012. Being the Uachtarán allowed me to witness the outstanding work of Comhaltas branches throughout Ireland, Britain, North America, Canada and beyond. The position of Uachtarán is held for three years, but I was very fortunate to be voted in to return for a second term in 2018 to 2021. Holding the office of Uachtarán twice, I was able to see the organisation as this worldwide family network. That our love for Irish Traditional music, dance, language and culture brought us all together.
My family still plays Irish traditional music like my parents did before me. My eldest daughter Anna-Marie plays fiddle (she plays and owns my Father’s fiddle), Bernadette plays button accordion, Katie plays piano accordion and bodhran, and the twins Liam & John both play fiddles. My daughter-in-law Emily is a fine guitarist as well. Together with Brian Malone, Graham Alexander, Dave Cunningham, and Noel Lenihan, we formed a band called The Reel Note. Our band plays festivals and engagements throughout Britain, Ireland, France, and we got to represent Comhaltas in Milan, Italy. I still attend my local sessions at Coventry branch in Hearsall Inn. Hearing the marvellous music led by two younger musicians Michael Fitzgerald, button accordion and Neil Pointon, fiddle. I know my culture is in good hands. "