The Chieftains' Paddy Moloney, RIP
Paddy Moloney, leader of long-running Irish folk band The Chieftains, died on Monday (10/11). He was 83. The Irish Traditional Music Archive broke the news:
During a recent interview in ITMA, he spoke about the people & events that shaped his life in music. Few people can lay claim to having the level of impact Paddy Moloney had on the vibrancy of traditional music throughout the world. What a wonderful musical legacy he has left us.
— ITMA (@ITMADublin) October 12, 2021
The band also posted a statement, reading, “The Chieftains family mourns the loss of our Paddy Moloney. Paddy had so much more music to share and stories to tell. We were lucky we had him for as long as we did.”
Ireland President Michael Higgins released a statement too:
The Irish music community, and indeed the much larger community throughout the world who found such inspiration in his work, will have learnt with great sadness today of the passing of Paddy Moloney, founder and leader of the Chieftains.
Paddy, with his extraordinary skills as an instrumentalist, notably the uileann pipes and bodhrán, was at the forefront of the renaissance of interest in Irish music, bringing a greater appreciation of Irish music and culture internationally.
Not only as a consummate musician himself, but as a founder member of Claddagh Records together with Garech de Brún, he brought a love of Irish music not just to the diaspora, but to all those across the world who heard his music and appreciated it for its own sake as it transcended all musical boundaries. His work as a producer was a contribution of great integrity, undertaken to promote the music itself at a time when the commercial benefits of doing so were limited. His legacy will remain with us in the music which he created and brought to the world.
On behalf of Sabina and myself, and on behalf of the people of Ireland, I would like to express my deepest condolences to Paddy’s family and friends, and in particular his wife Rita and his children Aonghus, Pádraig and Aedín.
The Chieftains formed in 1962 and remained active and prolific for over 50 years. Their most recent album, 2012’s Voice of Ages, featured contributions from Bon Iver, The Decemberists, Punch Brothers, The Low Anthem, Pistol Annies, The Secret Sisters, Lisa Hannigan, and more.
Rest in peace, Paddy.
