By Carol
Schaal '91M.A.
With
the wearing of the green and a two-fisted leprechaun and the shouts
of "Go Irish" and a campus phone book filled with Colleens and
Seans and Patricks and Meghans, Notre Dame students and fans like
to claim a kinship with the Emerald Isle.
Still, something's missing. "I'm a big traditional Irish music
fan," says Tim O'Neill '94. "But you don't often hear it on campus."
Tim and his brother, Ryan '97 -- the pianists record as The
O'Neill Brothers -- hope that changes with the release of their
new CD, Here Come the Irish of Notre Dame.
The CD is half O'Neill Brothers, half compilation of previously
released music by others. Its credits read like a virtual who's
who of traditional Irish musicians and bands with a connection
to Notre Dame. The CD kicks off with "Here Come the Irish," a
popular song with the ND faithful that was released almost a decade
ago by John Scully '81. Seamaisin, the band featured playing at
Corby's Bar in the movie Rudy, is present with musicians
John Kennedy '79, '86M.A., '90 Ph.D., Tim Fischer '83, '96, Steve
Horst '90 and others.
Yet another movie tie-in shows up on the CD with music from
Gaelic Storm. That band was featured in the movie Titanic
and counts Steven Wehmeyer '92 as a member.
Not everyone heard on the CD is a musician. Paul Cusick '04,
who toured with Riverdance, provides the percussion for "Victory,"
a lilting Irish twist on the "Notre Dame Victory March" that was
arranged by the O'Neill Brothers. The catchy music also features
Sean Ryan '95 and Kevin Fleming '94, '96M.A, '99Ph.D.
Some members of the Notre Dame Club of Minnesota provide cheers
on the "We Are . . . ND" track. And in "An Irish Blessing" Father
Theodore Hesburgh, CSC, offers a traditional Irish benediction
as "Notre Dame, Our Mother," arranged by the O'Neills, plays softly.
The CD was released in conjunction with 2003's The Shirt. Designed
by Notre Dame students and sponsored by Student Activities and
the Alumni Association, The Shirt is sold before the start of
football season as a fund raiser for scholarships, student organizations
and others in need.
The O'Neills were contacted by Hammes Notre Dame Bookstore manager
Jim O'Connor last February, who wanted them to put the CD together
in time to have it released when The Shirt went on sale. Amazingly,
the duo pulled it off.
O'Neill says he started calling various musicians he knew in
the Notre Dame area, and hit gold with John Kennedy, who was able
to give him more names of those graduates specializing in traditional
Irish music. O'Neill next played "the role of producer," calling
the musicians and asking for their CDs. "Then I had to make decisions
on which songs to include and which not."
More than a dozen Domers are represented on the CD, which may
be purchased at the ND bookstore or through www.pianobrothers.com.
