Leitrim musicians feature in Traditional Music Archive in New York

The Irish Traditional Music Archive (ITMA), with support from the Government of Ireland – Emigrant Support Programme, has launched a major digital exhibition celebrating New York’s remarkably rich and enduring Irish traditional music heritage.
Among the musicians featured in the exhibition are five Leitrim performers: John McKenna (1880–1947), flute; John Morrow, banjo; Margaret McNiff-Locke (born 1886), melodeon; Michael Gallagher (1886–1971), uilleann pipes, and Vincent Harrison (1927–2009), fiddle.

From gramophone records to video recordings, these musicians celebrate the rich contribution Leitrim emigrants have made, and continue to make, on Irish traditional music in New York.
Amid a scarcity of recordings of women players, the 78 rpm discs made by Margaret McNiff-Locke, and her daughter Mary on banjo, are a unique and important part of the history of Irish traditional music.
As a valuable learning resource, it provides a bridge between our thriving creative traditional arts sector at home and those increasingly disparate groups who identify with Irish heritage and culture in New York.
You can visit the exhibition online at https://itma.ie/newyork