Irish researcher Rory McCabe to give presentation in Island Lecture Series January 19

The next presentation in the Institute of Island Studies’ Island Lecture Series will feature Irish researcher Rory McCabe, Centre for Irish Studies, National University of Ireland (NUI) Galway, via Zoom on January 19, at 1 pm AST. 

McCabe will discuss the role and importance of music-making in island community life and vitality. He will give his lecture from his home community of Clare Island (population 159), a small community off the west coast of Ireland. After his presentation, he will be joined by Dr. Laurie Brinklow, Institute of Island Studies, UPEI, with an opportunity for questions from the audience. 

This lecture presents an ethnographic account of music and social life on Clare Island. The details of music-making on Clare Island in the twenty-first century suggest that, against a changing social, economic, and technological environment, the universal themes of social bonding persist as core values in the island experience. In his presentation, McCabe will describe how music-making is a fundamental process in island community life and an important measure of island health or vitality.

McCabe recently completed his PhD at the Centre for Irish Studies, NUI Galway. His doctoral research examined music-making and islandness within his home community of Clare Island. In March 2020, he was an Ireland Canada University Foundation visiting scholar at the Institute of Island Studies.

This virtual event is free, and everyone is welcome to attend. Advance registration is required. Please visit bit.ly/islandlectureseries to register.

For more information about the Island Lecture Series, please visit islandstudies.com/islandlectureseries, or contact Maggie Henry, interim coordinator of the Institute of Island Studies, at mjhenry@upei.ca.