An enduring contribution

Over the past three decades, Boston College has become a wellspring of Irish traditional music and dance, notably through the Gaelic Roots concert and lecture series as well as courses in Irish fiddle and dance, among other offerings.

Equally significant is the Irish Music Archives—established in 1991 at the University’s John J. Burns Library—which houses 27 collections of books, recordings, photographs, letters, and other materials that help document the history of Irish music in America; it also includes digitized audio as well as a YouTube channel, all accessible online.

The task of building, refining, and promoting the archives has been the handiwork of Elizabeth Sweeney, who retired this fall after almost 37 years at Boston College, the last 27 of them as the University Libraries’ inaugural Irish music librarian. It was a fulfilling experience in many ways for Sweeney, not least because she became a performer of Irish and Celtic music herself while at BC.

Sweeney is modest about her role in developing and maintaining the Irish Music Archives, citing the assistance she received from colleagues in University Libraries, the Irish Studies Program, and elsewhere at BC. She appreciated the opportunity to use her professional skills in helping make the archives a top-of-the-line, go-to source for musicians, scholars, musicologists, and aficionados alike from all over the world.

“It’s been very gratifying to see people make use of the archives, whether for a publication or other project, or just out of personal interest,” said Sweeney, who joined BC in 1989 as a cataloguer in O’Neill Library. “I worked with so many wonderful people over the years from a variety of backgrounds. The word ‘archive’ can mean many things, but the current definition is ‘that which will endure’; I think this certainly applies to the Irish Music Archives—we have built something that will be of lasting value.”

Sweeney’s colleagues have no qualms about singing her praises.

“Beth has been vital to the archives’ worldwide success: Her knowledge and dedication, her ability as a curator, were second to none,” said retired Sullivan Artist in Residence in Irish Music Seamus Connolly, who directed Gaelic Roots and BC’s other Irish music programs, and whose papers are in the archives. “Her devotion to the archives’ mission was evident and greatly admired—both inside and outside the University—and she treated everyone with dignity and respect.”

“The Irish Music Archives is an intrinsic element of our renowned Irish collections, enhancing their depth and distinction, and Beth has been invaluable in extending their curatorial development by pursuing additional donations and purchases,” said Burns Librarian and Associate University Librarian for Scholarly Resources Christian Dupont. “She has worked closely with our collections management team to make the archives more extensive and accessible than ever to students and faculty on campus and researchers and musicians around the world.”

BC’s growth as a major resource and venue for Irish music did not occur in a vacuum. Concurrently, the past three decades have seen Irish music and dance become a global phenomenon, what with the popularity of “Riverdance” and other stage productions. Amidst this trend, the archives have offered a window onto Irish music not just as a form of commercial entertainment, but a beloved tradition shared over generations within communities, neighborhoods, and families.

For example, while the archives include exhibits on world-renowned performers such as John McCormack, there also is a BC History Department project, “Dudley Street: Crossroads of Celtic Music,” that examines how a Boston neighborhood became a locus for Irish as well as Scottish and Acadian music. Some of the archives’ collections include live recordings of music being played at informal gatherings in social halls or people’s homes, including in Boston.

Sweeney’s part in acquiring such materials has had an impact on the Irish Music Archives, said Gaelic Roots Program Director Sheila Falls—and on efforts to keep the music alive. “Speaking as an Irish musician, these collections are essential in supporting our need to consider the source of this music. I am grateful for the work she has done to preserve recordings that would have otherwise been lost. These collections will be invaluable for traditional Irish scholars and musicians alike for years to come.”

Irish music may have been unfamiliar territory for Sweeney when she first arrived at BC, but a confluence of events soon changed that. During the 1989-1990 academic year, Irish musician and composer Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin was on campus as a visiting professor, and he advocated for an Irish music archive at the University. Ó Súilleabháin organized the March 1990 Boston College Irish Fiddle Festival, featuring performances by eminent Irish musicians, and donated recordings of the event to the archives.

Among the performers at the festival was Connolly, one of the most heralded Irish fiddle players of his generation, who later that year joined BC’s Music Department as an instructor offering Irish fiddle classes and subsequently hosted Irish music and dance programs on campus. Between 1993 and 2003 he created 10 Gaelic Roots festivals of workshops and concerts; Gaelic Roots became an academic-year series after the festivals ended.  

A classical violinist and pianist, Sweeney found herself increasingly interested in the Irish and Scottish music she was hearing in Boston and worked with Connolly on learning fiddle; she would eventually perform with him regularly at BC events.

Although the archives had a temporary coordinator, as more materials were being donated it became clearer that a permanent, full-time presence was necessary—and a systematic method for arranging, classifying, and describing the items. Sweeney assisted Burns Library on several projects over the years, and when she found out in 1998 that the library administration had decided to hire a full-time Irish music librarian, she applied and was accepted.

As time passed, the archives continued to grow, as did its reputation: One day in 2008 Sweeney opened her email and saw a message from Mary O’Hara, an Irish singer and harpist who gained international fame through her performances (including one at BC in 1986), recordings, radio and television appearances, and five books over the course of a decades-long career.

“She wrote, ‘I want to donate my papers. Are you interested?’” recalled Sweeney. “Of course, we were.”

Sweeney worked with O’Hara and her husband in processing, sorting, and organizing her papers, which included promotional materials, business correspondence, recordings, sheet music, books, and other items. She helped put together an exhibit at Burns Library to honor O’Hara’s donation, which was formally celebrated in October of 2009, at which O’Hara presented a talk, “Travels with My Harp.”

“The experience with Mary was very enjoyable and satisfying,” said Sweeney. “That’s been true for so many of the projects the archives have taken on over the years. People entrust something very precious to you—the music that has been at the center of their lives—to share with the world and you hope you can do right by them. I’m glad we were able to create something that shows the impact Irish music has on individuals and communities alike.”

Find more about the Boston College Irish Music Archives at this website.