Connecticut Cultural Heritage Arts Program collection, 2015.196.1.1, Connecticut Historical Soc ...

Josephine MacNamara

BiographyJosephine MacNamara sings pure unaccompanied ballads in the “Old Style” (sean nos) which she learned from her family, especially her father, and other singers in both Ireland and America. Through everyday songs she heard around the house and those she picked up at local ceilidhs Josephine has built up a large repertoire of sean nos songs in English. In 1958, 1959, and 1961 she won the prestigious All-Ireland championship contest for singing. She left the family farm in County Leitrim to move to the United States in 1963, returning to singing and set dancing after raising her family. Her recordings include Leitrim’s Hidden Treasure: The McNamara Family, and Sounds Like Home: Connecticut Traditional Musicians, a CCHAP production. Apprentice Sheila Hogg studied with sean nos singer Bridget Fitzgerald, and learned some of Josephine's repertoire and her particular ornamentation in the apprenticeship.

Source: https://www.itma.ie/michaelmcnamara/explore/alll-performers/josephine-mcnamara

Source: http://www.irisharts.org.uk/project_lf.html

Person TypeIndividual