Mick McShane (1896 – 1969)

MICK McSHANE
(1896 – 1969)

(23rd January 1896 – 11th November 1969)

Mick, of Iomaire Mhuireanáin is remembered as a very fine fiddle player in a generation where the standard of playing was particularly high. As a boy Mick was a member of the Carrick fife and drum band, where he played the piccolo. A cousin of the Cassidy brothers on his mother’s side, he often played with them and would have remembered John Cassidy clearly. It is said that Mick’s style was influenced by the playing of Alec and Mickey McConnell, who played regularly at house dances in the Teileann area in the early part of the twentieth century. Unfortunately, there were no field recordings made of Mick’s music.