Welcome to Ireland with Michael.

Iand this is a show tell you everything I love about my home I know, through music.

Today, I'm in County Clare.

the edge of the world Moher on the Wild Atlantic Way.

[THEME MUSIC PLAYING] is made possible by-- [SINGING] Venthe excitementng of sporting events,nt, to venues across America.

for the first time or longing you a warm Irish welcome.

Ireland or to plan a visit, go to Ireland.com.

Fill your heart with Ireland.

[MUSIC PLAYING] of Ireland for nearly 90 years.

Exposed Atlantic,ultuous Iof the Emerald Island's most sthe Cliffs of Mohert piece de resistance.

feet above the sea, something inconceivable is exactly what made them tfor the Cliffs of Insanityn in The Princess Bride.

Now I wouldn't recommend anits sheer face,ng top are truly breathtaking.p an astounding 30,000 pair othe cliffs including adorable Atlantic puffin.

is great for learning more abouof Ireland's wildlife,hood ahike from the centere is O'Brien's Tower built on of the cliffs.int built the tower in 1835 tower for English tourists.n public version of the story.

Rureally built the placeus to impress a woman.

Whether or not it worked , the 1830's version of buying a Mustang in your 50s.

[MUSIC PLAYING] days in Limerick,e on the west coast of the county.

The Banner as it's known, traditional music.

It's where I learned the dig pipe and a polka.n beaches, rocky headlands, aedge out to the Atlantic.

's Bday's hike, we'd btunes in any numbernd of pubs along that coast.

and heading Northward, Friel's in Milton Malbay, Cooley's in Ennistimon, Doolin, and The Roadside Tavern in Lisdoonvarna.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.

to a great stop off point, the of the West,ndor the famed city of Limerick.

Limerick is known as the gAtlantic Way.

Wild Iscene of young musiciansy rat home and abroad.ic So let's go meet a few.

(GUITAR PLAYING) (SIin ghosts and dreamsve are tearing out their seams I throw it all away.

So come the end of day.

I'll be on my way.

banks of the Shannon of my favorite new Irish bands, One for the Foxes.

Welcome, guys.

Thank you.

David, and Joanna.

here together in Limerickl 'cfrom all places?re connection for us now is we auniversity here.e Myself and Dave did the unm in Irish music, and Joanna-- overlapped-- and then Joanna came on a couple of MA program over there so in Irish music performance.

hope there in Limerick isc what brought us all here.

know how to settle in.

They put cinnamon in everyfeel the same.on't have the best in me.

nothing left of me.

And tell us, David, how dir to form this band?

Yeah, so we've all been ply quite a while, and we realized that there was an between the three of us.

And we're all interested i, wanting to get together and get our own sound out there.

sound, would you say?

nothing off the table was our starting point .

Everything was an option.

in acoustic folk music ormusic, and thatish informs a lot of what we do.

But we're happy to take is and try out new sounds.

directions, Joanna, where you're from.

Colorado, in the States.

to be an American learning about and playing Irish mu?

I love it.

have this opportunity.

And Ito and playingning astyles of music,t music has roots in Irish music.

as I was a little bit older back to those roots anit was just incredible.ts, Sto talk about is the blend of traditional music ahow you walk thatnd fit to it's best potential.

Wme having grown up roll and classical music music, blues and swing, traditional style of music, people who shared that openness need to fit into one category but we go for the sounds that trust our ear think to take that leap a little bit outside the t. And we're still discovering it.

Iof just to keep exploring.

(SINGING) To go, go.

but I don't need you now.

and take my leave.

I won't know you anymore.

'Cause I don't need you now.

and take my leave.

I won't know you anymore.

What I love about One for the ways is the on Irish traditions that are hundreds if not th.

seem like overkill, Iall the way back.k, This is the Poulnabrone Dolb built before the pyramids.

old, you get a sense the mystery, that roots Irish identity.

A dolmen consists of or, to put it simply, a large flat capstone.

dolmen makes up some for human activity in all of Ireland.

Wmetal, we Irishad down to future generations.

it's hard to imagine how manpower and ingenuity alone mo immovable.mingly Genethink these dolmensts mbut no one reallys, knows what they were for.

Tother ritual purposee to mark territory.

here would have been vital.

You see, this is The Burren, the otherworldly s of northwestern County Clare.

We're hopping along The Burren.

about this lunar landscape of the rock cutting against the lush green pasture.

makes this region so much more than a pretty wasteland.

As an officer under the infl of this barroney, it is said that it is ais not water enoughe enough to hang one,d nor earth enough to bury them.

Dthen, the sparse grasses sheep, and in the spring, transforming the whole scene in this often bleak looking landscape.

one of the strangerd pldesert teeming with life.ky learn about the place than here gorgeous village Kilfenora.

truly fascinating insight of erosion, which ancient limestone hillsides as well as providing hundreds of speciese called The Burren home.

these guys were impressive.

recreate how humans first carvexistence here,ious examining Neolithic aevidence of potteryng afiadh, bronze aged ovens.ht Anwhile you're visiting,, you're likely to stumble riy more recent history.

Yes, it's true.

fair share of ancient churches, but this one's pretty special.

next door to The Burren Center was built on an ancient mo.

Want to open it up.

groundskeeper Tim Keane around this little treasure, incredible some of this stuff really is.

bit about this place.e Would you do me a favor?

this beautiful fount here?

Yes.

carved river limestone.

It'sworking order.ect It is.

stopper is still in the place right?

yeah, made of lead.

Yeah.

have been baptized in this one?

Tfor a long time.

All right I suppose.

in working order.t Yeah.

the King of Munster burned down tthe North wall of the nave done so for over a millennium.

in the early 1200s, bishop, but the position larger more regional diocese.

The cathedral stood ever st isthroughout the Middle Agesde today is a mishmash of architectural styles fro, their own intricately cweathered the centuries.

special, however, amany high crosses.

In as the City of Crosseswn for iof these relics.ation Ireland, high crosses Instagram of the Middle retellings of stories carved into stone.

have been absolutely stunning back then.

Youis only half the story.ing originally built, they would have been pof dramatic colors,r illiterate peasantse soof the storiesng which shape their lives.

Inserved the same purposeve aof the divine to the masses.

group Clairsí Neamhí whicas Heavenly Harps,ates to see how these crosse.

[PLAYING MUSIC] to make in The Burren Center.

Everything in this parlor-- the instruments, the old ph- is here to celebrate one ot Kilfenora Céilí Band.

[MUSIC PLAYING] dolmen's 5,000 or even the monastery's 1,000 yearCéilí Band stillnora around for over 100 years and still going strong at that.

This culis reallytitution whaworld famous.nora revolutions, and the foundation of the Kilfenora Céilí Bandf, hasoften invitingng, the same family up on stagef to perform together in nIrish jubilation.able What is a Céilíi?

party with traditional music all of us that we're all part of a long story th.

[TAPPING] Iis already inspiring embrace our proud traditions.

alike are invited in traditional talents.

I three young performerse of the Séan-nos dance, r style perfect for a Céilí.

So from all that dancing.ath Tell me, you are fantastic.

What is your name?

Bethan Marsh.

Hi, Bethan Marsh.

have you been dancing?

Five years.

Five years but you're-- what age are you now?

11.

Oh my.

when you were six?

Yeah.

to practice a lot?

lessons twice a week.

Oh, very good.

Do you practice at home I guess.

Yeah.

Yeah, OK. good a dancer as you one day if I practiced?

I think.

Yeah.

Well, maybe I'll give it a shot.

[GIGGLING] I'mabout my dance skills.zy can sing in tune.

one of Ireland's premiere venues in the capital of Clare, , wheBand themselvesilí are having a soundcheck.

[MUSIC PLAYING] Jois beating fastrt first ever live soundcheck from the Kilfenora Céilí Band.

I am very happy to be, olistening to a very, veryt exciting soundcheck.

(SINGING) here in Ennis, County Clare.

Ennis in County Clare, country, Kilfenora 16 miles northwest of here.

new program here,r concerts here that sell out for the last 10 years.

program to our audience, aout at home first because we audience here that are particular about their music.

passes here, then we'll be able to take it i. doing here now, Michael, and you're very welcome.

Thank you very much.

I feel like I'm at some sora national tour for for the Kilfenora Céilí Band [MUSIC PLAYING] Imusic there today.e I noticed one thing.

As amusic fan, Ional and soul of the band, in instruments around you and make it more modern.

between traditional music and a more modern sound?

yourself, balancing the-- walkof traditionours isbecause we werelt a bhas to look backly because of our longevity.

years of tradition that we're drawing from.

present and look to the future.

Sois always taking place,on brings a tension,t a healthy tension.

So wover the yearsned played predominantly band that performed in500 seater here in Glor.e, different audience.

It's not a dance audience.

dancers in the audience, it's a listening audience.

lucky that the band-- members now in the band, and from different genresience in the band.

And it allows us to etraditional pieces.ge have heard today, down the line dance pieces, buand maybe somegs composed piece or whatever, wthat experiencel nicely arranged pieces.

So that for a listening audietheir interesttain basically a two-hour show.

[MUSIC PLAYING] on the tradition, Michael, originated from a brass Kilfenora around 19-- between the 1870s and the 1900s.

musicians middle part reed band, and they learned the harmonies you see.

They learned how to relearned harmony.ey then to traditional music or even played pieces.

This wouldn't be strictly knowpieces thational havefrom everywhere,ia, the repertoire we our tradition as well.

Athe famous '50say '50s Kilfenora Céilí Band harmonies, doing countermelodie, because obviously there were-- technology of today, you can bring up your liparts of the band.us BI remember actuallyes coming into the band first.

Aof the older sing--e musicians are here toon fiddles, justs naturally doing the ris a parity there.l And I for one am counting performance tonights I've waited many, many years Céilí Band live.enora And I'm excited for tonight.

Thanks, very much, lads.

Pleasure Thank you.

Thank you.

[MUSIC PLAYING] [APPLAUSE] travels around County Clare.

hope to see you the next time on Ireland with Michael.

But for now, cheers.

Slàinte.

Tyou've seen in this episodeng me, go to IrelandWithMichael.com was made possible by-- [MUSIC PLAYING] of Ireland for nearly 90 years.

(SINspecial in the air--ign Venthe excitementng of sporting events,nt, to venues across America.

for the first time or longing you a warm, Irish welcome.

Ireland or to plan a visit, go to ireland.com.

Fill your heart with Ireland.

OK, put your hands up let's get a waving., (it's rightful queen, Ever lovever true.tender, That's it.

your smile has shone,n Go on, Wexford.

all it glowed upon,g all it glowed upon,g