Jun 1, 2026

What’s up with “I Buried My Wife and Danced on Her Grave?” It’s an old tune with an interesting title, with connections to blind pipers, Clare fiddlers, pookahs, and… wool pants. To close out Season 10 of Irish Music Stories, host Shannon Heaton unravels strands of melody and history, with help from the guitar...

May 4, 2026

Episode 92-Eagles and Eggplants--Going for the gold year round...

Things change over the years. But a lot of the same stories (and tunes) just seem to keep coming up. Like a bad penny. Or a Golden Eagle. Host Shannon Heaton and flute player Kozo Toyota sail the golden, storied seas about a gold coin, a clipper ship,...

Apr 1, 2026

As tunes and songs get passed around they transform. Airs and hornpipes turn into jigs or reels, entire parts get added or condensed, melodies change, words alter or are forgotten altogether (until the song becomes just a tune). In this episode, singer Niamh Parsons and host Shannon Heaton trace a tune and its words...

Mar 2, 2026

For this episode of Irish Music Stories, host Shannon Heaton talks to Clare fiddler Sorcha Costello to dig down to the roots of a botanically named tune, And to explore the beauty of enduring classics.
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Feb 6, 2026

For this installment of Irish Music Stories, host Shannon Heaton tucks into an old jig that has become known as The Morning Lark. It’s an exploration of cartoonists and journalists, and the power of names and name calling. Above all, it’s a celebration of a little jig in D that continues to resonate and...