Tom P. Mulligan was born in Currycramp, Bornacoola in 1915 into a family of two brothers and four sisters. He had a unique regional style of fiddle playing which was influenced by his father, also Thomas and by his neighbour, fiddle-master, Jack Conboy.
Tom came from musical ancestry – his father was a fiddle player and his grandfather played concertina.
Dublin
Tom left Leitrim for Dublin in 1935, after leaving a job shovelling coal from the Arigna train. It was in Dublin that his interest in piping really took off.
Find out more from the Mulligans themselves in this documentary “Coppers and Brass – “The Mulligans” by Tommy Fegan.
And here at a presentation on “The Legacy of Tom Mulligan” by the Mulligan family at the Joe Mooney Summer School from 2018
Cumann na bPíobairí Uilleann
Traditional music in Dublin in the 30s and 40s happened at house sessions and some music clubs such as Cumann na bPíobairí Uilleann in Molesworth Place where Tom became a committee member along with Tommy Reck and Leo Rowsome, whom he had first heard playing the uilleann pipes in Mohill in 1932.
Tom Mulligan’s Legacy
“Tom Mulligan’s legacy has now spread through his family and children to an upcoming generation of many grandchildren and beyond now playing and carrying on this great musical heritage. He was one of the unsung heroes of Irish musical life over many decades in the Dublin music scene. A man who carried his musical legacy with passion, pride and humility and who embraced, cherished and influenced Irish music and culture in a most loving way.”
Alphie Mulligan
Néillidh Mulligan
Tom’s son, Néillidh is a world-renowned uilleann piper, has won numerous awards and tours extensively bringing his music to various parts of the world.
Compositions
Néillidh has written tunes in memory of his father and his first album was entitled “Barr na Cúille” in honour of his father and the musical source that was Bornacoola.
Mulligan Family
Tom’s family who are still in Currycramp are great singers and his grandchildren in Dublin also carry on the tradition, as singers, musicians and dancers.
The Cobblestone
And for anyone seeking the best of Irish traditional music and song in Dublin, the only place to go is to the Cobblestone pub in Smithfield which is run by Tom P. Mulligan’s son, Tom and family and you are very likely to hear a tune from some of the array of Mulligan traditional artists that frequent it. And Leitrim people are always sure of an extra special welcome!
