Cathal McConnell

Cathal McConnell (born 1944) is a musician and singer with The Boys of the Lough, a group of which he was a founder member.

Coming from a family of flute-players in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, McConnell is an All-Ireland champion in both flute and whistle, both in 1962. His father Sandy, a well known traditional singer and musician, recorded for the BBC in the 1950s. His early musical collaborators were Tommy Gunn and Robin Morton. After meeting at a folk festival in Falkirk, Scotland, the group Boys of the Lough was formed. He plays his music in the traditional Fermanagh style, which he learned from his childhood.

Their first album, called Boys of the Lough (1972) consisted of, along with McConnell on flute, Aly Bain (fiddle),Dick Gaughan (vocals and guitar) and Robin Morton (bodhran and vocals). Gaughan left to pursue a solo career and the Northumberland musician Dave Richardson (concertina, mandolin, cittern) joined. This line-up was constant for the next six albums.

For some years past McConnell has been involved in teaching and performing at the annual Willie Clancy Summer School in Miltown Malbay, County Clare.

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