Garret Barry

Who is Garret Barry?

Garret Barry was a blind Irish Uilleann piper from Inagh, County Clare, among the most famous players of the 19th century.

Barry was born in 1847, during the Great Famine, and malnutrition and smallpox caused him to lose his sight as a young child. A common form of charity for the disabled, Barry was taught the Uilleann pipes, giving him a livelihood and a place within the community. As a bearer of the piping tradition Barry was a popular and respected musician and he traveled throughout western Ireland to play at house dances.

He inspired many later pipers such as Willie Clancy (whose father knew Barry), Johnny Doran and wrote many tunes that are still in the repertoire of players of Irish traditional music such as "Garret Barry's jig", The Humours of Glen, and "I buried my wife and danced on top of her".