THE IRISH community in Lisbon enjoyed the dulcet acapella tones of rising Irish star Róisín Elsafty at a concert at the Bom Successo Church in Lisbon on Saturday.
The traditional singer from Conemara Gaeltacht on Ireland’s rugged Atlantic coast was followed by the John Sheahan and Michael Howard Duo on the guitar, fiddle and pipe.
The Irish musical evening, Notes in Time, was to raise money for the much needed restoration of one of Lisbon’s hidden gems, the 18th century chapel of Nossa Senhora do Bom Successo within the College of Bom Successo in Belém.
The evening also heralded the launch of a publication by Professor Declan Downey of University College, Dublin, which traces the role the Irish played in 16th and 17th century Lisbon.
Historian Pedro O’Neill Teixeira also contributed to this work, A Lisbon Tour of Interest, which was launched by his Excellency the Irish Ambassador, James Brennan.
Professor Downey and Pedro O’Neill Teixeira took a group of history aficionados around the places of interest in Lisbon which have links with Irish history on Sunday.
Among the fascinating stopovers included the Alfama, Baixa and Chiado districts which were hotbeds of Irish intrigue against Queen Elizabeth I, the Irish College of St. Patrick (1590-1834) and the two survivals of 17th century Ireland in contemporary Lisbon: Corpo Santo and Bom Successo Convent.
Safe haven
James Brennan, introducing the evening, told the audience that Lisbon has always been a safe harbour for the Irish seeking to build a new life and in some cases seeking refuge and fleeing commercial, political and religious persecution from the English, and later the British, between the 16th and late 18th centuries.
“The publication is a fascinating reminder of the long-standing ties between Ireland and Lisbon and will be of interest to the many Irish people who visit Portugal’s capital city throughout the year,” he said.
Mary Vermet, leading light of the Irish Association, told The Resident how donations and funds from the World Monuments Fund was bit-by-bit restoring the Bom Successo Convent’s splendid domed octagonal church with its upper choir, cloister, refectory, and dormitory which were built from 1639 with money inherited by a founding co-operatrix of Fr. Dominic O Daly, Dona Maria Magdalena de Silva Meneses of the House of the Marquis de Marialva.
After she became prioress in 1649, she used her wealth for the construction of the church and enjoyed patronage for the convent from her friendship with Queen Luisa de Gusmão.
James Brennan said that it was “amazing how the church and the convent had seen kings and queens come and go, empires fall, dictators and despots make their entry and exit, yet the church and convent were still here for all to admire.”
So far the tabernacle, some of the upper windows and other parts of the church – the oldest surviving Irish Dominican Convent – have been restored but work is badly needed on the priceless original frescos which have been badly eroded by damp and mould.
Róisín Elsafty says that her hauntingly beautiful songs, many of which are hundreds of years old, were handed down to her by her mother, the famous traditional singer Treasa Ní Cheannabháin.
“This is a largely oral tradition which has been reinterpreted over time since it was never written down,” explains Róisín who won the Old Style Singing Competition (Oireactais sean nos) in Ireland, and says many people have commented on the similarities between the emotional expression of Portuguese Fado and traditional Irish song.
John Sheaman, musician and poet of the group The Dubliners, and Michael Howard, one of Irelands leading guitarists and composers, have recorded an album of original compositions entitled In Our Own Time, some of which they performed on Saturday.
For those that would like to know more about the Irish Association in Portugal and their fundraising work in restoring the old Bom Successo church, contact irishassociation@gmail.com or call Siobhán Keating on 967 345 998 or 916 636 065.
