Trad music was as robust as ever in 2004, writes Siobhán Long

Jigs, reels, hornpipes and pelvis-crunching polkas might not be the stuff of MTV, and it's not exactly the fodder of storefront windows in search of gargantuan sales either, but even a cursory glance at this year's music is a shot in the arm for anyone who fears for the health of traditional music.

The North Wind, a superb Donegal musicians' tribute to the late Frankie Kennedy, set the bar high last January. Despite the sleet and snow in the north-west, Errigal-bound musicians captured the essence of their own music and, in the process, doffed a collective cap to Frankie's unerring precision and resilient spirit. It was the kind of collection that would sit as easily in a novice's paltry CD store, its tunes a compass pointing towards excellence as it would amid the most pristine gatherings of the classics collector.

West Kerry singer Pauline Scanlon aired her distinctive featherlite vocals on her solo début, Red Colour Sun. She revealed a distinctly catholic taste and a willingness to take risks by merging self-penned and classic trad songs.

As the summer warmed its toes against the sun, another Dingle consortium in the shape of Na Caipíní aired a delightful cross current of local singers, many of them long of tooth, and all of them sporting the essential accessory of a cap. Pat Chonair Ó Conchubhair, Muiris Ó Cuinn and the late Mary Ellen Uí Bheaglaoích were just three of a formidable collection of singers who sang as naturally as they breathed the salty air of Corca Dhuibhne.

Other highlights included Lumina, Eoin Duignan's celestial tribute to the Harry Clarke stained glass windows in Dingle; Téada's effervescent Lá An Dreoilín; and the surgically sculpted Ghosts from the English Acoustic Collective.

In between there were forays beyond the bounds of trad, with Katell Keineg's High July and Declan O'Rourke's (right) shimmering début, Since Kyabram, which manages to take possession of the ailing singer-songwriter job description, extricate any whisper of effort from its essence, and air it afresh, clothed in a swathe of delicious new stories and adventures that recaptured the dark, the muddy and the intermittent sparkle of the human spirit.

But real standouts, the recordings that somehow cling to the CD player like limpets, month after month, their glistening surface never succumbing to tarnish, were few and far between.

Nollaig Casey's long-overdue solo excursion, The Music of What Happened, finally gave vent to one of the tradition's most self-effacing fiddle players. Long respected for her agile accompaniment, Casey finally breathed deep of her own music, and surprised many with her vocals on a select gathering of songs, including A Spailpín A Riúin.

Lúnasa's live recording, The Kinnity Sessions, simply reinforced their status as instrumentalists with a collective ear for innovation. Flute and pipes continue to scaffold their sound, but the twin towers of Trevor Hutchinson's double bass and Donagh Hennessy's guitar are the foundations that solidify their soaring spirits.

Gerry "Fiddle" O'Connor finally came out of the shadows with a wonderful solo debut in the shape of Journeyman, and of course Planxty's reunion was a running highlight of the year. As well as giving us an excuse to revisit the classic releases of the 1970s, their magical live performances in Vicar St were ably captured in their Live 2004 collection on both CD and DVD. All four members underwent a magnificent reawakening in the belly of the beast that is Planxty, but it was Liam O Floinn's freewheeling delight in their music that remains firmly planted in the memory.

Still, the collection that soars head and shoulders above the rest, ever since it emerged from the chrysalis last August, has to be Gerry "Banjo" O'Connor's No Place Like Home. A long-overdue airing of his sublime banjo tunes, this was the one that reminded us of what limitless talent really is. A superb amalgam of virtuoso playing and spirited tunes, fuelled by an unerring instinct for navigating uncharted waters. A glorious celebration of the music.

TOP 5 TRAD

1 Gerry "Banjo" O'Connor: No Place Like Home (Ossian)

2 Planxty - Live 2004 (Columbia)

3 Nollaig Casey: The Music of What Happened (Old Bridge Music)

4 Lúnasa - The Kinnity Sessions (Compass)

5 Gerry "Fiddle" O'Connor - Journeyman (Lughnasa Music)