​Edward Bunting

 “… I hope that in years to come I may be thought of as ranking with those worthy Irishmen whose labours have
​from time to time sustained the reputation of the country for a native literature.

Edward Bunting was born in Armagh, Ireland in 1773.   He died in Dublin in 1843.  At age 11 the young Bunting was appointed the sub-organist at a church in Belfast.  At age 19 he was hired to transcribe the music played at the 1792 Assemblage of Irish Harpers in Belfast.  This event redirected Buntings life into the work of collecting traditional Irish music. 

Trained as a classical musician, Bunting struggled to understand traditional Irish music and often got it wrong, “correcting” the music to fit within classical expectations.  Nonetheless,  Bunting’s work remains a priceless contribution to the collection of traditional Irish music.   To Bunting’s credit, he was the first collector of Irish traditional music to recognize the importance of words associated with melodies.  

A VERY thorough biography of Bunting is found at this link:
https://www.byersmusic.com/edward-bunting.php

https://www.libraryireland.com/biography/EdwardBunting.php

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Bunting