I heard at lunchtime today that the death has taken place in Galway of the traditional singer Rita Keane. Rita, the aunt of singers Dolores and Sean Keane, died at the ripe old age of 86. She and her elder sister Sarah, who survives her, are regarded as two of the most significant collectors and performers of songs in Irish and English from the East Galway countryside. They began their careers in the 1930s, playing and singing with the Keane's Ceilí Band. In the 1960s they recorded a collection entitled 'Once I Loved'. More than twenty years later they released a second album, 'At the Setting of the Sun'. Rita and Sarah Keane were awarded numerous awards for their contributions to Irish traditional music, including the TG4 Lifetime Achievement Award. Both women have had a major impact on successive generations of traditional singers, including singers in my own family.

May the deep peace of the quiet Earth hold her.