The name Rowsome has always been revered in the Connolly household. It just seems like yesterday but it's almost 50 years now since I first heard the music of Kevin Rowsome's grandfather, Leo.

I remember so vividly my father proudly holding in his hands a recording of "The Maestro" (as he referred to Leo). He then carefully placed the 78 r.p.m. record on the turntable of our wind-up gramophone and slowly lowered the needle on to the groove. It was then that I saw the smile on my fathers face as our kitchen was filled with sounds of the master at work, playing the haunting air, "The Dark Woman of the Glen".

Reflecting now on the music of Leo Rowsome, his command of the instrument, his use of the chanter, regulators and drones brings to mind the following lines: "You can make music of a sort with white keys only, but for true harmony you need the black keys also". Leo, with his inimitable style of playing certainly puts the words of James E. Kivegyir into perspective.

Almost a half-century has gone by since my father told me, with pride, stories of Leo Rowsome. It gives me great pleasure now to write about the new generation of Rowsome piping that has emerged to the forefront. Kevin Rowsome proudly perpetuates, with his own creative playing, the long piping tradition of his forefathers. A master in his own right, Kevin's assured renditions of tunes once recorded by his grandfather, along with the other selections on this lovely compact disk are a credit to him and to the musical Rowsome family. Today, I proudly hold in my hand a recording, which no doubt will further enhance the world of Irish traditional music and uilleann piping. Congratulations Kevin, a job well done! I hope it's the first of many.

Seamus Connolly