Turlough O’Carolan was an Irish harper, singer, and composer, born in 1670 in County Meath and died 25 March 1738 in County Roscommon. Blinded by smallpox at eighteen, he trained as a harper and spent much of his life traveling Ireland as an itinerant musician, composing tunes for patrons among the Irish gentry.

O’Carolan is regarded as Ireland’s national composer and the last great figure of the Irish harping tradition, blending native melodic idiom with the Italian Baroque style he encountered on his travels. His airs, including “Sí Bheag, Sí Mhór,” remain widely performed across folk, classical, and crossover guitar repertoire.

Sources:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turlough_O%27Carolan