 After graduating from the University College Dublin in 1973 with a degree in Celtic Studies, he took a position with the Irish Folklore Commission collecting songs in Donegal.During that time he met many singers and musicians who shared his love of Irish traditional music.He played regularly at the Tabairne Hiudai Beag's and spent long hours with his aunt Neilí, learning and documented over 200 traditional songs she had collected and been singing for years.