Colm Ó Snodaigh is a member of the traditional Irish folk group Kíla. Born in Dublin and reared on the south side of Dublin by Sandymount's sea, Colm is a native Irish speaker and was schooled at both Scoil Lorcáin and Coláiste Eoin. He completed a degree in Physiotherapy at University College Dublin in 1988.
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He plays the flute, tin whistle, guitar, saxophone and percussion. He also sings with the group Kíla and released a solo album titled Giving in 2007 where he sings in all the tracks.[1] The album is a mixture of Colm's own compositions written in both Irish and English and was produced by Shay Fitzgerald. He released another album in 1990 of 10 acoustic pop songs in Irish, entitled Éist. He is currently working on his follow-up to Giving.
He has written one book of short stories entitled Turasóireacht (tourism/tripping) which was published in 1995 by Coiscéim. Subsequent stiries have been published in the anthologies Scéalta ón Aer (2000) eag Cathal Póirtéir and in Lón Léitheoireacht 2 (2008). His début novella Pat the Pipe - Píobaire (piper) was published to great acclaim in 2007 and a translation of Sandy Fitzgerald's children's story Céal & an Buachaill Gorm (Cale & the Blue Boy) was published in early 2008. He writes a monthly article on music for online magazine Beo.ie. One of the articles An Ghaoth Aneas was included in the New Island publication Sunday Miscellany - A Selection from 2006-08 following its broadcast in 2008 on RTÉ Radio 1. This same article was included, along with a sister article Ag Máirseáil i dTreo na Gréine, as a tribute to Pádraig Ó Cléirigh, in a posthumous collection of Pádraig's short stories published by Coiscéím in 2010, called An Bhréag & Scéalta Eile.
Many poetic-type doodlings hope to be collected some day in an anthology. They feel a little marginalised and neglected sometimes.
After periods with Shamrock Rovers F.C., Shelbourne F.C. and University College Dublin A.F.C., Ó Snodaigh was a squad member of the successful Bray Wanderers side that won the FAI Cup in 1990 at Lansdowne Road with a 3-0 win against St Francis, narrowly lost in the European Cup Winners Cup tie against Turkish side Trabzonspor, and finished runners-up in the League of Ireland first division to win promotion to the premier division in 1991. That same year he was a central member of Bray's reserve side that finished runners-up in the League of Ireland B championship. He won the B team player of the year award in 1990 and was a member of the first team that lost the President's Cup final 3-1 against Dundalk FC.
In time he left Bray and became a member of Leinster Senior league side Pegasus FC where, over a seven year period, he was a member of their FAI Intermediate Cup winning team in 1992 against Bluebell, top scorer in 1996/7, selected for the Leinster Senior League selection team in 1992 and captain of the side that got relegated from the senior division in 1997 following a defeat away to Bluebell.
Following retirement from soccer (due largely to a serious knee injury) Ó Snodaigh, at the behest of his brother, Rossa, joined the St Kevin's Junior C hurling team. In two seasons he helped them win the Junior C Dublin Shield twice and the league once. In his second season he scored a clatter-load of goals. He played at full forward, due to his aging years and zippy speed! At one stage the team included musicians Edmund 'Mundy' Enright, Eoin Coughlan and Marcus MacConghail.
Colm played tennis for twenty years at the Sandymount tennis club, Claremont and latterly Claremont/Railway Union. He played Class 2 for the senior team, in the summer league and won the U19 singles title - the same one that runnerRonnie Delaney won in the fifties a few years before he won the gold medal at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. He counts himself lucky to have received guidance/coaching from self-styled tennis guru Malachy Clarke, whose unique flat forehand admired by many.