Thousands pay respects to Glen Hansard at public wake in Dublin

Over 11,000 fans, friends and fellow musicians lined up to pay their respects to Glen Hansard yesterday, at his public wake at the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA) in Dublin.

There was a steady queue of people in place from the early morning, as the Irish music legend lay in repose in IMMA's Baroque Chapel – with his wicker coffin flanked by two guitars.

Traditional Irish music was performed inside the chapel, with Liam Ó Maonlaí among those who sang on the day.

Others who attended the wake included Glen's wife Maire Saaritsa, Colm Mac an Iomaire, Imelda May, Lisa O’Neill, Paddy Casey, Declan O’Rourke, Maria Doyle Kennedy, Kieran Kennedy, Bronagh Gallagher, Rónán Ó Snodaigh, Rossa Ó Snodaigh, Brendan Berry, Phelim Drew, Victoria Mary Clarke, and Glen's Once co-star and bandmate in The Swell Season, Markéta Irglová.

"It was a really moving and very beautiful occasion in IMMA yesterday,” Hot Press editor Niall Stokes reflected.

"The fact that so many people came to pay their respects to Glen reflects the huge impact he and his music – whether with The Frames, The Swell Season or solo – has had on Irish people, and the enormous affection in which he has always been held.

"The mood outside the building was poignant and yet suitably communal, with people sharing tears, tunes and songs. My own immediate response to the news had been that I wanted to refuse to believe it. And I think that feeling is widely shared. Someone spoke to me outside IMMA about having the sense that all of this was happening in a kind of parallel universe, and that out there somewhere else, things were – or are – progressing as normal.

"There is, I think, a part of everyone who would love to believe that. But, of course, there is no getting away from the terrible, brutal truth that we have lost one of Ireland’s musical greats in circumstances that are genuinely tragic, and thoroughly heartbreaking."

Niall notes that, inside the Baroque Chapel, "there was an otherworldly feeling."

"The setting was very beautiful, with Glen lying in repose at the centre of the room. There were bouquets of wild flowers on the wicker coffin and photos of Glen around it, with the coffin flanked by two guitars: his familiar Fender Telecaster and the great, battered guitar he called his workhorse – the famous Takamine NP15, with the big hole in the front.

"At the far end of the room, the musicians were gathered, playing traditional tunes and bursting into song on occasion. Liam Ó Maonlaí performed a beautiful version of ‘Carrickfergus', half in English and half as Gaeilge, digging deep to find emotional depths entirely fitting to the occasion. While I was there, so many musicians huddled and hugged and entered the Baroque Chapel to join the people who were passing through, quietly – and often in tears – paying their respects.

"All around, familiar faces from the music industry gathered, exchanging shell-shocked looks and warm embraces. It would be hard to imagine a more fitting scene or a more dignified one, in such cruel circumstances."

He goes on to state that, with over 11,000 attending, "it was a marvellously appropriate statement by Dublin people, and by Irish people, about the importance of music and songwriting and story-telling – of which Glen Hansard was a master – to this country.

"But also by many from outside Ireland, who have come here to live and become part of the community – or who had made the journey specially, just to say their sad and final farewell to a lost hero.

"In many ways, it felt like a state funeral. But really it was something even greater than that: a funeral of, and by, and for, a man of the people, a proper Irish musical chieftain who never strayed from the streets that made him. The circumstances couldn’t have been more emotionally devastating or tragic, but it was a privilege to be there, and to experience first-hand just how deeply loved Glen was and is – and will remain.

“Glen Hansard was a true working class hero – a singer, songwriter, musician, actor and activist from Ballymun on the deprived Northside of Dublin, who lived his life at an incredible pitch of intensity and creativity, and whose art and activism, especially on the issue of homelessness, left an indelible mark on this country musically, culturally, socially and personally.

“As the man himself said, at the end of his Oscar acceptance speech, ‘Make art. Make art’. It may not be the answer to all of our problems, but it is as good an answer as we can ever conjure. And from now on, we can do it with renewed passion – individually and collectively – in Glen Hansard’s name."

A massive turnout is also expected for Glen's funeral – taking place at 1.30pm today at St Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin 8. Like the wake, the funeral will be open to the public, though access will be extremely limited due to the numbers expected. A webstream of the service will be available through rip.ie, and will also be broadcast on the RTÉ News channel.

In an online post last week, St. Patrick's Cathedral described Glen as "a good friend of the Cathedral", who generously shared "his extraordinary talent with us on a number of special occasions over the years."

"Whether performing in support of charitable causes or helping us mark significant moments in the life of the Cathedral, his music brought warmth, hope and joy to all who heard it."

Music at the funeral will be provided by Glen's friends and family. In lieu of flowers or gifts, his family have asked that donations be made to the Dublin Simon Community and Ukrainian Action Ireland.

Glen Hansard died last Wednesday, July 29, following a road traffic accident. He was 56.

His is survived by his wife Maire; his son Christy; his four brothers Gary, Dylan, Richard and David; and his sister Martina.