The funeral for Paddy Moloney, founder member of The Chieftains, has taken place in Co Wicklow.

President Michael D Higgins was among the mourners at the mass in St Kevin's Church in Glendalough.

Mr Moloney died earlier this week aged 83.

Chief celebrant Fr Eamonn Crossan told the congregation that Paddy Moloney had admirers all over the world and that "the music lives on".

Chief mourners were Paddy's wife Rita, their children Aonghus, Aedín and Pádraig and their grandchildren.

Also in attendance many of Paddy's fellow musicians - his long-time friends in The Chieftains and the wider music community.

A set of Uileann pipes and a whistle were brought to the altar in memory of a man considered one of the greatest musicians of his time.

A photograph of the young Paddy Moloney was a reminder that he first started studying the pipes at the age of eight - with music becoming a lifelong passion.

Aonghus Moloney told those at the mass that his father had played for the Pope, as well as opening for The Rolling Stones.

He said: "A special thanks to The Chieftains. Paddy would always have wanted it that they would have the final note.

"Paddy's life was The Chieftains. Music was his life. He lived for that moment when he would walk out onto that stage and say: 'I'm Paddy Moloney from Dublin, Ireland, the greatest city in the world.'

"He always let his music do the talking.

"Above all, Paddy was devoted to Rita. There was a 60 years-plus love affair.

"Our dad loved doing what he did. In March last year, Covid brought about abandoned and then cancelled tours. For the first time in 70 years Paddy Moloney couldn't play music to an audience.

"Paddy died last Tuesday. When the thing he loved most was taken away from him, Paddy's life faded from last March."

Aonghus said his father was a man who always let his music do the talking.

The service ended with a final round of applause for a musician who brought the Uileann pipes to a worldwide audience.

Last night, Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger paid tribute to the Dublin-born musician, describing him as the "the greatest Uilleann piper on the planet".

The founder and leader of The Chieftains, Mr Moloney worked with a wide variety of artists including Jagger, Van Morrision, Marianne Faithful, Elvis Costello and Sinead O'Connor.

From Donnycarney in north Dublin, he grew up in a musical family and began playing the tin whistle and then the Uileann pipes, learning from the pipe master Leo Rowsome.

He formed several groups with musicians in duets and trios, and in 1962 formed the band that would become The Chieftains with Sean Potts and Michael Tubridy.

The Chieftains went on to become one of the best-known Irish traditional groups in the world, winning six Grammys, as well as many other awards.

President Higgins said this week that Paddy Moloney was an "extraordinary" musician.

He said: "Paddy, with his extraordinary skills as an instrumentalist, notably the Uilleann pipes and bodhran, was at the forefront of the renaissance of interest in Irish music, bringing a greater appreciation of Irish music and culture internationally.

"His legacy will remain with us in the music which he created and brought to the world."