            |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
  |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
Featured Performers 2013
“Apart from his being a prince of a man, Donie is a lovely singer in the great old Cork street style”–Mick Moloney. Famous on both sides of the Atlantic, singer/guitarist Donie Carroll began his musical career in Cork City, Ireland, during the great ballad boom of the 60s and developed as a solo artist in the 70s. In the 80s, he toured Europe extensively with Finnegan’s Wake before emigrating to New York in the early 90s—he’s since been a fixture on the New York Irish music scene. That Donie's national renown continues to grow is greatly attributable to his authenticity and his unmistakable voice: although rough edged like Seamus Creagh's, it has a charm somewhat akin to that of his good friend Jimmy Crowley. Donie frequently can be found performing in the States as well as in Ireland, either on his own or with the likes of the great multi-instrumentalist Gabriel Donohue, fiddlers Caitlin Warbelow and Heather Martin Bixler, and a host of other talented musicians including the Washington Square Harp and Shamrock Orchestra. Also an accomplished Union actor, Donie made his off-Broadway debut in John B. Keane’s play Sive in 2007. When not in concert, he is a regular at New York’s most popular Irish music venues including Lillie’s Union Square, the Landmark Tavern, and Murphy’s Bar, Sunnyside. Donie’s first solo recording, Down the Slippery Gap, drew high critical praise, with selections drawn from his tremendous repertoire of old and new Irish songs (including many Cork City favorites). He was joined on this recording by Gabriel Donohue, Don Meade, Mattie Connolly, Joanie Madden, Liz Hanley, Jimmy Crowley, Heather Martin Bixler, Daniel Neely, Marian Makins and numerous others. Donie’s recently released recording, Divil of a Noise, is yet another wonderful collection of songs exploring Donie's nostalgia for growing up in Cork and for when he first fell in love with music. Just as his first recording, this album showcases a rake of the finest Irish talent including Gabriel Donohue, Joanie Madden, Mick Moloney, Billy McComiskey, Jimmy Crowley, Caitlin Warbelow, Dan Neely, Heather Martin Bixler, Marian Makins, and many others (including the ever brilliant Noel Reid).
Éamonn de Cógáin is widely regarded as Ireland's most energetic MC. He has called céilís far and wide across the Emerald Isle and is now devolping a name for himself stateside. Éamonn is one of the chief organisers of Damhsafest, The Cork International Folk Dance Festival and was once again MC at it's Gala Event, the Dance Extravaganza in Cork City Hall. This past summer he has orchastrated locals and tourist alike at The Flying Enterprize Complex in his native Cork, where thousands have learned the basic steps and movements of Irish Ceili Dancing. His smooth Brog and easy going nature allows people of all ages to believe that they can Ceili dance the night away without difficulty. The return to Mississippi was an easy choice for both CelticFest organizers and Éamonn himself as he enjoy the Festival so much last year! Éamonn looks forward to seeing you all at his workshops and especially at the Saturday Night Céilí Mór.
Premier Irish-American fiddler BRIAN CONWAY performs with a skill, grace and force that are steeped in tradition but distinctively his own. Conway has won numerous All-Ireland fiddling competitions, and has been called one of the best fiddlers of his generation. New York born, he is a leading exponent of the highly ornamented Sligo fiddling style made famous by the late Michael Coleman and passed on to him by legendary Martin Wynne and fiddle great Andy McGann. Brian remains faithful to the rich tradition handed down to him—the distinctness of his tone, the lift of his playing, and the deft ornamentation he brings to the tunes have placed him among the finest Irish fiddlers of any style, Sligo or otherwise. His talents have also been enthusiastically received all over North America and throughout Ireland and the rest of Europe. His current CD, First through the Gate, exemplifies the versatility that characterizes his concert performances and festival appearances. He is also a noted instructor who has mentored many fine fiddle players including several who have gone on to win All-Ireland championships. – "Certainly one of the finest Irish-American musician fiddlers..." Dirty Linen Magazine.
Tony DeMarco and Siobhán Butler with Tony Davoren
Combining two of America’s leading Irish performers are Sean-Nós (old style) dancer, Siobhán Butler and fiddler, Tony DeMarco in an exciting new duo consisting solely of fiddle and percussive dance. Together they have been featured on nationally televised program TG4 in Ireland, as well as The Grand Ole Opry. Tony, a Smithsonian Folkways artist, and Siobhán, founder of Sean-Nós New York, bring a refreshing perspective to ancient arts that is captivating to both the eyes and ears. TONY DEMARCO has been performing and teaching Irish fiddle music for more than 30 years, and is now one of leading living exponents of the New York/Sligo fiddle style. Tony’s album The Sligo Indians, released in 2008 on the Smithsonian Folkways label, is tribute to this style and the musicians that shaped his music. His landmark The Apple in Winter album with Brian Conway is a highly regarded example of the old Sligo-style twin fiddle music from New York. SIOBHÁN BUTLER is an internationally recognized percussive dancer who has performed with many acts (eg, Celtic Crossroads, Kieran Jordan, Cherish the Ladies). Born in Cambridgeshire, England, Siobhán began Irish dancing at age eight. Greatly successful in competitive step dancing, Siobhán now focuses on the old style, sean-nós dancing, and is influenced by several percussive dance styles (tap, flamenco, flatfooting, cape Breton). Her mission as teacher and dancer is to reunite Irish music and dance. Dance is not only the physical interpretation of the music, but it is also another rhythmic layer of it. With her technical, Irish step dance background mixed with her knowledge of traditional, improvised dance styles, Siobhán brings a unique point of view to dancing. Accompanying Tony and Siobhán is Tony Davoren who hails from Hollywood Co. Wicklow, Ireland. In 1992, he joined the Celtic Irish choral group Anuna, and through that connection, began touring with Riverdance—The Show. For the next five years Tony appeared on many of the great stages of the world, including Radio City Music Hall, and performed for the Prince of Wales in the Royal variety show in The Albert Hall in London. He has recorded with Sting, The Chieftains, and Sinead O'Connor, and is featured on two Grammy Award-winning recordings: The Long Black Veil and Riverdance—The Show.
DON MEADE’s earliest memories of Irish music were his mother singing “Who Threw the Overalls in Mrs. Murphy’s Chowder” and his father’s recordings of the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem. In 1965, he took up the harmonica and learned to play Clancy/Makem melodies. Also taking up guitar and mandolin, he began picking out melodies of reels and hornpipe. After graduating UCLA in 1976, he moved to NYC where he took up tenor banjo (if only to be able to hear what he was playing in sessions), and despite sage advice that he stick to one instrument, he also took up fiddle. All along, he never stopped playing the harmonica, and won the All-Ireland mouth organ championship in 1987. Don served as the first Artistic Director of the Catskills Irish Arts Week in New York, and remains on the teaching staff. He was a traditional music columnist for ten years for the Irish Voice and has contributed articles on Irish music to numerous publications. Don is coordinator and host of the popular Blarney Star Concert Series at NYU’s Glucksman Ireland House which has been presenting the finest Irish traditional musicians to New York audiences for over 25 years. He continues to play regularly at concerts, dances and sessions throughout the New York area. For example, he’s a member of the Washington Square Harp and Shamrock Orchestra (directed by NYU Professor Mick Moloney), and he is leader of the ever popular weekly tune session at the Landmark Tavern.
Ed Miller has been called “one of the best singers to emerge from the Scottish folk revival.” Miller is a guitar-wielding folkie who wins his audiences over with a sweet but powerful voice, great ear for material, and equal doses of populist politics and wry humor. A native of Edinburgh, Scotland, Ed currently resides in Austin, TX, where he pursued graduate degrees in Geography and later a PhD in folklore at University of Texas. Miller has released 9 CDs, the latest being Come Awa’ Wi’ Me. He hosts a weekly Celtic music radio show on KUTX-FM called Across the Water and annually takes groups on Folksong Tours of Scotland. JIL CHAMBLESS’S vocal talent has earned her a place as “one of the best Celtic music vocalists and musicians in the United States.” Jil was exposed to Celtic music in the 1980s when she joined Henri’s Notions, a band that combines traditional Celtic with American music to produce a distinct mix composed of eclectic sounds and instruments. In addition to many recordings with Henri’s Notions, Jil has released her first solo CD, The Ladies Go Dancing, as well as The Laverock Sang with Scooter Muse. SCOOTER MUSE’S musical foundation lies in bluegrass, and like Jil, he also ventured into the realm of Celtic music in the 1980s. He was a founding member and guitarist of the band Full Moon Ensemble which played for eight years at Celtic festivals across the US and in Scotland, and he later joined Henri’s Notions. In addition to several recordings with Full Moon and Henri’s Notions, Scooter has released his first solo CD, Saddell Abbey, featuring 12 original compositions for acoustic guitar.
Daniel Neely plays tenor banjo and mandolin, and is the leader of the Washington Square Harp and Shamrock Orchestra, a New York City group that plays traditional Irish music and recalls the Irish-American dance bands of the early twentieth century. He learned banjo primarily from Mick Moloney, runs a popular session at Lillie’s Bar and Restaurant in NYC, and has worked extensively on several of NYC’s Irish Arts Center’s music projects. Dan is currently the artistic director of the Augusta Irish/Celtic week, the traditional music columnist for the Irish Echo newspaper, and the Public Relations Officer of Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann’s Mid-Atlantic Region. Daniel holds a PhD in ethnomusicology, wrote his dissertation on mento (a traditional Jamaican music), and was the music director and banjoist on the Jolly Boys’s album, Great Expectation. The Washington Square Harp and Shamrock Orchestra’s album is called Since Maggie Dooley Learned the Hooley Hooley.
Although long-time friends, this lineup was literally “blown together” by stormy weather in October of 2012. Their signature is “pure drop” Irish traditional music played in traditional style. The lineup for this new configuration includes: Seven-time All-Ireland button-box champion JOHN WHELAN named “Traditionalist of the Year” by Irish Echo magazine brings both passion and playfulness to his music while respecting the tradition. Called one of the best fiddlers of his generation, All-Ireland fiddler BRIAN CONWAY performs with a skill, grace, and force that are steeped in Sligo style tradition but distinctively his own. Cork born Máirtín de Cógáin, the singing, dancing, bodhrán player who also happens to be an All-Ireland champion storyteller. Máirtín pleasantly commands the attention of any collection of people with his infectious personality. Sadly, Máirtín is not able to attend CelticFest this year. Accompanist DON PENZIEN who has long been a top-flight performer of Irish traditional music and frequently tours nationally playing concerts and festivals with top Irish talent.
Niall and Cillian Vallely learned their music the old-fashioned way - from their parents Brian and Eithne, who founded the Armagh Pipers’ Club, a group that for over three decades has fostered the revival of traditional music in Ireland’s north. Based since 1988 in Cork City, Niall was a founding member of the well-known group Nomos. He also played a prominent part in Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin’s ‘River of Sound’ television project and has performed in recent years with piping great Paddy Keenan, bluegrass mandolinist Tim O’Brien, and singer Karan Casey, his partner in life as well as music. Niall’s solo recording Beyond Words was released in 1998 to much critical acclaim. Cillian took up his father’s instrument and polished his skills with tutelage from the late Armagh piper Mark Donnelly. His mastery of chanter, drones and regulators, and of all the accents and moods of the traditional piping idiom, place him in the first rank of today’s Irish pipers. Cillian now tours with the group Lúnasa, and has also performed extensively in America with groups such as New York’s Whirligig and Paddy O’Brien’s Chulrua, and has appeared with fiddler Seamus Connolly, Riverdance on Broadway and Tim O’Brien’s The Crossing.
Seven-time All-Ireland button-box champion JOHN WHELAN was named “Traditionalist of the Year” by Irish Echo magazine in 2011. In receiving that award, John won high praise from Celtic music authority Earle Hitchner: "As an instrumentalist, composer, producer, and arranger who brings both passion and playfulness to his music while respecting the tradition it's rooted in. John Whelan has richly earned the Irish Echo's highest honor for traditional music." At age 14, already a seasoned winner of numerous accordion championships, John recorded his first album. Named in honor of his father, Pride of Wexford was no passing fancy - the album is still in print and selling steadily. His music has since been used for productions on HBO, the History Channel, NBC, FOX, PBS, and in several major motion pictures. His new CD, Passage of Time, includes 33 of his compositions and includes a long list of top guest musicians, including Seamus Egan, Seamus Connolly, Felix and Brendan Dolan, Cillian Vallely, Jerry O’Sullivan and Winifred Horan (to name but a few)—it reads like a who’s-who of traditional music in America.
|
Benefit Events for CelticFest Mississippi
Coming again Spring 2014: Feeling Lost? Loading
Cad 'ta tharla?
Irish Word of the Day
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||
