A look back

Past Concerts

Our Fall and Spring 2023 Concert Series

Saturday, November 4, 2023 ~ Open The Door For Three (Annual Gregg and Clare Burnett Memorial Concert)

Open The Door For Three is fiddle player Liz Knowles, uilleann piper Kieran O’Hare, and Dublin-born singer and bouzouki player Pat Broaders. Their music is a rare combination of unearthed tunes from centuries-old collections, newly composed melodies, fresh arrangements of songs old and new, homages to the musicians and bands they grew up listening to, and the unmatched energy of a trio of good friends playing great Irish music together.

  • Their music is a rare combination of unearthed tunes from centuries-old collections, newly composed melodies, fresh arrangements of songs old and new, homages to the musicians and bands they grew up listening to, and the unmatched energy of a trio of good friends playing great Irish music together. Liz, Kieran, and Pat have been mainstays of the Irish music scene around the world, having distinguished themselves over the last two decades as soloists with Riverdance, Cherish The Ladies, String Sisters, Secret Garden, Anúna, and The New York Pops. As a trio, they have played to a wide range of audiences in venues large and small, from Irish festivals, to concert halls, house concerts, and pubs. They have performed around the world: on Broadway and at Carnegie Hall, at L'Olympia and the Palais des Congrès in Paris, in Malaysian rainforest festivals, in theatres from Shanghai to São Paulo, and even in a bullring in Mallorca. Most recently, the group has been featured at the Kennedy Center’s Ireland 100 festival, the Celtic Colours festival in Cape Breton, at the Milwaukee Irish Festival, and in the Masters of Tradition series in Bantry, County Cork, Ireland. The trio has released three outstanding CDs, "Open The Door For Three," "Penny Wager," and "The Joyful Hour" -- described by Daniel Neeley of The Irish Echo as a "fabulous, well-balanced recording that features high-level playing and tasteful musical choice."

Saturday, October 21, 2023 ~ Rose Conway Flanagan KieranFlanagan/Eileen Clune Goodman

Rose Conway Flanagan originally began Irish music lessons with Martin Mulvihill while growing up in the Bronx, and further developed her New York Sligo style of fiddling with the help of family friend and mentor Martin Wynne and her older brother Brian Conway. In 2013, Rose was inducted into the Mid Atlantic Region CCE hall of fame alongside her father Jim and her brother Brian.

  • Rose Conway Flanagan learned to play traditional Irish fiddle from Martin Mulvihill while growing up in the Bronx. She then further developed her New York Sligo style of playing with the help of family friend and mentor Martin Wynne and her older brother Brian Conway. She has been inducted into the Mid-Atlantic Region CCE hall of fame alongside her father Jim and her brother Brian. In 2019, Rose was awarded the Irish Artist in America achievement award from the O’Flaherty Irish Music Retreat in Texas, alongside great leaders of Irish Music, including Kevin Burke, Seamus Connolly, Liz Carroll, and Joanie Madden. She currently runs a large music school in her hometown of Pearl River with fellow teachers Patty Furlong and Margie Mulvihill. Rose recently released a duo CD, "Forget Me Not," with Baltimore flute player Laura Byrne, which was met with much acclaim​.

    Hailing from Pearl River, New York, Kieran Flanagan comes from a family of well-known Irish musicians, namely his mother Rose Flanagan and uncle Brian Conway. Since the age of ten, he has been a protégé of the esteemed Irish pianist Brendan Dolan, as well as a student of renowned flute player Margie Mulvihill. Kieran has won many Irish music competitions in the New York area and has gone on to win first place on the piano accompaniment at the All Ireland Fleadh, a world competition held in Ireland once a year.

    ​Eileen Clune Goodman, a Bronx native now living in New Jersey, plays the traditional wooden flute, tin whistle, and piano accordion. In early childhood she was a student of the late Maureen Glynn and Martin Mulvihill. Eileen has been active in the tri-state trad music scene for over 30 years, playing for ceili dances and hosting sessions. She was the leader of the Green Gates Ceili Band for 20 years and is a regular musician at the Bronx-based Doonbeg Social Club. Eileen teaches tin whistle and flute to beginner to advanced levels and a number of her students have qualified for, and ultimately placed in, Fleadh Cheoil na Eireann. She has also been a regular teacher at the Catskills Irish Arts Week.

Saturday, September 16, 2023 ~ Séagda Coyle, Eugene Bender, Krista Charles 

Bronx native Séagda Coyle began playing the button accordion at the age of seven, taking lessons with with Mary Rafferty and later with John Nolan. Eugene Bender began playing Irish traditional music in the Sligo style when he was in the third grade, learning from Jo-Ellen Bosson and Brian Conway.

  • His primary influences were Joe Madden, Joe Burke, and Bobby Gardiner. He is a Mid-Atlantic CCE champion, an All-Ireland medalist, and leader of the senior New York Ceili Bands. Séagda has toured throughout the United States, Mexico, Ireland, and Canada with various groups, most recently with Socks in the Frying Pan. Séagda released his solo album “Rip the Bellows” in 2017, which featured John Walsh, Kathleen Boyle, and Steve Wickins.

    Eugene Bender won first place in the under-18 fiddle Mid-Atlantic CCE fleadh in 2007. During that period, Eugene also studied classical violin at the Music Conservatory of Westchester and was first violin in its baroque ensemble, string ensemble, and orchestra. In addition, he was Concertmaster violinist of the Manhattan College Orchestra and a member and secretary of the Manhattan College Jazz Band.

    Krista Charles studied Irish traditional music under Michelle Bergin, a student of the late Maureen Glynn Connolly, at the Woodlawn House of Music in the Bronx. Krista’s father, Oliver, is a musician in his own right and a former member of the New York-based Celtic Justice. Krista participated in the Mid-Atlantic and All-Ireland Fleadh Cheoil on fiddle and piano in solo and group events, including the prestigious Senior Ceili Band competition, under the direction of Seagda Coyle. In recent years, Krista is a featured musician at Irish dancing feisanna, performing for world-qualifying events across the Midwest.

Saturday, May 20, 2023 ~ The Consequences ​​(a new quartet of talented, champion traditional musicians)

Driven by a passion for exploring the rhythms and sensitivities of traditional Irish music with a lift and pulse that is contagious, The Consequences are a new Irish trad band featuring Jake James, Lexie Boatright, Cara Wildman, and Ryan Ward. Each member an All-Ireland award-winning soloist, the quartet creates a dynamic and enthralling sound with a combination of their own compositions and traditional tunes.

  • The band members have toured and performed across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Ireland, and Japan with world renowned musicians, including Joanie Madden, Irish Christmas in America, Green Fields of America, Máiréad Nesbitt, as well as at Carnegie Hall, the Great American Irish Festival, Symphony Space, and Joanie Madden’s Folk’n Irish Cruise. They are regular teachers and performers in the summer school and festival circuit.

Saturday, April 22, 2023 ~ Will Woodson and Caitlin Finley

Will Woodson (flute, uilleann pipes) and Caitlin Finley (fiddle) play sparky and driving traditional Irish music that’s grounded in the textures and rhythms of the rich Irish-American soundscape of the 1920s and 30s. With roots in the living Irish musical cultures of Boston, New York City, and Philadelphia, and a tremendous admiration for the first generation of recorded Irish musicians, the duo conjures up the sounds of the dance halls, vaudeville theaters, and house sessions central to Irish-American music from the first half of the twentieth century.

  • Their 2019 debut album, The Glory Reel, recorded with the brilliant Chris “Junior” Stevens on piano and button accordion, is full of swing, lift, and exuberance, drawing largely on the repertoires of North Connacht and Ulster, regions that have had a significant impact upon the style and repertoire of the duo. The flute playing of John McKenna, the piping of Michael Carney and Patsy Touhey, and of course the foundational 78s of Coleman, Killoran, and Morrison are all at play here; a diverse set of influences that are channeled by the duo into punchy, powerful, and joyous music

Saturday, March 11, 2023 ~ Sliabh Notes — 25th Anniversary Tour!

Featuring Matt Cranitch (fiddle) from Co. Cork, Tommy O’Sullivan (guitar and vocals) from Dingle in Co. Kerry, and Dónal Murphy (button accordion) from Co. Limerick. At the heart of the Sliabh Notes sound is the playing of Dónal Murphy on accordion, and Matt Cranitch on fiddle, who in the words of Paul Dromey (Evening Echo), “have proved themselves to be one of the finest and most electrifying Sliabh Luachra-style box and fiddle duos you could wish to hear.”

  • At the heart of the Sliabh Notes sound is the playing of Dónal Murphy on accordion, and Matt Cranitch on fiddle, who in the words of Paul Dromey (Evening Echo), “have proved themselves to be one of the finest and most electrifying Sliabh Luachra-style box and fiddle duos you could wish to hear.” Added to this is the versatile guitar-playing and unique singing of Tommy O'Sullivan. The result is a dynamic mix of exciting traditional music that is vibrant, powerful, and compelling. Nuala O'Connor (Irish Times) said that “It is difficult not to be carried away by this music.”

    Since the group was formed in 1995, they have released three albums, and have established an enviable reputation for their high-quality traditional music. They have played at many venues throughout Ireland, and have also performed at major festivals, including North Texas Irish Festival, Milwaukee Irish Fest, Copenhagen Irish Festival in Denmark, Torino Festival in Italy, Camden Festival in London, Castlewellan Celtic Fusion Festival, Ballyshannon International Folk Festival, Cork Folk Festival. At all these events, Sliabh Notes and their music, which has been described as “having a distinctive regional flavour but with international appeal,” were given a very enthusiastic reception.

Over the past two decades we have hosted concerts featuring many of the world’s most renowned musicians, including:

Nathan Gourley and Joey Abarta; Katie Linnane and Ivan Goff; Sean Clohessy, Kathleen Conneely, and John Coyne; Tommy Sands, John Doyle and Mick McAuley; Donal Clancy; Lunasa and Karen Casey; Altan; Mairtin O’Connor Band; John Whelan; Pride of New York; Cillian Vallely, Doocey, and McGyver; Mary Bergin; ​the Friel Sisters; Mattie and Deirdre Connolly; John Hoban; Denis Liddy, ​Brid Harper, and Tony O’Connell; June McCormack and Michael Rooney; Matt Malloy; Conal O’Grada and Ciaran O’Mhaonaigh; the Kane Sisters; David Power; Paddy Keenan, Matt Malloy, Carty, and McGlynn; Emer Mayock; Pat O’Connor and Eoghan O’Sullivan; Tony DeMarco, Ivan Goff, and McGyver; Conal O’Grada and Maeve Donnelly; Matt Cranitch and Jackie Daly; Cillian and Niall Vallely; Allan Murray, Edel Fox, and Neill Byrne; Matt and Shannon Heaton.

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