An Evening Of Traditional Irish Music

201 South Washington Street, Alexandria VA

14 October, 2022

Description

An Evening Of Traditional Irish Music With Cara Wildman And Lexie Boatright with Matt Mulqueen Friday, October 14, 2022 At The Lyceum in Alexandria, Virginia Doors Open at 7:00 pm Cara Wildman and Lexie Boatright are All-Ireland prize-winning musicians playing the Harp, Concertina, Fiddle, and Bodhran. Cara Wildman is a well-respected percussionist, pianist, dancer, and bodhrán player from Dorchester, TX. Cara’s talents have led her to perform in a variety of musical ensembles and genres around the world including in Puerto Rico, Argentina, Mexico, Ireland, Canada and across the United States. She has performed with Carolina Crown Drum & Bugle Corps, Celtic Thunder, The Irish Memory Orchestra, Joanie Madden (Cherish the Ladies), Oisín Mac Diarmada (Irish Christmas in America), Máiréad Nesbitt (Celtic Woman) and Donal Lunny. She earned her Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Music Education from Texas Christian University, and a second Master's in Irish Traditional Music Performance from the University of Limerick in Ireland. Cara has studied with bodhrán greats Jim Higgins, Eamon Murray, Martin O'Neill, Cormac Byrne, Colm Murphy, Colm Phelan, and Junior Davey, among others. Alex Boatright is an award-winning multi-instrumentalist, performer, and teacher known for her effortless musicality and sensitive musicianship on Harp and Concertina. Alex is the Artistic Director of the Baltimore-Washington Academy of Irish Culture, a non-profit that she founded together with Fiddler Mitch Fanning, which provides children in the DMV area with a rich education in traditional Irish music as well as Irish language, dance, and history while connecting the students with free instrument access and financially equitable travel and learning opportunities. Through the Academy, Alex is the director of the well loved youth performance group, The Bog Band, which performs widely in the DC-area festival circuit as well as the coach for many classes including BWAIC’s competition Grúpa Ceol and Ceili Band. Matt Mulqueen was born in Baltimore, Maryland, into a musical family. His older brothers played button accordion and fiddle, and his sister became a champion step-dancer. This environment instilled in Matt an irresistible desire to learn and play Irish traditional music. His first music instruction came in the second grade when he joined the boys choir at his elementary school. At age nine, Matt asked his parents if he could learn to play the piano. He began with group piano lessons at a local community college. From there, he progressed to private lessons in Irish and Classical music with Donna Long, who has been the greatest influence on Matt's playing. Listening to the host of traditional musicians who haunt Irish pubs and to innumerable recordings allowed Matt to forge his own compelling style of accompanying Irish music. Tickets and information: Advanced tickets preferred In partnership with the City of Alexandria, the National American Morris Dance Organization is delighted to present The Johnson Girls in Concert Friday, November 18, 2022 At The Lyceum in Alexandria, Virginia Doors Open at 7:00 pm The Johnson Girls are an energetic all-woman mostly a capella group performing folk music with an emphasis on songs of the sea and shore. The Johnson Girls have been a force on the folk and maritime music scene for over two decades as the leading all-woman, a cappella maritime group in the world. Believing that sea chanteys and songs of the sea were the first real “World Music”, Joy Bennett, Alison Kelley, Bonnie Milner, and Deirdre Murtha each bring a special influence to the group. Whether performing at packed international folk festivals, intimate venues, workshops, or presenting school or library programs, The Johnson Girls remain true to their mission of keeping chantey singing and its history alive, bringing women’s voices to the fore, and encouraging everyone to join in the revelry. Widely acclaimed for their powerhouse performances of rousing work songs, sensitive renderings of haunting ballads and laments, and hair-raising harmonies, they sweep their audiences along in a tidal fervor. “The Johnson Girls, chantey singers from America, took the place by storm… Those who thought a chantey singer had to be male, bearded, and with a beer gut, needed to think again.” - Cornwall Guardian (UK) Tickets and information: Advanced tickets preferred 201 South Washington Street, Alexandria, Va 22314