What is the fascination with Irish music and dance these days, prompting people to pay a pretty penny for a chance to see it live?
Eileen Ivers, a Grammy Award winner and all-Ireland fiddle champion, is very sure she has the answer.
“It’s something I often think about,” she said. “Primarily, the music is honest music. It covers many emotions in everyday life — the whole gamut of emotions, from heartbreak and loss to feelings of joy. The inherent beauty in the melodies is very easy to latch onto [and] the rhythms are infectious.”
| Onstage |
| Eileen Ivers and Immigrant Soul |
| » Where: The Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda |
| » When: 8 p.m. Thursday |
| » Info: $25 to $55; 301-581-5100; strathmore.org |
This is her explanation, as well as her formula, for the successful shows that she and her band, Immigrant Soul, bring to worldwide audiences. And by seasoning the mix with some local Irish musicians and dancers, she personalizes each performance, as well.
Thursday’s show at Strathmore is no exception as she and the boys are joined by 20 seasoned dancers of D.C.’s renowned Culkin School of Traditional Irish Dance and also by fiddler Brendan Mulvihill and accordionist Billy McComiskey.
Working with a cast of lively musicians is almost a signature modus operandi for Ivers, who over the years has performed, fiddle in hand, with the London Symphony Orchestra, the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center and the Boston Pops. She has also fiddled around with popular artists Sting, Patti Smith, Paula Cole and the Chieftains. Her film credits include the soundtrack to the “Gangs of New York.”
Ivers’ own band features Tommy McDonnell (vocals and percussion), Buddy Connolly (accordion, whistles and keyboards), Greg Anderson (acoustic guitar) and Lindsey Horner (upright and electric bass.)
“We’ll hear traditional Irish music from hundreds of years ago as well as more recently written compositions,” continued Ivers, who was born in New York City as a first-generation American. “We’ll discuss the movement of the music through the immigrants’ influence and how the music has interacted with Canadian, Appalachian and African-American cultures.
“We’ll be joyful at times and emotional and a little bit cathartic with the upbeat and fast dance tunes.”
And, as though speaking by way of a mission statement, she adds, “It should be a really incredibly evening with music, dance and song … a show for all ages.”
