For those of you in the US and Canada who are interested in hearing good Irish Traditional music, Comhaltas puts together a group of great musicians and sends them on a tour of North America each year. The Tour is starting next week in the New Your area and then visits Connecticut, Massachusetts, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Kansas City, St Louis, and Chicago. Go to http://www.comhaltas.com/concert/na-venues2006.htm for the details.
Next Wednesday evening the Tour comes to the Pearl River High School Auditorium, familiar to many as the site of the Mid-Atlantic Fleadh each June. If you are near Pearl River, or any other tour venue, give yourself a treat and catch the show.
I believe they are trying to move the tours around to different regions each year. Last year they swung through the south. That said, there has to be evidence of sufficient interest before they can book the tour through a region. When you add up the expenses for moving so many people around, the expense side of the budget can be quite frightening. CCE is a bit thin on the ground out west, compared to the density on the East Coast. Maybe an increase in the membership roles out there is the answer.
Join your local CCE group, bring a crowd with you, and invite the tour to come visit - they’d love it I’m sure. I’m afraid that might sound a bit glib, but I bet it would work.
I’m actually the newsletter editor for my CCÉ branch. Between us and San Francisco, we have a fair number of members, and a lot of Irish music venues that are generally well-attended.
I think I’ll bring this up at the next membership meeting.