As an adult student in the Irish Music School, I have learned many things about the nuances of Irish traditional music. It has been a richly rewarding journey and the friendships I have developed, the fun times I have had, are only surpassed by a sense of where the music has been and where it is going.
To encourage the appreciation of traditional music from the generations that came before has been one of the objectives of the Irish Music School and its teachers. The Irish Music School instructors continue this tradition today. Towards that end, they have organized a benefit concert to raise funds for the continuing education of their students.
This concert, “O Ghluin go Gluin”, translated in English “From Generation to Generation”, will feature students of the Irish Music School of Chicago(both children and adults), and immigrant musicians who have been active on both the north and south sides of Chicago since the 1950s. The benefit will be held at Gaelic Park, on 147th street, east of Ridgeland Avenue in Oak Forest, Illinois, at 7pm, Saturday January 28, 2006.
In addition, there will be a special presentation by bohola, the trio featuring Chicago natives Jimmy Keane (piano accordion), Sean Cleland (fiddle), and Dublin native Pat Broaders (bouzouki and vocals). Come and join a celebration of rugged, tough, “big shoulders” irish music.
Sean is focusing on the school now, he wanted off the road. The Irish Music School is doing very well, and he would like to grow and develop it! Jimmy and Pat are supporting Sean and the Irish Music School by not only playing a set, but also providing assistance with the sound.
It was a great night of music, the sets by the south siders, Sean and Clodagh Ryan, bohola (with Sean), and the kids were all fantastic. Good tunes afterwards as well. I must encourage everyone who has the opportunity to come to these sorts of events. To hang out with people like Albert Neary, Pat Cloonan, Frank Burke and Joe O’Shea is fantastic to begin with, and to have them point out the faces of Joe Cooley, Seamus Cooley, Joe Shannon and the rest of them in photographs is simply amazing.
It was a great evening, the kids were really impressive and played very well. I asked one of them if he had fun onstage and when he said it was great to do a concert, I told him that “having fun” was the most important aspect of the music!
Sean and his school are doing great work and are successful at passing the tunes from “generation to generation”.
You are welcome for the tunes, would have stayed longer but we closed the place!