A celebration of Celtic music, song, and dance!
Katie McNally (fiddle) and Neil Pearlman (piano/dance) return to Groton Hill with some of the area’s finest players for an unforgettable show that celebrates the Celtic diaspora with toe-tapping tunes, songs, and dance!
A note from our hosts:
This year we're featuring a lineup of artists steeped in Irish traditions who have dedicated themselves to creating deep collaborative work. Nathan Gourley and Laura Feddersen are two of the finest exponents of Boston's Irish music community and have developed a unique twin fiddling style that elevates traditional tunes in new ways. As The Murphy Beds, Eamon O'Leary and Jefferson Hamer craft gorgeous interpretations of folk songs for bouzouki, guitar, mandolin, and two voices in harmony. Nic Gareiss is a dancer like no other, who brings a spontaneous, conversational approach to percussive dance in his numerous collaborations. Over the past few years our audiences have loved seeing artists from different acts making music together on stage and we're really excited this year to lean into that aspect of traditional Celtic music and dance. - Katie & Neil
Fiddler Katie McNally‘s imaginative and fierce music has been described as “as grounded in the tradition as it is ground-breaking” (Folk Radio UK). McNally grew up playing Scottish and Cape Breton fiddle near Boston and currently tours with her own projects: Fàrsan, Pine Tree Flyers, and the Katie McNally Trio. She has appeared at Celtic Colours, Celtic Connections, Newport Folk Festival, and The Festival of American Fiddle Tunes, as well as countless folk venues throughout North America and Europe. In addition to her busy touring schedule, she is the artistic director of the Boston States Fiddle Camp and is a devoted educator who teaches regularly at fiddle camps across the country.
A truly individual voice in the world of Celtic music, multi-instrumentalist and stepdancer Neil Pearlman continues to blaze his own trail making music that ranges from the traditional to the avant-garde, in big collectives and intimate duo projects, including his one-on-one collaborations recorded and published in the podcast TradCafé. Described as “a tremendous pianist” on BBC Radio Scotland, Neil is recognized in many Celtic music circles for his unique approach to the piano. Rooted in traditional Cape Breton piano styles, he adds jazz harmony and the syncopations of funk, Cuban, and Brazilian dance music to create a distinctive and infectious sound.
Nathan Gourley and Laura Feddersen are an Irish fiddle duo from Boston, Massachusetts. Their playing is steeped in a lifelong study of Irish traditional music, yet colored by their American roots. The pair have honed a unique twin-fiddle style, sometimes playing in taut unison, other times exploring chordal harmonies and rhythmic or melodic variations. Together, they've released several projects, including Life Is All Checkered, Ship in the Clouds, and most recently, Brightly or Darkly.
Eamon O’Leary and Jefferson Hamer (aka The Murphy Beds) present traditional and original folk songs with close harmonies and deft instrumental arrangements on bouzouki, guitar, and mandolin. In 2021 they released their second album, titled “Easy Way Down”, which The Irish Echo called “an incredible collection of songs delivered with grace and ease.” They have toured extensively throughout Europe and North America, with performances at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., Alaska Folk Festival, Milwaukee Irish Festival, WGBH Boston’s Celtic Sojourn, Doolin Folk Festival (Ireland), and Unamplifire Festival (London).
One of Dance Magazine’s “25 to Watch,” Nic Gareiss (he/they) is swiftly becoming recognized for his singular voice in the realm of dance, music, and the traditional arts. Informed by 25 years of ethnographic study and performance, Gareiss’ work draws from many percussive dance practices to weave together a technique facilitating his love of improvisation; clog, flatfoot, and step dance vocabulary; and musical collaboration. He has concertized in sixteen countries with many of the luminaries of roots music and folk dance including Alasdair Fraser, Natalie Haas, The Chieftains, Colin Dunne, Liz Carroll, and others, and collaborates in duo projects with Allison de Groot, Caleb Teicher, Cleek Schrey, Jake Blount, Laurel Premo, Maeve Gilchrist, Alexis Chartrand, Jack Devereux, Simon Chrisman, Ultan O’Brien, and as a member of the quartet This is How we Fly.
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