The Gaelic Roots series is directed by Séamus Connolly, Sullivan Artist-in-Residence. All events are free and open to the public unless otherwise specified.
Connolly House is located at 300 Hammond Street in Chestnut Hill, Mass. Visitors parking on campus must use the Beacon Street Garage or the Commonwealth Avenue Garage. Please see the visitor parking page for details.
Tuesday, Feb. 10, 6:30-8:30pm
Connolly House
"Donna Hébert: Traditional Franco-American, Northern, and contradance fiddle music"
A third-generation Franco-American, Donna Hébert co-founded two music groups, Chanterelle and The Beaudoin Legacy. A versatile performer, teacher, and author, Donna Hébert received a 2008 Massachusetts Artists' Fellowship in the Folk Arts from the Massachusetts Cultural Council. Performing on fiddle and vocals, Donna Hébert will be joined by Max Cohen (guitar and vocals) and Jeremiah McLane (accordion and keyboard).
Tuesday, March 24, 6:30-8:30pm
Connolly House
"Nightingale"
The Vermont based trio Nightingale features Becky Tracy (fiddle), Jeremiah McLane (piano and accordion), and Keith Murphy (guitar, mandolin, foot percussion, vocals). Inspired by the music of Ireland, France, Scandinavia, Newfoundland, and Quebec, Nightingale offers innovative explorations of traditional instrumental music and song. The trio's performances also highlight its members' original compositions and arrangements.
Wednesday, April 1, 6:30-8:30pm
Connolly House
"Ken Perlman and Alan Jabbour: Traditional American fiddle and banjo duets"
Ken Perlman is a pioneer in five-string melodic clawhammer banjo, and a master of fingerstyle guitar. As a folklorist, he spent over a decade collecting fiddle tunes and oral histories on Prince Edward Island. Dr. Alan Jabbour, founding director (1976-1999) of the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress, began documenting and apprenticing with oldtime fiddlers in the 1960s. His ethnographic field collection, Fiddle Tunes of the Old Frontier: The Henry Reed Collection, is accessible online via the Library of Congress. Alan Jabbour and Ken Perlman released a collaborative fiddle and banjo CD, Southern Summits, in 2005.
Tuesday, April 14, 6:30-8:30pm
Connolly House
"Maeve Donnelly and Tony McManus: Fiddle and guitar music from Ireland, Scotland, and beyond"
Originally from East Galway, Maeve Donnelly won her first All-Ireland fiddle competition at age nine. She became a founding member of the group Moving Cloud, and is now sought after as a fiddle performer, teacher, and recording artist. Performer, teacher, and recording artist Tony McManus has defined a new role for the guitar in Celtic music, incorporating a variety of influences and intricate ornamentation. The collaboration of Maeve Donnelly and Tony McManus has produced the CD, Flame on the Banks (2008).
Thursday, April 23, 12:00-1:00pm
O'Neill Plaza
Boston College Arts Festival Opening ceremony
Boston College students, faculty, and staff perform Irish music, song, and dance, under the direction of Séamus Connolly, Sullivan Artist-in-Residence. Learn more about Arts Festival.