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pittsburgh irish fest 2009
trying to find the pittsburgh irish fest was not quite as easy as it had been in the past, but after heading east out of town, through a neighborhood, across the river, and behind a costco and other shopping, we finally found it. it did not help that the city of pittsburgh is preparing for the G20 summit in a couple of weeks, so there was a bit of construction. once we got there, we found they have a nice little setup there (except for a 25-minute wait TO GET TICKETS!). after we got in, the place was laid out nicely with the main stages on opposite ends and the main stage having picnic tables around and a lawn to sit on.
gaelic storm, always fun, was the first band we got to see, and of course picked on the browns (although there were a lot of clevelanders there). over to the other stage we went to catch scythian get the whole tent up and moving. then back to the main stage to catch the great sounds of slide.
slide was just such a GREAT combination of musicianship, energy (provided mostly by the whirling dervish known as daire bracken), very nice vocals by a 22-year old dave curley, and some great soundwork by a very nice chloe nagle (who has the greatest accent that even sally said she could listen to for a long while).
for more pictures from the day, find them HERE
dublin irish festival 2008
well, another dublin irish fest has come and gone, and once again it was a great time seeing, taking photos of, and hanging out with some of the best musicians in the WORLD.
first off, there is BETH PATTERSON, a singer and bouzouki player from the new orleans area that is so amazingly talented and funny, you cannot help walking away after her show with a smile. see photos from her set here. then the band SCYTHIAN, a four-piece group from washington, d.c., that will have YOU tired from just watching them and their energy on stage. see what i mean in these photos.
of course, no good irish fest would be without GAELIC STORM. the crowd at 2:30 on sunday was WAY beyond the edges of the tent, and even though there was a breeze, it was still in the upper 80’s and WARM!!!! here we see they shy and reserved PATRICK MURPHY posing for me (in the MIDDLE of a song), and the lovely and talented JESSIE BURNS fiddling away… see what i mean in these photos.
another addition to this years festival was the complete show of the STEP CREW. this group of 7 dancers/musicians, including CARA BUTLER, DAN STACY, and JON PILATZKE, combine amazing dance moves (irish step dancing) with incredible fiddling, and chairs (you have to see it to believe it! add to the mix a few musicians and you have one of the more talked about shows of the festival. look at the proof.
speaking of world renowned musicians, if you have ever heard a set of bagpipes in a movie (braveheart, titanic), they are probably being played by ERIC RIGLER, who brought his absolutely amazing band, BAD HAGGIS, to wow the audience with a mix of celtic/funk that knock your socks off. check out these photos.
to round out the preview of photos, here are ANDREW HARKIN from SEANCHAI, BETH PATTERSON leading the grand finale, cleveland favorites BRIGID’S CROSS, and MOSSY MORAN as part of the finale that includes many of the musicians from all of the different stages from the festival. see pictures from the finale here, and the rest of the festival here.
new orleans
If you had to pick a fun city to spend your 40th birthday in, New Orleans would definitely be one of the top cities. And that is where my friend Ania spent hers, along with Connie and I. Below are pictures of the cathedral from across the Mississippi, an above ground tomb, and a shot from the lower 9th ward, where some of the heaviest damage was done in New Orleans. for more pictures, see here
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