Madden plans 2nd cruise in 2018

Joanie Madden is headed for Alaska in the summertime.

Traditional Music / By Daniel Neely

I was loving the posts on my Facebook feed last week from Joanie Madden’s “Folk ’N Irish Cruise!” Madden’s Caribbean getaway is one of the most-looked forward to events of the year and it really appears that everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves. And how couldn’t they? Starting and ending in Florida, they made stops in the Bahamas, Jamaica, the Caymen Islands, and Cozumel, and enjoyed constant Irish music throughout with an exceptionally strong lineup that included Cherish The Ladies, the Black Family, Lúnasa, Liz Carroll, Máirtín de Cógáin, Cormac de Barra, Billy McComiskey, the Pride of Moyvane band, Gabriel Donohue, Donie Carroll, Josh Dukes & Dylan Foley, John Nolan, dancers Donny Golden and Cara Butler to name but a few. It’s a cruise that really had something for everyone.

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The “Folk ’N Irish Cruises” have been such a great success that Madden added a second cruise to her busy 2018 schedule. The “Alaska Adventure” will happen Aug. 19-26 and will feature many of the same artists that went to the Caribbean and perhaps a few more to be announced. If it’s anything like like the “Folk ’N Irish Cruise,” it’ll be just as bonkers. Are you the sort that loves cruise vacations and Irish music together in the same place? Learn about Madden’s cruises and the craic she offers at www.joaniemaddencruise.com.

Speaking of good times, as you read this the Wolfhound Trad Fest is taking place at the Wolfhound Bar in Astoria, Queens. Featuring “seven nights of traditional music, song, & dance,” the festival is anchored by a trio of utterly superb musicians over from County Clare: fiddle player Siobhan Peoples, box player Murty Ryan, and uilleann piper Blackie O’Connell. This trio will play at the Wolfhound through Thursday and will be joined by a different group of local musicians each night: on Monday, it was Jake James and Dave Fahy; Tuesday was Katie Linnane, Dylan Foley and Matt Mancuso; Wednesday is Erin Loughran and Mickey Coleman; and Thursday will be Tony DeMarco and Matt Stapleton.

On Friday, the Trad Fest expands offsite. While Alan Gogarty (singer & guitar) & Donie Ryan (banjo), Girsa, and the Lost Tribe of Donegal play at the Wolfhound, Peoples, Ryan, and O’Connell move over to the American Irish Historical Society in Manhattan for “A Taste of Clare,” an intimate concert in opulent surroundings, presented in association with the Wolfhound Trad Week. If you’ve not been, the AIHS is an impressive organization located on Fifth Avenue, directly across the Metropolitan Museum of Art that anyone of Irish heritage should know about and support – if you’ve not yet been, this concert is a great excuse to go! Purchase tickets for this performance through aihs.org.

Trad Fest then continues all day on Saturday, first with a lunchtime session for young musicians and then with performances from Kevin McCormack, Baskethouse Band and the Thirsty Bandits; and it wraps on Sunday with performances from Niall O’Hagan and New York Brogue.

With a super mix of local musicians and musicians over from Ireland, the Wolfhound Trad Fest projects the feeling of a true “festival” in a wonderful way – check it out. Admission for all the events at the Wolfhound is free, learn more at wolfhoundnyc.com.

Finally, registration for Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann’s 2018 Mid-Atlantic Fleadh is officially open and there’s a huge announcement to make: registration is easier than ever because now it can be done online at nyfleadh.com! This is a big step into the twenty first century, and the newfound convenience will come as a sure delight to those who want to sign up and compete. (Perhaps their parents as well!) Longtime Comhaltas members will note that the Mid-Atlantic Region’s website (www.cce-ma.com) and that of the Fleadh have recently undergone a complete redesign. Its sharp new look is far more user-friendly than ever before, so if you’ve not seen it, definitely click on over and check it out!

 

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