Folks, we’re a month out from the 2026 Catskills Irish Arts Week and excitement is mounting. East Durham has hosted this tremendous celebration of Irish music, dance and culture for 32 years and this year CIAW will happen Monday, July 13 – Friday, July 17, with a full-day Festival to close it out on Saturday, July 18. Because this year is the first with Amy Schoch running the show, there’s a bit of a special feeling of anticipation in the air and she’s coming in, as one might hope, in a way that should make a splash.
As is tradition, CIAW offers a jam-packed week of traditional Irish music and dance that includes daily classes led by top-tier traditional Irish musicians and dancers from both Ireland and the United States, afternoon presentations with leading personalities and scholars, evening concerts, nightly céilí dances, and innumerable open sessions. This year, Schoch will deliver all these things and more, including a strengthened kid’s music program for ages 5–12 and additional special events specifically geared toward teens and young adults.
The year’s star-studded year lineup is filled with some of the finest musicians from the U.S and Ireland. The 2026 fiddle instructors are a truly outstanding bunch that includes Oisín Mac Diarmada, Dylan Foley, Willie Kelly, Rose Flanagan, and Gerry O’Connor. The button accordion instructors, including John Nolan (B/C), Daithi Gormley (B/C), Diarmuid Ó Meachair (C#/D), sport a similarly stacked roster. If you’re a banjo or mandolin player, you’ll love hearing that the great Elaine Reilly will be on staff to teach. The uilleann pipers have Caoimhin Ó Fearghail and Joey Abarta to look forward to. The legendary Mary Bergin, Linda Hickman and Brenda Dowling will be there to teach tin whistle. Flute players will have to opportunity to work with Siobhan Kelly & Eileen Goodman, while Catriona Fee and Brenda Dowling will be there to teach concertina. Harp players are in for a treat with Iris Nevins teaching in a small group setting. Finally, Jefferson Hamer and Liz Hanley will both lead singing classes – they’re fabulous.
Any backers interested in attending should know they have some incredible options as well. Sean Earnest will handle the bouzouki classes, while Josh Dukes (DADGAD), David McKindley-Ward (Drop D Accomp / Drop D Open), and Jefferson Hamer (melody accompanist), will all teach guitar. If you’re a piano player, you can look forward to learning from Brendan Dolan or Samantha Harvey – or both! And Cara Wildman will be there to teach bodhrán.
Annmarie Acosta, the chair of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann’s Mid-Atlantic region, will be there not only teach piano accordion, but also lead the new teen ensemble for all instruments! This is an excellent new feature and an excellent opportunity for aspiring young musicians to get into.
There are lots of opportunities for dance instruction as well. The popular Padraig McEneany will be there to teach set dance, Samantha Harvey will handle percussive dance, Jackie O'Riley will bring her seán nós expertise to the week, and finally, folks will be able to find Regan Wick for step dance instruction.
Finally, if you’re looking for something that doesn’t involve music or dance, there are options for you as well! Mary Lannon will teach the ever popular writing program, Lynn Beigel will teach knitting, and both Mary Ellen Shevlin and Stiofán Ó Labhrái will teach folks interested in the Irish language.
I mentioned the children’s program earlier and it’s been newly imagined in a way that will delight parents. Designed by Lindsey Céitinn and Michelle Bergin – a pair of musicians, both of whom have master’s degrees in education – it’ll include morning and afternoon classes (allowing parents to take classes on their own and reconnect at lunch) and offers instruction on fiddle, whistle, piano, guitar, bodhrán, Irish song, Irish dance, and Gaelic football. (BTW, Bergin is a TCRG-certified Irish dance instructor!) Musicians and educators Jeff DesRosier and Joseph Kelly are also key parts of this program as well.
Parents will also be delighted by the changes that have been made to address affordability. Specially, discounted rates have been introduced for teens ages 13-18 that attend morning and afternoon classes with adult participants. Further, families that register as a group can save even further: adults who enroll as full- or part-time students alongside two or more children are also eligible for discounted registration.
East Durham will be the center of the traditional Irish music universe this July! To learn more about the week, accommodation options, rates, or to enroll, visit http://www.catskillsirishartsweek.com/. It’ll be a terrific week!
Speaking of enrollment: recently, I got work about Albany’s Irish American Heritage Museum’s Traditional Irish Culture/Arts Scholarship. I’m only just learning of it, but IAHM has offered this opportunity through its Regional Irish Cultural Ambassador program for the past two years, which funds selected individuals to attend Irish arts and heritage camps across North America. This year, four scholarships were given, one each to a NY state residents wanting to attend the Leahy Music Camp in Lakefield, Ontario and the Swannanoa Gathering in Asheville, NC, and two scholarships for alumni of O'Flaherty's Irish Music Retreat in Texas to attend this year’s Catskills Irish Arts Week. These are incredible (and incredibly generous) opportunities and if it sounds like something you or someone you know would be interested in for next summer, keep your eye on https://irish-us.org/ for more information.
