September Irish Music & 2019 Dance Association Meán Fómhair The mission of the Irish Music and Dance Association is to support and promote Irish music, dance, and other cultural traditions to insure their continuation. www.IMDA-MN.org Irish Music & 2 Dance Association The IMDA Board is: Irish Dancer Dreams of Dancing in Ireland President: Julia Rogers Vice President: Jan Casey By Jan Casey Treasurer: Maureen Engelhardt Secretary: Jean Bergstrom Irelandrose Langer, age 19, of St. Michael, MN became Board Members: John Concannon Kathie Luby interested in Irish dance when she came to IMDA’s Day of Irish Amber Ladany Dance as an eight-year-old. Irelandrose dances with Rince Nua Aja Beers Gemma Forbush Irish Dance in Maple Grove. This dedicated young dancer loves Editor: Kathie Luby th competing, most recently placing 6 at the CRN World IMDA Board Meetings are open to the membership. Championships in Killarney, Ireland in June 2018. (Irelandrose’s The Board meets regularly on the second Tuesday of each month at 6:00 pm at the Dubliner Pub, St. Paul. Members are encouraged to verify the time and location dance teacher is Erin Cooney, ODCRN, who is certified through shortly before, as meeting times and locations can change. the Cumann Rince Náisiúnta in Dublin, Ireland.) Irelandrose has danced extensively here in the Twin Cities, participating in Contact Information IMDA’s Landmark events and Irish Fair as well as performing E-mail: [email protected] with traveling Irish bands. She has been able to build her skills by attending the Riverdance Summer School at Trinity College in Newsletter Submissions We welcome our readers to submit articles of interest, news, and notices of events Dublin. Irelandrose loved meeting other Irish dancers from to be published in the newsletter. The deadline is the 18th of the preceding month. around the world. Being cast in Studio2Stage productions in New Send to: [email protected] Jersey and New York in the summers of both 2017 and 2018 gave her the opportunity to learn from professional dancers while being part of intense training leading up for presenting a professional show. Irelandrose has an exciting new opportunity this year – she will be spending two months in Dublin, Ireland training with Naomh Fionnbarrah School of Irish Dance, in preparation for the World Championships. Irelandrose will use her IMDA Educational Grant to cover the cost of dance classes in Ireland, as well as entry fees for competition there. She will attend classes three times a week and meeting with a trainer once or twice a week to improve her health and fitness. She hopes to enhance her knowledge about Irish dance and to deepen her understanding of the art and the sport, as well as enhancing her appreciation of the culture of Ireland. She imagines that she will “be truly immersed into the culture as I live there … and go about my day like dancers in Ireland do on a daily basis.” Studying Irish dance in Ireland is something Irelandrose has always dreamed of. While she enjoys competing, Irelandrose delights in performing at the many community events that welcome Irish dancers – nursing homes, schools, and restaurants. She “loves to see the look on people’s faces” when she dances and especially enjoys seeing the reactions of audience members who haven’t seen much Irish dance. Irelandrose has also helped coach young dancers working on a new step or dance and improving their technique. Her recommender tells us that Irelandrose “has demonstrated her devotion to the Irish dance community by mentoring, instructing, and inspiring fellow dancers. She has taken several younger dancers under her wing and helped them to build confidence while guiding them toward success.” Irelandrose has worked hard both in the dance studio and in earning the needed funds for this big adventure and she looks forward to sharing all that she hopes to learn in Ireland, and to encouraging other dancers to pursue their dreams. The Irish Music and Dance Association is delighted to help this dedicated young dancer continue to pursue her dreams. Jan serves on the board of the Irish Music and Dance Association and coordinates the IMDA Educational Grant Program. www.IMDA-MN.org Irish Music & 3 Dance Association Piper Striving to Improve his Playing – Wherever in the World He May Be! By Jan Casey Bagpiper Kent Kaiser of St. Paul discovered the pipes as an adult. Growing up in a musical family in Silver Bay, Kent played organ and euphonium as a young person and as a college student. As an adult, he drifted away from music as he pursued his educational goals in history, liberal studies, mass communication and kinesiology. Having completed an extensive educational journey culminating in a doctorate, Kent was ready for a break from formal schooling but still interested in continuing to learn something new. Kent decided to start taking bag- pipe lessons – thinking the instrument better suited to solo performance than the euphonium and more portable than the organ. With a nod to his Irish and Scottish family ancestry, Kent joined the Macalester Pipe Band about five years ago. He has competed with the band for several years and most recently as a soloist. Although friends had warned him that learning the bagpipes would be difficult, Kent found a great teacher in Mike Breidenbach, Macalester Director of Piping and 2017 IMDA Educational Grant recipient. With Mike’s tutelage and his own hard work, Kent moved from practice chanter to the pipes in about six months. Kent especially enjoys playing the bagpipes — telling us “I love playing the bagpipes because it is more than just music — it is a whole cultural experience.” His recommender tells us that Kent is a valuable member of the band who actively participates in both competition and performance and helps recruit bandmates for competitions. As with any challenging pursuit, practice is incredibly important. While Kent memorizes music quickly and has become a dependable member of the band, Kent’s devotion to piping and to the pipe band is often interrupted since he travels extensively and is often away from home. Kent will use his IMDA Educational Grant for the pur- chase of an electronic chanter, allowing him to continue to learn more tunes and improve his technique. The elec- tronic chanter will allow him to practice when he is out and about, even it places where a traditional chanter would be too loud. The Irish Music and Dance Association is delighted to help this dedicated musician continue to improve his skills and enjoyment of music and continue to contribute to our community. Jan Casey serves on the IMDA board and coordinates the IMDA Educational Grant Program. www.IMDA-MN.org Irish Music & 4 Dance Association The Gaelic Corner By Will Kenny As I write this, my wife and "The son's wife and the mother- our younger daughter are in-law are like a cat and mouse to preparing to travel to Florida for each other." a family wedding. "Marriage" is pósadh in Irish, and the wedding And many traditional Irish event itself is called a bainis. explanations of how marriage works are unlikely, shall we say, The bridegroom is my wife's to warm the cockles of a feminist's heart . Bíonn a nephew, and of course, our daughter's cousin. dteanga ina bpóca ag na mná go bpósann siad, we Interesting word that, "cousin": in Irish that is col are told, meaning "Women keep their tongues in their ceathrair. Col more or less indicates some degree of pockets until they marry." relationship. Ceathrair tells us that there are four people in this relationship. (In fact, it's one of the Still not convinced? Try this one: Ní féasta go special numbers we use to count people, and you rósta, ní céasta go pósta. "It’s not a feast without a can't use that number word to refer to things.) The roast, and you haven’t been crucified until you have been married." four-person connection that defines cousins runs from our daughter Derin through her mother Linda, So, you might wonder, with this kind of advice then through Linda's brother Paul and finally down available to the young Irish-speaking lad or lass, why to his son Mikey. anyone Irish actually does get married. The answer is, The cousins are "related by marriage," and we Is fearr an t-imreas ná an t-uaigneas. Strife is better than loneliness." have a special word for that, cleamhnas. A gaol cleamhnais is a "marriage relationship," as opposed I'm sure everyone will have a great time at the to a gaol fola, a “blood relationship." (This word is wedding ... especially if they keep mum about the also used for "matchmaking," for creating marriage Irish perspective on marriage. relationships.) If you're trying to learn Irish, or want to, you don't Now, you might think that we could offer some have to be lonely doing it. Join Gaeltacht Minnesota nice saying in Irish at the event. Gaeltacht Minnesota this October for our "Introduction to Irish Gaelic," gets questions about how to say things in Irish, and offered through Saint Paul Community Education. from time to time someone comes to us looking for a After completing this four-week class (Mondays, 7- fine proverb to put on a wedding invitation, or to 9pm at Central High), you can continue with our include in a toast. regular free classes for as long as you like. Go to That's a request we hate to get. Oh, there are www.gaelminn.org for more information and a link to online registration.