Masters of Tradition: Celebrating Irish Music in Its Purest Form

Masters of Tradition: Celebrating Irish Music in its Purest Form Sun, Mar 30 Martin Hayes Fiddle Iarla Ó Lionáird Vocals Royce Hall David Power Uilleann Pipes 2:00pm & Máirtín O’Connor Accordion 7:00pm Cathal Hayden Fiddle Seamie O’Dowd Guitar Dennis Cahill Guitar Artistic Direction Martin Hayes PERFORMANCE DURATION: Executive Producer Elizabeth Roth/Roth Arts Matinee Production Management and Sound Design Matt Purcell 60 minutes; No intermission Publicity and Promotion Judith Joiner Publicity Evening Performance Approximately two hours; The tunes will be announced from the stage One intermission This program is made possible, in part, by Culture Ireland, the agency for the promotion of Irish arts worldwide. Masters of Tradition is a unique evening-length concert featuring seven of the most compelling artists in Irish traditional music today, in performances of solos, duets, trios and MEDIA SPONSORS: full group collaboration. The ensemble includes vocalist Iarla Ó Lionáird, fiddlers Martin Hayes and Cathal Hayden, guitarists Dennis Cahill and Seamie O’Dowd, accordionist Máirtín O’Connor and piper David Power. Masters of Tradition is named for the highly-regarded music festival, held each August in the Irish coastal town of Bantry, Co. Cork, to celebrate traditional Irish music in its purest form. Artistic Director Martin Hayes devised the festival (in collaboration with the classical music organization, West Cork Music) in order to create an elegant and intimate environment where the heart of traditional music could be revealed. The performances take place in an old stone church in the town center and in the wood-paneled library of Bantry House, one of Ireland’s most beautiful 18th century Georgian mansions. The concept has evolved to produce MESSAGE FROM THE CENTER: There’s something simultaneously joyful and melancholic about the sound of Irish music. Perhaps because the musical traditions of the Emerald Isle are reminiscent of the historic journeying of— and what Irish author John Banville calls— the “persistently grim cheerfulness” of her peoples. “The violent poetry of leave-taking is ingrained in the Irish consciousness.” Banville says. Diasporas of Irish people from their homeland over the decades have also ingrained the words and sounds and sensations of Irish culture in veritably every corner of the world. Today is a coming together, in which we may revel in the traditional a performance format that gives a real insight into the musical journeys instruments, tunes and stories of Ireland, shared with authenticity that these musicians, and the masterful music they play, have taken over and poetic artistry by the Masters of Tradition. the years. Tonight we can allow ourselves to be transported to Bantry, County In 2009, the Sydney International Festival invited Martin Hayes to Cork, from where the Masters of Tradition originated. create a touring version of Masters of Tradition to perform at the Sydney Opera House. Drawing together a remarkable line-up of Irish musicians, Irish fiddle virtuoso Martin Hayes, performing tonight, hosts this the three thousand-seat Opera House quickly sold out for the two night annual festival, and he’s hosting the group’s tour as well. engagement and the performances captivated the audience. In April “The goal of this touring show is to focus on the details and 2012, Masters of Tradition made their debut American tour, performing nuances of Irish traditional music,” he says. “The performers are all to enthusiastic audiences in New York, Boston, Washington DC, masters of their instruments. Through their talent and abilities, the Philadelphia, Olympia WA, and Denver. In 2013, the ensemble opened sophistication and artfulness of the music is revealed.” their tour at the Bass Concert Hall on the campus of the University of Texas, Austin and went on to perform in upstate New York at Hamilton Each musician performing here as part of this is an individual of College; in Chicago; Northern California and the Bay Area; and Seattle. great talent and renown and we’re extremely fortunate to have the With the success of 2012 and 2013 behind them, this remarkable line-up opportunity to experience them performing together. of Irish musicians returns to America in March and April, 2014. Thank you for joining us. ABOUT THE ARTISTS The Center would like to extend gratitude to the following artists from our community who generously donated their talents and Martin Hayes (Fiddle, Artistic Director) was born and raised in enthusiasm to our Irish Céilí Dance Workshop on the Royce Terrace East County Clare, a part of Ireland renowned for traditional music prior the evening performance of Masters of Tradition. and a particularly lyric style. Martin is considered one of Clare’s most distinguished native sons. He has both remained faithful to the Thank you to Caitríona Weafer (Céilí dance teacher), Steve East Clare style and transformed it, to convey its deep and essential Shapiro (Banjo), Brian Walsh (Uilleann Pipes), Alaina Smith musicality that can stand along side any of the world’s greatest music. He (Fiddle) and Tim Martin (Bodhrán). tours the world in a duet with guitarist Dennis Cahill and is involved in a number of collaborations with traditional, classical and contemporary musicians. Currently he tours with the exciting five-member band, The Gloaming, (with Iarla O’Lionaird and Dennis Cahill and others), a traditional trio,Triúr, and the Teetotallers. www.martinhayes.com Iarla Ó Lionáird (Vocals) was born into a small, Irish-speaking enclave COMING UP AT CAP UCLA in West Cork where his upbringing revolved around singing as the dominant form of artistic expression. His iconic early recording of the Be a part of our story this season. Experience more great art vision song Aisling Gheal while still a child, and many subsequently and artists. celebrated recordings, established Iarla as both a masterful exponent of Sean Nós Song and as a pioneer in its renewal and development. As vocalist for Afro Celt Sound System, Ó Lionáird played festivals all over the world and recorded five albums with the group before he embarked on his remarkable solo projects with celebrated artists including Gavin Bryars, the Crash Ensemble, Dawn Upshaw and the Gloaming. He also tours with the Ghost Trio. www.iarla.com Dennis Cahill (Guitar) was born in Chicago to parents from County Kerry. Dennis Cahill’s innovative accompaniment is acknowledged as a major breakthrough for guitar in the Irish tradition. He is a member of The Gloaming, and is also a sought-after record producer in Chicago as well as a talented photographer. www.denniscahill.com Máirtín O’Connor (Accordion), with an accordion style displaying astounding skill, dexterity and versatility, has played with many of traditional music’s leading groups as well as collaborating with artists including Elvis Costello, The Chieftains, De Danann and The Dubliners. Peter Brook / Théâtre des Bouffes Máirtín, Cathal and Seamie tour internationally as the Máirtín du Nord: The Suit O’Connor Trio. www.mairtinoconnorband.com Wed, Apr 9 - Sun, Apr 13 Cathal Hayden (Fiddle) is from a musical family in County Tyrone. Thu, Apr 17 - Sat, Apr 19 He has a natural and distinctive style, original and inventive. Cathal Freud Playhouse at Macgowan Hall was the catalyst for the formation of Four Men and a Dog, one of the foremost Irish traditional bands. He tours internationally with Mairtin and Seamie in the Máirtín O’Connor Trio. www.tradcentre.com/cathal Seamie O’Dowd (Guitar) is from County Sligo. O’Dowd grew up steeped in traditional music. He played the fiddle as a child and then learned guitar, banjo, mandolin, bouzouki and bodhrán. He toured with the band Dervish for six years and then with Máirtín O Connor and Cathal Hayden for over a decade, a collaboration that continues to this day. www.myspace.com/seamieodowd David Power (Uilleann Pipes) won the Senior All-Ireland piping championship and the Oireachtas piping competition in 1992, and represented Ireland at the Lorient Interceltic Festival in 1993. He performed on Broadway in A Touch of the Poet directed by and starring Gabriel Bryne, and toured in the audio-visual show The Frost Is All Over with Tony MacMahon and Eamon Hunt to the U.S., Belgium, La Santa Cecilia and France, Scotland and Ireland. He currently plays in the band Pipers Union with Donal Clancy and Ciaran Somers. www.myspace.com/ David Wax Museum davidpoweruilleannpiper Fri, Apr 11 at 8pm Royce Hall Masters of Tradition On Tour: Production and Booking by Roth Arts. Elizabeth Roth, Director. [email protected] www.rotharts.com Judith Joiner Publicity. [email protected] The Producer and Artists of Masters of Tradition would like to thank the following: Kristy Edmunds, Ben Johnson, and the entire staff at the Center for Arts and Performance at UCLA; Christine Sisk, Director, for sustained support of this project for three successive years; O’Malley and Associates for their work on the visas; Stephanie Kvernmoe, Polay Financial Management, for her accounting skills; and Lynn Fisher, Director, Frontera Arts for her professional wisdom and guidance. Thanks to the Irish Arts Center, Aidan Connolly, Executive Director and Rachael Gilkey, Producer for their unwavering support of Irish traditional music, this project and these artists in particular. A special Chick Corea and Béla Fleck thanks to Matt Purcell and Judith Joiner for their extraordinary Thu, Apr 24 at 8pm committment to Masters of Tradition and their hard work, much of it Royce Hall above and beyond the call of duty. The boards of CAP UCLA and Design for Sharing would like to thank all the members who have made a choice to join them in supporting arts education and the art of performance at UCLA. GUARDIAN Patricia & William Flumenbaum Tamara Turoff Keough John Schwartz Baret C. Fink Dr. Irene Goldenberg Aliza & Michael Lesser Martha Kauffman & Dr.

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