'An Irish Christmas' featuring John Doyle, Cathie Ryan & Mick McAuley
- Sun, Dec 6
- 7:00 PM
- Towne Crier Cafe, 379 Main St, Beacon · Directions
Kick off the holiday season tonight! Three Irish music greats bring the traditional music and stories of the Irish Christmas season to the stage.
John Doyle
Immensely talented and blessed with an acute ear, a wicked sense of rhythm and seemingly endless stream of magic in his playing, composing, performing and producing, John Doyle is solidly establishing himself as one of the most versatile, creative and prolific voices in folk and traditional Irish music.
In 1994 John brought his brilliant and innovative guitar stylings to the nascent Irish super-group Solas, which soon took the folk and Celtic music worlds by storm. In the years since going out on his own, John has recorded two solo albums and has become a highly sought-after accompanist and session player for the likes of Joan Baez, Eileen Ivers, Tim O’Brien, Linda Thompson, Seamus Egan, Alison Brown and Kate Rusby; and has developed compelling duo performances, first with fiddler Liz Carroll and more recently with Solas’ co-founding vocalist Karan Casey.
From a musical family in Dublin, John was sixteen when he went on the road with Chanting House, a group which he formed with Susan McKeown and which eventually included such great players as Seamus Egan, Eileen Ivers, Donogh Hennessy, and Brian Doyle. The highly influential Solas followed, its success due in no small part to John’s powerful rhythmic guitar.
Cathie Ryan
For over thirty-five years, including multiple studio recordings, musical collaborations, and awards, Cathie Ryan has been in the vanguard of Irish music. She sings with luminous clarity and has a gift for unearthing gems from the Irish and American song traditions, as well as crafting originals that fit perfectly along side them.
Cathie is a captivating performer whose shows are renowned for their intimacy and power – and a typically Irish sprinkling of storytelling. “There is nothing like a live show. I love the energy, the give and take, of being with an audience. And I love to have fun up there!” she says.
Cathie has built a loyal following by touring internationally and singing “songs of the heart” at performing arts centers, festivals, folk clubs, and with symphony orchestras. She has been featured on national and public television and radio throughout the world, Irish America Magazine twice named her one of the “Top 100 Irish Americans” and liveireland.com has twice honored her as “Irish Female Vocalist of the Decade.”
Mick McAuley
Mick McAuley is an Irish musician, composer and songwriter who has recorded and toured internationally for many years. While his music is rooted firmly in the Irish tradition, he has been part of a movement which continues to push the musical boundaries of that tradition to bring Irish music to a wider and more diverse audience around the world. As a long-time member of the Irish-American ensemble Solas, he has recorded and toured nine albums with them and received widespread international acclaim.
Mick grew up in Ireland in the embrace of a large musical family supported and nurtured by a community of older musicians who gave freely of their time, talent and music to ensure the passing down of that centuries-old cultural tradition. A multi-instrumentalist, Mick plays accordion, melodeon, concertina, whistles and guitar and has been a guest on many recordings and performances including Mary Chapin Carpenter, Patti Larkin, Paul Brennan (Clannad), Susan McKeown and Mick Hanly among many others.
Tickets $35 advance, $40 door
ALL SALES ARE FINAL
DINNER RESERVATIONS REQUIRE 1 ENTREE PER PERSON
SHOW ONLY TICKETS ADMITTED 15 MINUTES BEFORE SHOWTIME
ADVANCE SALE PRICE ENDS 1 HOUR BEFORE DOORS
From Towne Crier Cafe. Dates and details can change — check before you go.