Event

Jackson - An Irish Christmas

The annual Christmas show is a collaborative effort of Legacy and their longtime friend and frequent guest on stage, Máirtín de Cógáin [pronounced MAR-teen de KOH-gone]. The show is a mix of Irish holiday songs and stories along with occasional sets of holiday-themed tune sets (played in traditional style) for good measure. Máirtín, who originally hails from Carrigaline, County Cork, Ireland, serves as the MC for the program.

"This is a wonderful way to spend an evening in the Christmas Season," says Rob Millette, President of the Celtic Heritage Society based in Mississippi. "These performers will make you feel as though you've taken a trip to Ireland for the evening."

Máirtín de Cógáin is an entertainer of unending talent. A crowned All-Ireland Storytelling Champion twice over, a noted singer, a dancer, and a heart-beating bodhrán (Irish drum) player, Máirtín does a bit of acting on the side (his biggest part to date was in Ken Loach's Palm d'Or winning movie, The Wind That Shakes The Barley, where he also sings the title track.)

Legacy's Valerie Plested is one of the finest and most musically expressive talents to have emerged on the Southern Celtic music scene. Don Penzien's dexterous work on DADGAD guitar provides not only the solid, driving rhythms that are perceptive and sensitive accompaniments to songs and airs. It took a hurricane to unite this unique group (named Katrina) at a benefit event, and they became fast friends, now turned 'band'.

"The songs and stories are drawn from seasonal traditions of the Celtic nations, with an emphasis on West Cork," says Plested. "The Christmas music, except for one piece (which will be sung in Irish), will likely be completely new for listeners, though the songs are very old."