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Event
Bellingham Irish Festival Feature Concert: Dale Russ + Alicia Guinn + Biddy on the Bench
Martin Hayes assessment of Dale Russ as one of the greatest fiddlers I know in Irish traditional music is shared by all who hear him. Dale has been playing Irish fiddle since his move in 1973 from his native Connecticut to Washington State, where he is now regarded as the shining jewel of Northwest fiddle players. Dale taught for 15 years at the Lark in the Morning Summer Camp in Mendocino, California, and he has taught and performed at many other workshops and music camps, including the Festival of American Fiddle Tunes in Port Townsend, Washington, and the Swannanoa Gathering in Asheville, North Carolina. He has also played for ceilis, set dances, and dance competitions. In 1990 Dale was invited to perform at the first Boston College Irish Music Festival My Love Is in America, featuring 16 of the finest Irish fiddle players living in the US. The concert was recorded and released by Green Linnet Records and won the Smithsonian Institutes Traditional Recording of the Year award. Dale performed for 15 years with the traditional Irish band the Suffering Gaels, appearing at the Milwaukee Irish Festival in 1993 and 94. In April of 96 he spent two weeks touring Japan with the trio Jodys Heaven, and has returned to Japan yearly. He currently plays with Mike Saunders and Tom Creegan in the trio Crumac. Dale has recorded an instructional video for the Lark in the Morning video series; a solo CD, Soul Food; a duet CD with guitarist/vocalist Mike Saunders, Celtic Dance Music and Song; two albums with the Suffering Gaels; a fiddle and uilleann pipe CD with Todd Denman, Reeds and Rosin; a duet album with Suffering Gaels guitarist Finn MacGinty, two CDs with Jodys Heaven, and two CDs with the trio Setanta.
Alicia Guinn has danced in the sean-nós tradition for the past 20 years. Old-style Irish dance is incredibly rare to find outside of Ireland, and Alicia is one of only a handful of dancers teaching and promoting this tradition in North America. Alicia is the organizer and teacher for Sean-nós Seattle. She was also a founder of the Sean-nós Northwest Festival in 2009 and currently serves as the festivals Dance Director. In the past decade, she has worked for festivals throughout the U.S. and Canada, performing, teaching, and adjudicating sean-nós dance competitions. Alicia's sean-nós style has direct ties to the dance communities of Galway and Clare, including steps learned directly from Connemara dancers including Pádraig Ó hOibicín, Máire Áine Ní Iarnáin, Seosamh Ó Neachtain, and the Devane family.
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The versatile combination of traditional acoustic instruments and vocal harmony lends itself equally to high-energy Irish rebel songs and shanties, lively session tunes, and mournful gaelic ballads. Grounded primarily in the folk style of Irish music pioneered by bands such as "The Dubliners", "Planxty", and "The Bothy Band", Portland's own "Biddy on the Bench" breathes life and authenticity into old standbys of the genre and lesser-known tunes alike. The band approaches each song, each melody, with a passion for the music and sharing it with others. In the winter of 2013, Biddy on the Bench was formed. The original lineup included Kevin Grgurich, Noah Cotter, and Nick Frey. Casey Dyer joined but months following. Some years later, in 2017, Tristan Cormack and Trevor Cormack moved to Portland and rounded out the band. Hailing from Cleveland, Kevin, Nick, Tristan, and Trevor have been playing music together for over a decade. Noah and Casey are Oregon natives and bring with them years of experience performing traditional music. In the beginning of 2019, Nick parted ways with the band to move across the country. To this day, Biddy continues on as a 5-peice, delivering traditional music to the masses.
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LocationThe Firefly Lounge (View)
1015 N State St
Bellingham, WA 98225
United States
Categories
| Minimum Age: 21 |
| Kid Friendly: No |
| Dog Friendly: No |
| Non-Smoking: Yes! |
| Wheelchair Accessible: Yes! |
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