CU Presents鈥� 80th-anniversary Artist Series continues with a rousing performance from . Back in Boulder by popular demand, the group performs an unforgettable evening of reels, ballads and other audience favorites from the Emerald Isle on Saturday, March 4, at Macky Auditorium.
Bringing together virtuosi players on flute, tin whistle, accordion, vocals and more for the ultimate display of Irish national pride, Dan煤鈥檚 performance is the perfect early St. Patrick鈥檚 Day celebration for music lovers. The group, founded in the early 1990s by a handful of talented musicians from four counties in Ireland, has since won multiple awards and has toured successfully throughout Europe and North America.听
Benny McCarthy, an accordionist and founding member of Dan煤, says what sets the group apart from other Irish bands is that "We鈥檙e the real deal鈥濃�攅ach member of the group was born speaking Irish and has been playing traditional Irish music since early childhood.听
What: Dan煤, St. Patrick's Celebration Tour 2017
When: Saturday, March 4, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Macky Auditorium
Tickets:
鈥淵ou form your style of playing really young, and that stays with you your whole life,鈥� he says. 鈥淎nd you can鈥檛 learn any of this music from a teacher at a conservatory. I was taught everything I know by my family, my neighbors, other people in my town. It鈥檚 in my veins.鈥�
Most of Dan煤鈥檚 music, says McCarthy, is a nostalgic nod to the country鈥檚 mystical landscapes and storied past. The tunes the group is set to perform in Boulder tell tales of ancient and crumbling castles, Robin Hood-like folk heroes and the 1916 Easter Rebellion that launched Ireland鈥檚 years-long battle for independence from Britain.
鈥淭here鈥檚 a lovely expression about how the music doesn鈥檛 belong to us; we鈥檙e just carrying it to the next generation,鈥� McCarthy says. 鈥淚t gives me pride to think about how rich and true these songs have remained through the years.鈥澨�
McCarthy believes that enduring tradition is just one reason so many foreigners find Celtic music fascinating. Another is that so many of the nearly 40 million Americans who claim to be of Irish descent want to learn more about their heritage.听
And yet another reason is, simply, that the music is fun.
鈥淲e have a reputation for being a nation of people who like to party, who like to chat, and I think people want to be part of that,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e鈥檙e different than classical musicians because our concerts are very social. There鈥檚 an intimate connection between us and the audience.鈥�
McCarthy encourages audience members to stomp, cheer, sing along or dance whenever they want. After all, Irish music as we know it now was originally created for dancing at weddings, community celebrations and local holidays, and today鈥檚 jigs and reels should be received in the same spirit.
鈥淲e鈥檙e living in a very strange time, and people are insecure and worried,鈥� he says. 鈥淪o, look, if we can give people a couple of hours of release where they can dance and sing along without feeling self-conscious . . .听well, that鈥檚 why we do what we do.鈥�
For more information and to purchase tickets, please .
