Irish Philly Podcasts

Ivan Goff played this haunting slow air at the Philadelphia Ceili Group Festival in September 2019.

Premier Irish fiddler Eileen Ivers has released a stunning new album, "Scatter the Light." We spoke with her about the album, and the uplifting messages behind each of the tracks.

Celtic Woman was scheduled to perform in Philadelphia toward the end of this month, but then—well, you know what happened. With the onset of the novel coronavirus, the tour was canceled, and so went our latest chance to take in one of the biggest and longest-lasting groups in world Irish entertainment. Fortunately, we now have a new CW album: “Celebration: 15 Years of Music & Magic,” featuring the 15 performers who have comprised Celtic Woman over the years. We recently interviewed Máiréad Carlin, a seven-year member of Celtic Woman from Northern Ireland, about the abrupt end to the tour, but—more to the point—the new album’s capacity for comfort in trying times.

Fiddler Winifred Horan is best-known for her work with the band Solas, but she has also forged a productive and creative solo career. Now, she is out with a beautiful new CD, "The Memory of Magic." We spent a good long time recently talking about the new album and the thoughts and inspiration that went into it.

At 17, she is filling some big shoes, playing this summer in the Riverdance band at Dublin's Gaiety Theatre. Haley is already incredibly accomplished. Here are her reflections on Riverdance, her career up to this point, and where she's going.

Tony DeMarco came to Irish fiddling in a roundabout way, but he has emerged as one of the foremost practitioners of the highly ornamented Sligo style. He appears at the Philadelphia Ceili Group Irish Festival September 14, 2019.

Carl "The Jackal" Frampton visited the Philadelphia Irish Center to talk about his August 10, 2019, fight against Emmanuel Dominguez at Temple University's Liacouras Center. He talked about a lot of other things. "The Pride of Belfast" held forth on a range of subjects, from fatherhood and family to career highlights to his legacy. And he talked about how the next fight could be his last. (Although he expects to win.)

The McLean Avenue Band of New York City debuted in Philadelphia at a waterfront Irish festival in June 2019. This is the band's opening medley, which was very well received.

The lads presented their version of a popular Irish rock standard.

The Philly Irish band Oakwyn presents "Come Out Ye Black and Tans" at the 2019 Philly Fleadh.

Back in the States for another tour, Irish country music phenom Nathan Carter has come a long way since his hit song, “Wagon Wheel.” He’s enormously popular—as witness his sold-out appearance at the Philadelphia Irish Center a few months ago. As with so many artists, it was a bit of a slog to get to that first huge hit. Unlike many artists, he’s been able to remain popular and well in demand, adapting to changes in the music industry that might have cut short the careers of many others. And he’s grateful for every moment he gets to play his music.

County Wexford singer Michael Londra burst on the scene as the lead singer in the United States tour of Riverdance, the cultural phenomenon that itself inspired all of the Celtic and Irish groups and shows that have also swept the country over the years. He was, by many standards, something of a late bloomer. He was 31 when his career began in earnest. Since Riverdance, he’s performed in many venues and shows, from Broadway to an acclaimed PBS special in 2011. He’s also a producer of musicals, which his kept him off the road recently. But Londra’s back, and he’s performing—including a show, Michael Londra and the Celtic Fire, at Annenberg Center Live March 16. We recently interviewed Michael Londra about his life and career. Here’s what he had to say.  

Colm Keegan made his mark as a principal singer in the well-known Celtic Thunder, but before he embarked upon a performance career, he was a high school music teacher, with a master’s degree in music. For years, he’s though about a way to merge Irish history with music, and there never seemed like a good way to do it—until now. On Saturday, March 9, Keegan brings the first chapter of a new series called Irish History through Music to the Commodore John Barry Arts & Cultural Center.

On March 1, Irish Ambassador to the United States Daniel Mulhall will be on hand to present the Irish American Business Chamber & Network's 2019 Ambassador’s Awards. Recently, we interviewed him about the awards, the Business Chamber and the broader significance to Irish-American commerce. We also chatted about a wider range of issues—from the involvement of Irish-Americans in Irish government interests, such as United States immigration policies, to Brexit and the Northern Irish peace process.

In the world of Irish traditional music, you would be hard-pressed to find a more accomplished and creative group than Téada. County Sligo fiddler Oisín Mac Diarmada, the group’s founder, recently sat down for an interview with irishphiladelphia.com. The conversation was wide-ranging, starting with his earliest days in County Clare learning the fiddle—sometimes when he might have preferred playing football to practicing—to a time when it seemed his career path might lie in the field of education, and ultimately to the successful career he has carved out with Téada and his talented bandmates. The picture he paints is one of a musical journey ever evolving and ever more creative.  

Tara McNeill took up singing, harp and violin at a very young age. Ever since childhood, she has known what she wanted to do: perform. For the past several years, McNeill has done just that, and for the past three years, with Celtic Woman. She says it's the fulfillment of a dream.

irishphiladelphia.com's genealogy maven Lori Lander Murphy returns with another installment of Who's Your Granny (with occasional editorial comment from her dog Daisy). DNA testing is becoming more popular. There are many DNA testing services, and all employ different methods. Consequently, they may render different results. Some of them are more strongly focused on finding your family history, and some aren't.  If you're a genealogy beginner, what do you need to know? Lori explains.

You’ve just caught the Irish ancestry bug. But there’s so much to know before you start the search for where your people came from—isn’t there? In the long run, yes, maybe. But if you’re a genealogy newbie, you can start digging up your ancestors—so to speak—with comparatively little knowledge. So says local genealogist Lori Lander Murphy, who is here to answer your questions. Are we answering every question you could possibly have? Nope. With this episode of “Who’s Your Granny,” we’re giving you just enough to begin to explore your roots. In future episodes, there will be more. But for now, sit back, settle in and listen to advice from our genealogy guru.

It was a mystery, a story many didn't want told. 57 Irish railroad laborers came to America in search of a better life. Not long after their arrival, they were all dead. Was it cholera? Or murder?

Lunasa rolls into the Grand Opera House in Wilmington, Delaware, for their annual Christmas show. We interviewed bassist Trevor Hutchinson about the show, and the (relatively) new album, Cas.

Derek Warfield continues his illustrious musical career, now exceeding the 50-year mark. We recently interviewed him, and he looked back on those 50 years--his life, his career, and his hopes for the future of the Irish musical tradition.

Joanie Madden brings her band Cherish the Ladies to the Commodore John Barry Arts & Cultural Center (The Irish Center) Saturday, December 1, for the first stop of the Celtic Christmas tour. Joanie, who recently won the Eugene O'Neill Lifetime Achievement Award from the Irish-American Writers and Artists, recently took time for a chat about the award, the band, her career, and the new Christmas music tour.

Marianne MacDonald has been hosting "Come West Along the Road" for many years. She's well-known in the Philadelphia-area Irish community. Here she reflects on her years on air.

A bright, balanced blend of Irish music and dance drawing on seasonal inspirations, Irish Christmas in America arrives on stage at Sellersville Theater 1894 Tuesday, November 27. Fiddler Oisín Mac Diarmada, of the Irish traditional supergroup Téada, has been producing the show for 14 years, which never ceases to delight audiences from one end of the country to the other—regardless of whether their roots are Irish.

An interview with author, journalist and broadcaster Jude Collins, who visited the Commodore Barry Arts and Cultural Center in Philadelphia recently to give a talk on the late Martin McGuinness, Irish republican Sinn Féin politician and deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland. Collins' address drew largely on his book, which consisted of multiple interviews with key figures in Northern Ireland's recent political history, including prominent unionists and republicans.