From The Hob
by Paul KeatingRSS 
Recent Posts
- Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann Congress celebrates growth - with 415 branches in 15 countries
- Recalling the great Irish musician Felix Dolan - VIDEO
- The Yanks are coming - debut album of New York City favorite building a buzz
- New York Irish Center hosts great night - Oliver O’Connell, Mickey Dunne live in Queens
- Teetotallers, Kevin Crawford, Martin Hayes and John Doyle ready to mix it up on US tour
Archives
The bride of 57 years took the phone call from Washington, D.C. that many had hoped would come sooner but thankfully came later at long last. She gleefully sprang down the stairs to hand the phone over to her husband with a look of excitement that led him to exclaim “Did we win the lottery?”
St. Cecilia's Ceili Band performing at CCE Parsippany Convention in April as part of the new wave of young musicians in the greater New York area (photo credit Sean McPhail)
With the encouragement of many people from Mike Rafferty’s generation the New York Fleadh Cheoil began its life in the 1970s as the Comhaltas movement was manifesting itself in North America. The timing was ripe given the outstanding teaching corps in town then with Martin Mulvihill, Pete Kelly, John and Maureen Glynn leading the way through their schools in what I considered the first golden age in the evolution of Irish Music in America. Martin, Pete and John represented the generation of Irish-born masters while Maureen presaged the arrival of the American-born teacher which is the norm today.
A young Mike Rafferty with his parents Kathleen and Tom "Barrel" Rafferty before he left for America outside his Larraga home in East Galway and later teaching at the Catskills Irish Arts Week in East Durham in 2008 at the Shamrock House (photo by Timothy Raab) with his Speed 78 cap on the dresser in the background. 
Baltimore, West Cork – It would be very hard to beat the triple pleasures of breathtaking seascapes, sunny weekend weather and a seaside resort area still offering great value and service as far south as Ireland stretches.
However, the McCarthy clan of Baltimore led by Declan McCarthy, a festival director of the famed and acclaimed Baltimore Fiddle Fair held each May, has found a way to create a small but bustling weekend feile that was simply one of the most enjoyable festivals that I have been fortunate enough to attend over the years, and that is saying something.
From Thursday evening to late Sunday night 14 acts participated in 25 events of varying sizes and shapes, providing entertainment and cultural awareness for hundreds of people who found their way to this charming village over the past weekend.
County Monaghan — Like the Memorial Day holiday in the U.S., in Ireland the Irish welcome the May Bank holiday weekend with optimistic hopes for an enjoyable and relaxing summer season.
Dotted throughout the island are festivals aplenty, luring many for a three day escape from the daily throes of care and woe.
