It certainly is great to see local Irish centers carrying out their cultural mandates and opening their facilities to regular traditional music events like the East Haven Irish Community Center.

In fact Pearl River native Katie Linnane, whose mother Kathy founded the Linnane School of Music in Rockland County (and was a former Shannon-aire student of Pete Kelly herself), is beginning a series of group lessons in tin whistle, fiddle and accordion at the IACC on Sundays at noon (beginners) and 1 p.m. for more advanced.

Katie is a freshman at Quinnipiac University in nearby Hampden and a very fine fiddler with a lot of experience at young age.

Also, the IACC will present John Whelan in concert with Baltimore native Jim Eagan who recorded a fiddle album a few years ago dedicated to Ed Reavy tunes, guitarist Flynn Cohen and singer Liz Simmons. It takes place, Saturday, February 9 at 7:30 p.m. (phone 203-248-8396 for tickets).

Meanwhile, coming up on Saturday evening, January 12 in White Plains is a night of Irish ceilidh dancing jointly sponsored by the Westchester Arts Council and the Michael Coleman Branch CCE.

Dancers should be delighted with a tasty ceili band comprising John Nolan (accordion), Willie Kelly (fiddle), Linda Hickman (flute), Regan Wick (piano) and Brendan Fahey (ceili drums) playing the chunes for dancing starting at 8 p.m.

A dance lesson with Coleman chair Frank Holt and his wife Denise commences at 7 p.m., and it all takes place at the Arts Exchange Gallery at 31 Mamaroneck Avenue. For more information contact phone 914-428-4220, ext. 221 or visit www.westarts.com.

Also slipping in late word that Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill will be performing on Sunday, January 13 at 7:30 p.m. at the intimate Fairfield Theatre Club in Connecticut for a STIMS concert (www.shamrockirishmusic.org), but it is likely to sell out so move quickly.