iBAM!

For the iBAM! music schedule, click here.

Dr. Larry McCullough is renowned as a virtuoso 'tinwhistle' and flute performer and pioneer of Celtic World Beat. He has been documented on 49 recordings with Irish, French, Cajun, Latin, blues, jazz, country, bluegrass and rock ensembles for Angel/EMI, Sony Classical, RCA, Warner Brothers, Kicking Mule, Rounder, Bluezette and others — including the soundtracks of the Ken Burns PBS television series The West, Lewis and Clark and Not For Ourselves Alone: The Story of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony and the Neil Jordan film Michael Collins. Dr. McCullough's eclectic audio stylings have graced PBS specials (John Kane, A Place Just Right, Together Alone), film/video scores (Puppet Strings, Consider This), incidental theatre music (Waiting for Godot, Story Theatre, Shadow of a Gunman, Painting the Universe, The Greeks, Tarry Flynn) and the Myths for a New Millennium Celtic Ballet Trilogy co-composed with T.H. Gillespie for Dance Kaleidoscope. L.E. has been performing and teaching traditional Irish music on tinwhistle and flute since 1972. Author of 121 Favorite Irish Session Tunes and The Complete Irish Tinwhistle Tutor, he has won several music competitions in Ireland and America and recorded on 45 albums for labels such as Angel, RCA, Sony Classical, Bluezette and Laserlight. In 1978 he earned a Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh by authoring the first-ever dissertation on Irish traditional music, Irish Music in Chicago: An Ethnomusicological Study. Dr. McCullough has composed music for commercials, stage, film and ballet and performed on the scores of the Ken Burns PBS television series The West, Lewis & Clark, Not for Ourselves Alone and the Warner Brothers film Michael Collins.

Maurice Lennon lives in Chicagoland and began playing traditional music at 13. At 17 he won the Senior All Ireland Fiddle Championship, following in the footsteps of such great players as Seamus Connolly, Brendan McGlinchy and Liz Carroll. Co-founder of ‘Stockton’s Wing’, his musical compositions have been recorded by Daniel O’Donnell, Natalie McMaster, and Cherish the Ladies.

Ben Lennon, father of Maurice, was raised in Kiltyclogher, Co. Leitrim. He has played and taught fiddle since the 1930’s. He was involved in a family album entitled Dance of the Honey Bees and recently on The Natural Bridge. He teaches at the Willie Clancy School in Miltown Malbay and the Joe Mooney Summer School in Drumshanbo, Co. Leitrim. In 2011, he was awarded the TG4 Lifetime Achievement Award.

The words ‘Button Accordion’ and ‘Jackie Daly’ are synonymous in the world of Irish traditional music. Described in the New York Times as “probably the best accordionist in Ireland”, Jackie was born in Kanturk, Co. Cork, where he grew up surrounded by the rich music tradition of Sliabh Luachra. One of the greatest influences on his early musical development was Ballydesmond fiddle-player, Jim Keeffe, a pupil of the renowned Sliabh Luachra fiddle-master, Pádraig O’Keeffe. Over the years, Jackie’s lifelong affinity with fiddle-music has resulted in highly-acclaimed albums featuring fiddle and accordion – with the late Cork-based musician Séamus Creagh, with Kevin Burke, and now with Matt Cranitch. Jackie was a central figure in some of the most dominant groups playing Irish music in recent times. His performances with bands such as De Danann, Patrick Street, Buttons and Bows, Arcady, Reel Union and Kinvara all attest to his wonderful music and versatility. However, it is the style and repertoire of the Sliabh Luachra tradition that has made the most significant impression on his accordion-playing, a fact well exemplified through his performances and recordings. He has toured extensively and has also taught. In 2005, he received the TG4 Gradam Ceoil (National Music Award), and, in 2009, the Kanturk Arts Festival Award.

Dr. Matt Cranitch is renowned as a fiddle-player and teacher, both at home in Ireland and abroad. He has performed extensively at concerts and festivals, as well as on radio and television, and has presented lectures, master-classes and workshops on various aspects of Irish music. He has won All-Ireland Fleadh Cheoil titles, as well as The Fiddler of Dooney and Oireachtas Crotty Cup. Author of The Irish Fiddle Book, first published in 1988 and now in its fourth edition, he has also contributed to other books on Irish traditional music. Currently, he plays with Sliabh Notes, with whom he has recorded three highly-praised albums. Among his other recordings is Éistigh Seal which consists entirely of slow airs. An authority on the Sliabh Luachra fiddle-style, he received a Ph.D. from the University of Limerick in 2006 for his study entitled ‘Pádraig O’Keeffe and The Sliabh Luachra Fiddle Tradition’. A long-time consultant for the Geantraí series on TG4, he is also an advisor to the Arts Council Deis scheme for the traditional arts, and has served on the board of the Irish Traditional Music Archive (2007–2010). In 2003, he received the ‘University College Cork Hall of Fame Award’ in recognition of his contribution to Irish traditional music.

Mick Moloney combines the careers of folklorist, arts presenter and advocate, professional musician, and radio and television personality. In 1999 he was awarded the National Heritage Award from the National Endowment for the Arts — the highest official honor a traditional artist can receive in the United States. Reviewer Earle Hitchner called Mick's concert a "moving musical feast" in The Irish Echo. He is currently a professor of Music and Irish Studies at New York University. When not performing, producing, or lecturing, Mick leads a series of Irish Folklore Tours, offering an authentic Irish cultural odyssey that conventional tourists never experience. You can learn more about Mick Moloney, listen to his music, preview his book, read more articles about him, see his tour schedule, or contact him for performances: www.mickmoloney.com

Paul de Grae is a Dublin guitarist living in Kerry. He regularly accompanies Jackie Daly in concert. Paul has pubished a book: Paul De Grae Traditional Irish Guitar, an instruction book dealing with solo playing, accompanying Irish music, tunings, etc. Features solo tunes, accompanied tunes, a bibliography, a discography, and sections on Irish music in general.

Liz Carroll has had a remarkable century. Liz’s 2009 recording with John Doyle, Double Play, was nominated for a 2010 Grammy. That made Liz the first American-born artist nominated for playing Irish music – ever! On St. Patrick’s Day 2009, Liz travelled to Washington, D.C., to play for fellow Chicagoan, President Obama, at the annual St. Patrick’s Day luncheon. In 2005, she became a member of String Sisters, a sextet of fiddlers from America, Ireland, the Shetland Islands and Norway. Their 2009 Live album was shortlisted for a Grammy. And Liz’s first duet album with John Doyle, In Play, caused Sing Out! Magazine’s Rob Weir to exclaim “Liz Carroll recordings induce joy and admiration that exhaust this reviewer's feeble descriptors." Previous to that were two solo albums, Lake Effect and Lost in the Loop, which used Liz’s hometown of Chicago as the influence for an extraordinary outpouring of new compositions. The 2000 Lost in the Loop led the Irish Echo to proclaim her the Traditional Musician of the Year. All that has come this century, but in the last came a National Heritage Award Fellowship in 1994, which honored Liz as a "Master Traditional Artist who has contributed to the shaping of our artistic traditions and to preserving the cultural diversity of the United States." A mouthful, to be sure, but such national recognition stood on her winning the All-Ireland Senior Fiddle Champion in 1975 to Mayor Daley proclaiming September 18, 1999 as “Liz Carroll Day” in Chicago.
The coming decade looks to be as active as the last. 2010 brings the publication of Liz’s first book of compositions, “Collected.” It’s a compilation of Liz’s musical past, as well as a promise for the future.

A native of County Clare, to which he returns for extended periods several times a year, Martin Hayes has been based in the United States, now living in Connecticut, for the past twenty-three years. Martin Hayes is regarded as one of the most extraordinary talents to emerge in the world of Irish traditional music. His unique sound, his mastery of his chosen instrument – the violin – his acknowledgment of the past and his shaping of the future of the music, combine to create an astonishing and formidable artistic intelligence. He is the recipient of major national and international awards: most recently the prestigious Gradam Ceoil, Musician of the Year 2008 from the Irish language television station TG 4; previously Man of the Year from the American Irish Historical Society; Folk Instrumentalist of the Year from BBC Radio; a National Entertainment Award (the Irish ‘Grammy’); six All-Ireland fiddle championships - before the age of nineteen - and cited by the Irish Sunday Tribune as one of the hundred most influential Irish men and women in the fields of entertainment, politics and sports in the year 2000, as well as one of the most important musicians to come out of Ireland in the last fifty years.

Dennis Cahill is a master guitarist, a native of Chicago born to parents from the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. He studied at the city’s prestigious Music College before becoming an active member of the local music scene. Cahill’s spare, essential accompaniment to Martin Hayes’ fiddle is acknowledged as a major breakthrough for guitar in the Irish tradition. In addition to his work with Martin, Dennis has performed with such renowned fiddlers as Liz Carroll, Eileen Ivers and Kevin Burke, as well as many Irish musicians on both sides of the Atlantic. He is a sought after producer for musical artists whom he records in his own Chicago studio and is also an accomplished photographer. Taking full advantage of the Hayes and Cahill international travel opportunities, Dennis shoots photos that document both the backstage world as well as otherwise overlooked whimsical visual moments in rural villages, towns and cities, far and wide.

Jimmy Keane--Irish music's accordion virtuoso Jimmy Keane was born in London of Irish-speaking parents from Connemara and Kerry. His late father Jimmy was a magnificent sean-nos (old style) singer, and along with young Jimmy's mother Mary, actively encouraged him to take up traditional Irish music. Jimmy's accomplishments are far reaching. He has achieved astonishing and unprecedented success in competitive playing, having won five consecutive All-Ireland titles on the piano accordion. He has always been an avid collector and arranger of old tunes and is becoming increasingly known for his original compositions, many of which have become part of the mainstream of traditional Irish music around the world. He also has recorded and produced numerous albums.

Ciara Walton--Ciara began her musical training at the age of 11 when she joined Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann. As a young teenager she began her formal studies in classical piano and singing. Her musical studies continued throughout her teenage years during which time she won first prize at the Kilkenny Music Festival piano competition in 2000. Through her later teens, Ciara performed in many of Ireland's most prestigious music venues including The National Concert Hall, Cork City Hall, the Guildhall Theatre in Derry and the Belfast Waterfront. Ciara's musical studies led her to the Cork School of Music from which she graduated in 2005 with a first class honours Bachelor of Music degree. Throughout her degree she nurtured and developed a keen interest in traditional Irish and folk song while continuing to take classical singing lessons. Ciara went on to be cast in professional operatic roles; in her leading role as Polly Peachum in Kurt Weil's 'Threepenny Opera' the Irish Times remarked: "Walton has a smooth warm tone, and more importantly in a production like this, a finely tuned sense of comic timing." Over the last number of years Ciara has remained active on the Cork music scene as an exponent of Irish traditional, classical and stage musical singing whilst continuing to teach piano and voice full-time. She recently recorded a song-cycle ('Summer Songs' and 'Two Morning Songs') written specifically for her by renowned English composer and pianist C.S.L. Parker, which exploits the full range of her diverse singing style. During the summer of 2010 Ciara was co-director of the highly successful 'Voiceworks Singing Summer Camps' held at the Cork School of Music.

Castlebar, Ireland Native, John Hoban - musician, singer, songwriter, poet - has travelled all over the world with his music. The ultimate multi-instrumentalist, John plays fiddle, accordian, mandolin, mandocello, harmonica etc ... He writes, composes his own songs and music. It has been said that he could make music from a sheaf of oats. Behind the talent and enthusiasm of John is a caring, wise artist. A simple man unfettered by much of the clutter we deem so important in modern society. John Hoban's music brings us back to the source. He searched out music from old masters, showing deep respect for the social contexts in which music was played for generations. All types of music, no boundaries, no definitions. A lifetime studying the sources and the roots of music making. From Michael Coleman to all Gypsy music to Rockabilly to John Coltrane to Aboriginal music to everything....and everybody that sings and comes from the heart.

Johnny McCarthy--Johnny McCarthy began to play traditional Irish music from an early age on whistle and flute. In his teens he explored the world of classical music and studied at the Cork School of Music. He later studied flute at the Conservatorium und Music Hochschüle in Zürich, Switzerland under professor Jean Poulain.
He is widely known throughout Ireland and Europe as a highly accomplished musician in both classical and Irish traditional music, on fiddle and flute. Johnny is a lecturer at the Cork School of Music (Cork Institute of Technology) in flute, ethnomusicology and music technology. Johnny holds an honors BA in Irish and Léann Dúchais (Folklore and Ethnology) from University College Cork and MA in ethnomusicology from The University of Limerick. He has delivered academic papers in Ireland, England, France, Switzerland and America. As a musician Johnny has featured as both soloist and as a member of many ensembles on prominent platforms. He has performed as soloist with the Irish Chamber Orchestra and has recorded with such artists as Antonio Breschi, Mícheál ÓSúilleabháin, John Gibson, John Spillane, The Four Star Trio,  Sliabh Notes and many others. His compositional collaboration with pianist Pat Crowley, in the production of the highly acclaimed album entitled,  ‘Fool’s Dream’ is seen as a landmark production in Irish traditional music. He was chosen as flute teacher in the award winning series Faoi Lán Cheoil and presented the highly acclaimed TV series Geantraí.  Johnny is also an accomplished composer having received a number of prestigious commissions. His composition to honor the visit of the President of Ireland, Mary McAleese to Cork City was highly commended and resulted in the work being performed at Áras an Úachtaráin (The President’s residence). In May 2011,  he was appointed by Cork City Council as musical director for the visit of Queen Elizabeth II to Cork City.

Cormac McCarthy--Cormac McCarthy is a Cork-born composer and pianist who has recently moved to Chicago. He began studying piano aged four and soon after, discovered the joy of composition. His teenage years saw him develop both disciplines in tandem, studying with Mary Beattie and George Dunne at the Cork School of Music whilst receiving masterclasses from the likes of Philip Martin, Eva Poblocka, Barry Harris, Carola Grindea, Dr. Billy Taylor and Edward Simon. He received a first class honours Bmus from the Cork School of Music in 2007 (majoring in piano performance) and went on to complete a Masters in Composition under C.S.L. Parker, graduating in 2009. He is currently a graduate jazz studies student at DePaul University, Chicago. In 2010 Cormac received the prestigious Bill Whelan International Music Bursary, an award earmarked for young Irish composers studying abroad. As a composer Cormac is looking to explore the synthesis of the different musical styles at his disposal, and create an aesthetic of interest and genuine cultural value. He has been commissioned as a composer/arranger by such ensembles as The Dublin City Jazz Orchestra, CSM Jazz Big Band, CSM Concert Orchestra, Cork Pops Orchestra, DePaul Jazz Ensemble, and The Medium Ensemble. His recent commission for the London-based Vesuvio Quintet was premiered during the ensemble's spring tour of Europe and the Middle-East. His arrangement of world-renowned drummer, Jeff Hamilton's, Time Passes On has just been released on a new CD recorded live at Chicago's Jazz Showcase, featuring Jeff Hamilton on drums.
Chicago Reel brings some of Chicago's finest musicians together for a refreshing take on traditional Irish music. Two fiddles join banjo, button box and piano to play a wide repertoire of reels and jigs, old and new, energetic and full of spirit. Their songs, rooted in the old-style sean-nós tradition, tell haunting stories of forsaken love and tales of emigration filled with hope for a new life.

Chicago Reel-- Chicago Reel brings some of Chicago's finest musicians together for a refreshing take on traditional Irish music. Two fiddles join banjo, button box and piano to play a wide repertoire of reels and jigs, old and new, energetic and full of spirit. Their songs, rooted in the old-style sean-nós tradition, tell haunting stories of forsaken love and tales of emigration filled with hope for a new life. Chicago Reel members are Devin Shepherd and Rose Duffy on fiddle, Jonathan Whitall on keyboard, Pauline Conneely on banjo, Gerry Carey on accordion and the vocal styling of Denis O'Sullivan. To see the band's individual bios, click here.

The Cannadys--Patrick (uilleann pipes) and Karen (fiddle) have been playing music together since 2001, performing at
festivals, uilleann piping weekends, and private events. They prefer to explore the sonic  possibilities of the uilleann pipes and slack tuned fiddle in their music, drawing inspiration from icons like Tommy Reck, Peadar O’Loughlin, Ronan Browne, Caoimhin O’Raghallaigh, and Mick O’Brien. Their repertoire contains many tunes learned from the senior members of Chicago’s own immigrant traditional musicians, and their emphasis on grit and lift comes from their lean, tough style of playing.

Sheila Doorley (Button Accordion)Sheila is from Tullamore, Co. Offaly and started playing at the age of four. She was taught by All-Ireland champions Ellen Flanagan and Bernadette Dunne. She qualified for the All-Irelands six years in a row from the age of nine to fifteen. Before moving to the America in 2000, Sheila toured extensively with the Daithi Rua band and the Davey Arthur Band to America, Europe and the Middle East. Now based in Chicago, Sheila has played with GanBua and the Barry Fagan band and is actively seen playing at sessions throughout the city.

Sheila, Pat and Jimmy have been running the session at O’Shaughnessy’s, on Wilson and Ravenswood, every Wednesday night from 8pm-11pm, for the last two years. The session is an enjoyable compilation of traditional tunes, folk songs and blue grass.

Patrick Quinn, a multi-instrumentalist (banjo, flute, whistles, mandolin, and guitars) originally from Cleveland, Ohio. Also spent several years in Ireland as a youngster learning tunes and playing sessions around Dublin, Kerry, and Mayo. Has lived in Chicago for the past eleven years.

The Dooley Brothers Coming from a River Forest family of six boys, the four brothers have been singing and playing together all of their lives, and have absorbed into their music incredibly diverse styles, including Benny Goodman and the Mills Brothers, Debussy and Ravel, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Elvis Presley, the Beatles, the Coasters, the Kingston Trio, topped off with a wealth of Irish music. Their mother, Avis Mac, was a well-known Chicago portrait artist of the 20's, painting such people as Jean Harlow and Wallace Beery. Their father, Thomas, worked for the Chicago Tribune in the ben day department, where he colored the Dick Tracy and Gasoline Alley comics, among others. "As kids, we were brought up in a wonderful home where we were encouraged in the arts," says Jim. "We drew our own comics and magazines, published our own one-sheet paper, the Dooley Tribune, put on radio shows and plays on a tape recorder, sang almost every kind of music-John McCormack, Bing Crosby and The Rhythm Boys, ragtime, scat, the Silhouettes, Jimi Hendrix, Cole Porter-we didn't know any better and thought that everybody did this. I'm not saying that ours was the better or worse way; it's just the way we were."
In the mid-60s the Dooley Brothers entered the thriving folk music scene in Old Town and the North Side of Chicago, playing in the same circle of clubs as the likes of Steve Goodman and John Prine. "We played anywhere and everywhere we could, from The Earl of Old Town to Mr. Kelly's to The Bulls," relates Jim. "Then we started to travel." And travel they did-to Paris, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, England, and ending up in Ireland, where they rediscovered their roots, as well as many of the Irish songs that both of their grandfathers sang to them as kids. "Our family comes from a town called Tulla, in County Clare. It's there we met members of the famous Tulla Ceili Band, did a lot of jamming with them, and went generally nuts for the music!" says Joe.
In the 80's, the Dooleys released their first album, "A Place in My Heart", consisting of mostly original acoustic folk-jazz songs, complemented with some of the best-known sidemen in Chicago. They split their performing between rock, etc. clubs to straight-out Irish pubs and venues. In the mid-80s, they released an Irish and American folk album, "The Road to Lisdoonvarna", featuring many songs and tunes from the west of Ireland. They continued traveling, doing concerts and clubs in Europe and the British Isles, and eventually landed on a cruise ship in the Caribbean.
At the beginning of the 90s, the Dooleys released "Glad Magic"Click to visit the CD a collection of original songs, and also a variety of folk and calypso that they were performing in clubs. In the later 90s, brother Bill re-joined the band. "The prodigal fourth part returned to our harmony!" says Jim. " The circle was reformed!"
And now at the beginning of this century, the Dooley Brothers are still singing, and working on many new projects, including several new albums-one that is Irish and folk, and one of new and old original songs, and some copy tunes, that were only recorded for their own and their friends' enjoyment. "We are one of the only bands I know of who can record a song like the 50's tune, "Get a Job" and then include an actual recording of the exact same group doing it as kids in the 1950s!" laughs Bill. And Jim adds, "Long may the circle be unbroken."
Joe Dooley-guitar, saxophone, autoharp, vocals   Bill Dooley-guitar, vocals   Mike Dooley-bass guitar, vocals  Jim Dooley-guitar, banjo, vocals
For further information, contact us at 773-625-1859 or 708-366-9458, or email at dooleyinfo@dooleybrothers.com

Pat Finnegan (flutes and whistles)is a native of Chicago’s South Side and one of its most accomplished traditional musicians. He began playing metal flute as a boy but moved on to the old style, blackwood flute favored by most Irish flautists for their tonal characteristics, picking up a great deal of repertoire from Johnny Harling and Kevin Henry. He plays flute in the raucous, elemental North Connacht style, using short, pulsating phrases to emphasize the rhythms of the old dance music. He also makes more extensive use of ornamentation in the manner of his heroes Matt Molloy and Seamus Tansey.

Noel Rice from Geashill Co. Offaly. (Flutes and whistles) Began playing at a young age. Self-taught flute and whistle player with a little help from the late musician Andy Conroy. Founded the band early eighties, and is very involved in passing on the music tradition to the younger generation.

The vibrant energy orchestrated by Cathleen Rice-Halliburton on the fiddle is demonstrated by her traditional style. Following in her grandfather's footsteps, John Rice, she gathered her technique through frequent sessions, numerous music trips to Ireland, and from the direction of her father. Cathleen has two children, Patricia, and Ian, who are always there to cheer Mom on.

The powerful bodhrán playing of Kevin Rice again features prominently throughout the tunes. Kevin's style brings so much more than percussive qualities from the bodhrán as he literally plays notes on the skin. Kevin is regarded as one of the finest bodhrán players in the world.

Joe O’Shea (button accordion) hails from Newmarket-on-Fergus, a small farming community near Ennis, County Clare. Growing up in a musically rich part of the country, he had inspiration from his mother, who played fiddle, and from the playing of mentor figures like Sean Reid and Joe Cooley. Joe plays a C#/D two row button accordion like his hero, Joe Cooley, and much of his style and repertoire comes from the great accordion master. Joe has been a resident of Chicago since 1959 and his kids all participated in competitive step dancing, winning many medals and trophies.

Joe’s son, Mike, is a fine fiddler in the Clare style, known for its strong danceable rhythms, grittiness, and soulful introspective quality.  Mike’s playing matches the generous pacing , heart, and “lift” of his father’s accordion playing well.

Gerry Carey (button accordion) was born and raised in Kilmurry, Co. Clare, where he was raised in the Clare music tradition. Among his first musical influences were two of his neighbors, the late Francie Donnelan (one of the founding members of the renowned Tulla Ceili Band) and his son Brian. While at St. Flannan’s College in Ennis, Co. Clare, he played with the award-winning St. Flannan’s Ceili Band. Gerry toured the United States with the Tulla Ceili Band in the mid-1980’s, moving to Chicago not long after. He performs, plays in sessions and works to keep the tradition alive among the younger generation of musicians, including his two children.

Kevin Carey, a Chicago native, has been surrounded by Irish music his entire life. He grew up around people, including his father from Clare who has passed his love of Irish music down to him. Kevin began taking lessons at early age on the tin whistle, and later moved on to study Flute with Sean Ryan from Chicago. He has also had the opportunity to study and perform with many well-respected musicians, which has greatly increased his knowledge and understanding of traditional music. Over the years Kevin has won numerous 1st place titles in solo flute, tin whistle, duets, trios, and groups at the national level here in the United States. He also has had the opportunity to compete in the All- Ireland where he was awarded 2nd place in one of the groups he was apart of. Kevin has performed in various locations both here in Chicago and on the East Coast. He is currently attending the University of Illinois at Chicago and teaches for the Irish Music School of Chicago.

Born in Chicago, Aislinn Gagliardi grew up listening to and falling in love with all kinds of music. She began classical piano lessons at age six, and started learning the harp at thirteen, taking lessons from classical harpist Alison Attar and playing in an Irish music youth ensemble. Since then she has studied with various Irish and Celtic harpers including Michael Rooney, Janet Harbison, and Gráinne Hambly. Aislinn pursued her musical passion at the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee (UWM), earning a B.A. in Inter-Arts (a combination of music and dance studies), with a double major in Ethnic Studies, and a certificate in Celtic Studies. She honed her skills on the pedal harp at UWM under the tutelage of classical harpist Ann Lobotzke, and performed in the UWM Symphony Band and Collegium Musicum, an early music ensemble specializing in Renaissance and Baroque music. Spending a semester abroad studying Irish culture, music, and dance at the University of Limerick, Ireland, she worked closely with Irish harper Fionnuala Rooney, and played in an ensemble that appeared on RTE's Céilí House radio show.
Not only has Aislinn appeared on radio overseas, but back in the Midwest she and her sister Meghan Anzelc (flute) were recently featured guests on the University of Chicago's radio shows "A Feast of Irish Folk" and "Reilly's Pint of Ale" (WHPK). Aislinn has also become an annual performer at the Milwaukee Irish Fest and Chicago's Celtic Fest, and has made appearances at the Fox Valley Irish Fest. Not only has Aislinn appeared as a special guest with the Milwaukee-based Irish-music bands Anam Rí and Cé, but she has also performed as the opening act for the Karen Casey Band. In addition, Aislinn plays frequently for private parties, weddings, receptions and at restaurants, and is a regular at a few of the traditional Irish music sessions in the Chicago-land area, including Molly Malone's in Forest Park.
Aislinn has been teaching harp in both Chicago and Milwaukee since 2002. She began teaching at Chicago's World Folk Music and the Milwaukee Irish Fest School of Music (IFSM), and has given workshops on the harp at the IFSM, the Milwaukee Irish Fest Summer School, and most recently at the Great Lakes Harpers (GLH) 2006 Regional Conference. Currently she can be found teaching out of her studio on the Northwest side of Chicago, and is working on material for a future album. Inspired by her previous experiences overseas, she hopes that one of her next trips to Ireland will be as a touring performer and teacher. www.aislinnmusic.com