Searson has recorded five albums in their illustrious career. A Different kind of Light (2008), Searson Live (2005), Follow (2004), House Party (2002), and finally their newest addition Ignite (fall 2009). Ignite encompasses Searson’s love of all music. All original, these tracks contain flavours from the Ottawa Valley, Country and Blues stylings, something Searson wanted to showcase in an instrumental album. Ignite was recorded at French Kiss Studios in the Ottawa Valley and produced by Jordon Zadorozny (Blinker the Star, Melissa Auf Der Maur). Recording Ignite gave the band a chance to bring in many different sounds including the banjo and the dobro.  Recording Ignite gave Searson a chance to be creative and have fun with their music. A Different Kind of Light compliments the instrumental album with twelve tracks of original vocals written by these three sisters. After completing the Searson Live album, “We wanted to showcase the band’s adventurous spirit for live music,” said Colleen. “The resulting album is something we are all proud of.”

From Host Isabella Hurless-Banks – 4520 75th St * Urbandale

Please join us for our second Scottish Ale Tasting.  This is an opportunity to taste some of the finest ales created by Scotland’s newest and oldest breweries.  Since its a party, we’ll have plenty of food including Nancy and Al’s Scotch eggs.  Bring a lawn chair if you’ve got one.

Tasting tickets are $20 per person / Non-Tasting tickets are $10 per person.  Paid reservations are required.  Attendees must be at least 21 years old.

For more information, call Isabella at 278-2067 or Nancy at 277-6350.

The High Kings asked if we could sport a quick piece on our website.  Always eager to help promote celtic music, we graciously obliged.

The High Kings exploded onto the folk scene in 2008, quickly achieving Irish platinum status in Ireland with sales of their eponymous debut CD and DVD. The High Kings launched in America in March 2008. They appeared on ABC?s The View and NBC?s This Morning whilst joining Billboard chart topping Celtic Woman on their Spring US Tour. September of that year saw The High Kings returning to the US to headline their own US tour, taking in cities such as Boston and San Diego.

In Ireland, The High Kings proved a Smash Hit, as they revived a flagging Folk scene and brought well-loved songs back to the masses, in three sell out Irish Tours.  As word of their live reputation spread, the lads were invited to do numerous TV appearances, including ringing in New Year 2009 with Tubrudy Tonight on RTE, performing their hit ?Fields of Glory? to 80,000 sports fan at the All-Ireland final in Ireland?s National stadium, Croke Park. The closing act on Pat Kenny?s last ever show as presenter of the longest running chat show in the world, The Late Late Show in 2009. In a line up that included U2 and Imelda May, The High Kings were chosen to play out Pat?s tenure as presenter, a moment they describe as outstanding.
The High Kings continued to tour throughout 2009. They were delighted to be voted Best Newcomer and Best Folk Act at Irelands Music Awards 2009. The poll, as voted for by the public saw them sharing nominations with accomplished Irish acts, such as the Wolfe Tones and Dubliners.

This year is set to cement The High Kings reputation as a phenomenal live band, as they have already completed a hugely successful Irish tour. The new album, Memory Lane, released by Universal Music Ireland, debuted at No. 5 in the Irish charts and quickly achieved platinum status. The album features classics, such as Step it out Mary, Fields of Athenry, Cavan Girl and Leaving of Liverpool. The High Kings are riding the crest of a wave and have many more successes in store.

Kelly Schulte is the lead instructor for the Des Moines branch of the Foy school of Irish Dance.  Kelly provides our young lasses the instruction they need to learn the art of Irish dance.  You may have seen her dancers at our concerts.  On several occasions they’ve joined the bands on stage to display their talents.  During the Cherish the Ladies concert, Joanie caught wind of the group, and in an impromptu moment, called a few girls to they stage to dance for the crowd.  Very impressive.

A group of parents in Des Moines decided we needed our own dance competition in Des Moines for Irish Dance, and formed Irish Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to the culture and traditions of Irish dance with the purpose to promote and support the artistic, social, educational, and competitive dance experiences.  Des Moines will host its first annual Two-Rivers Feile on August 7th, a day filled with dance and music.  The Celtic Music Association is proud to support the event by hosting Searson, a powerful force of celtic music, and proudly, and all-ladies group.

As you can imagine, there is a great deal of work in orchestrating a new event such as this, and there is an even greater amount of work required to turn it into a tradition.  I personally hope the Twin Rivers Feile is around for years and years to come.  And together we can make that happen.

Please take a moment to review the attached documents and consider for a second what you can contribute, in time or in resources, to help create this lasting legacy in Des Moines.  I consider it an honor to be a part of the Celtic Music Association, and a consider it blessing to live in a city that continues to support culture in all forms, especially that of my personal heritage.

Beannacht Dé leat!

Their websites are http://www.irishinc.org and http://www.tworiversfeile.com

Irish Inc Charitable Donation Form-Final Lime

TR Sponsorship-final Lime

TR Wish List-Revised July 2010

Iowa Irish Inc., is presenting the very first sanctioned Irish dance competition here in Des Moines. The Two Rivers Feile will be on Saturday, August 7 at the Polk County Convention Center. Hundreds of dancers from all over the midwest will compete in this sanctioned event. Click the Irish Inc./Irish Dance link on the sidebar for more information. The event is open to the public to watch and to cheer on the dancers. Please come and support dance here in Des Moines by planning to attend.

If a whole day of dance were not enough, we will be hosting the band Searson that very evening (August 7) for our first concert of the 2010-2011 season. The concert will be at the Polk County Convention Center, 501 Grand Avenue, in downtown Des Moines. Tickets are available at Dahl’s food stores in the Des Moines metro and they will be available at the door. We will not be selling tickets for the Searson concert through our usual outlets.

To get a look at Searson, visit www.searson.org, or interact with them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pages/Searson/22449268980

The momentum will not stop in August. We are most pleased to bring back the Tannahill Weavers to the friendly confines of Holy Trinity Parish Hall on Saturday, October 9. The “Tannies” have been a perennial favorite of our patrons and they are sure to please once again. To get a look at this band, visit www.tannahillweavers.com.

When the winter winds blow once more, we will invite the band Vishten, from Prince Edward Island and the Magdalen Islands to regale us with their brand of Acadian and Celtic favorites. Vishten will be at Holy Trinity on February 5, 2011. They can be found at www.vishtenmusic.com/ or you can interact with them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pages/Vishten/9500301731

Of course, we will have a March concert. Of course it will kick off your Saint Patrick’s day in proper style. On Saturday, March 12, 2011 at Holy Trinity, we are most pleased to bring you one of the world’s pre-eminient traditional Irish bands, Lunasa. Lest you think “traditional” means leisurely and quiet, view the videos on their website, www.lunasa.ie. You can always interact with them on Facebook at www.facebook.com/lunasaband.

Stay tuned right here for more information about this upcoming season. Make plans to see dancers in the daytime and Searson in the evening on August 7.

Until then, spread the word, we have reached critical mass.

Brian Smith
President

Subject: Iowa Celtic Summer Series

Dates

July 15 Donna Reed Theater, Denison, IA

July 16 Sami Bedell Center, Spirit Lake, IA

July 18 Stephen Sondheim Center, Fairfield, IA

To say that Irish Tenor, Michael Londra has a good voice and that he uses it well is an understatement. Anyone who has heard him sing in concert, listened to his version of “Danny Boy” on YouTube along with 2.5 million others, knows the truth behind those words. Whether he’s singing lead in “Riverdancec on Broadway”, appearing in concerts like his upcoming“ Celtic Summer” series in Iowa or his recent string of dates in China and Europe with the touring production “Celtic Legends,” magnificent singing comes naturally to this Irish tenor, and the surprising fact is that having a singing career nearly eluded him.

Michael Londra was born and raised in Wexford, a small town in the South East of Ireland. “It’s the greatest little town in the world,” he declares. “It’s famous for its opera festival, and I was raised to love classical singing, light opera and musicals. When I was growing up, I was in choirs and sang as a boy soprano in many operas. But the truth is I preferred to listen to Irish folk music in pubs, and that was always getting me into trouble with my singing teachers. If I’d focused more, I’d be an opera singer now. Back then, too, there were no opportunities in Ireland to study singing full time, so I went off to be a behavior therapist for people with learning disabilities. I worked at that for 10 years, but I always sang at parties. Little by little, I began taking it more seriously, and, at 31, I took the jump with my first professional gig.”

Londra had, in fact, been doing amateur musical theater in Dublin when the opportunity arose to audition for New York director/choreographer Larry Fuller, who was casting “JFK: A Musical Drama “ for its pre-Broadway run. “I had never auditioned for anything before and, frankly, I no idea what I was doing,” recalls Londra , who auditioned in his native Wexford accent. “Fuller offered me a lead part playing Bobby Kennedy in one of Dublin’s biggest theaters. Bill Whelan, the composer of ‘Riverdance,’ heard me singing in the production and offered me the role of lead singer in the U.S. touring company of his show. It changed my life!” Londra performed with the company for 18 months and then joined a new Broadway version of the show as a chorus member. On that production’s second night, Brian Kennedy, the lead singer (and the man for whom the part had been written) fell ill. An hour before curtain rose, Londra was asked to step into Kennedy’s part. “I managed to pull it off,” he now laughs. “I had no preparation. It was like something from the movies. Eventually, I took over the role from Brian and was the lead voice in the show until the end of run 18 months later. I’m still amazed that I sang lead in a Broadway show.”

Since “Riverdance,” Londra has continued to prove himself a man of many talents, a gifted performer with unerringly true Celtic connections. He recorded a solo album, Celt, released in 2005, and contributed to the 2009 release Arias, a compilation CD that also features Andrea Bocelli, Sarah Brightman and Luciano Pavorotti. He is also at work on a new solo recording called A Road Not Taken. A recent six-week tour of China with “Celtic Legends” earned him the moniker “Man Enya.” “They love the ethereal Celtic sound in China,” he relates. “I think Celtic people are welcomed around the globe. We connect on an emotional level with many cultures. ‘Riverdance’ gave us a new, contemporary calling card. Where else can you sob your heart out and do a jig on the same night? Good music, no matter how sad, should bring a smile to your heart. Irish music, Celtic music, does that.”

When he’s not touring the world, visiting Ireland or recording in New York, Michael Londra lives in Chicago. He fell in love with that city’s skyline and spirit during his “Riverdance“ days, and now makes his home in the historic Printers Row district in a building that once housed Elliot Ness’ headquarters.

Then there’s his work with Concern Worldwide, the humanitarian organization with a mission of eliminating poverty in developing countries. “I grew up with Concern in Ireland. I’ve always know who they were, but I got to see what they did for the first time, first hand, about five years ago when I went to Haiti,” he explains. “Once I saw the way people lived only 90 minutes from Miami, I realized I had to do whatever I could. I knew I had an audience, and it was my responsibility to step up as an artist and share what I had experienced.”

“I talk about my experiences at every concert. Without making an audience miserable it is easy to ask them to check out the website (www.concernusa.org) or to look at my film online. People are genuinely interested and it just enourages people to take a more active interest in poverty issues. I’ve gotten some sizable donations but more importantly people are learning about the great work of Concern Worldwide.”

As for his “Celtic Summer” series, audiences can expect not only gorgeous renditions of their favourite Irish ballads but thrilling jigs and reels from some of the top Irish dancers in North America and Celtic sounds from his amazing traditional band of Fiddles, Irish flutes, pipes and drum.

Being able to bring the real Irish sound to Iowa is a thrill for Michael. “I am always amazed at the audience reaction in the US”. Londra adds ”People are genuinely moved by the haunting Celtic sounds. Let’s face where else can you go where you can cry your eyes out and dance a jig on the same night”.

Quotes:

“One of the greatest Irish voices of our time” CapitalCeltic.com

“One of the best recordings of ‘Danny Boy’ in history” The Irish Emigrant