| Andrew O’ Brien is from Dublin, Ireland. Growing up, traditional Irish music was a significant part of daily life. His father Dinny plays button accordion, and insisted all five boys play an instrument. As the fourth in age, Andrew received a hand me down fiddle at age seven and had no option other than to figure out how to make noise on it. Andrew moved to St. Louis in 1990. He is an attorney focused on representing mesothelioma victims. He continues to play and enjoy traditional Irish music. He plays his fiddle at home, at times with his three kids, on occasion in public, and as a member of SLIA (St. Louis Irish Arts).
Eimear Arkins comes from a small village on the West Coast of Ireland called Ruan in County Clare but she has been living in Missouri for the last number of years. She is an award winning musician, singer and dancer. Eimear has toured extensively with the international music organization Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann on concert tours throughout Ireland, Britain, North America and Canada.
Pat Broaders grew up in Dublin, the son of parents from Wexford. He began his journey in traditional music at the age of eight, and attended the School of Music in Chatham Street in Dublin. He started out on the whistle, and later moved on to the uilleann pipes under the tutelage of Leon Rowsome. He took up the bouzouki in 1988, inspired by the sounds he grew up hearing from bands like Planxty, and the popularity of the instrument in Dublin’s vibrant traditional music scene. Pat’s singing began naturally enough. His father was a singer, and having grown up around Dublin’s singing tradition, it was a natural step for him. Pat’s repertoire today reflects his interest in the great songs of the Irish tradition as well as songs and ballads from the English and Scottish traditions.
Eamonn Wall is a native of County Wexford, Ireland, who immigrated to the United States in 1982. His books include Junction City: New & Selected Poems 1990-2015 (Salmon Poetry 2015) and Writing the Irish West: Ecologies & Traditions (University of Notre Dame Press, 2011). His current projects include a book on Irish America, and a new book of poetry. He is the Smurfit-Stone Corporation Professor of Irish Studies at UMSL. |
