Irish Massachusetts

Irish traditional musicians Cillian Vallely and Ryan McGiver are performing a concert at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, April 28 at the Chatham Fiddle Company in Chatham, Cape Cod. Suggested donation is $20 and tickets can be purchased at the venue. Located at 875 Main Street, The Chatham Fiddle Company sells a variety of hand-made traditional stringed musical instruments and carvings, and offers music lessons on several instruments.  The shop presents high quality music concerts throughout the year.  For directions click here . Find year round details on Irish music and culture in Massachusetts by visiting IrishMassachusetts.com.

The Massachusetts Ancient Order of Hibernians is holding a commemoration in memory of Ireland’s Great Hunger On Sunday, April 28, 2013 at 2:00 p.m., at the Immaculate ConceptionCemetery on Baker Street in Metheun, Massachusetts. The event, hosted by the AOH, Division Eight and Ladies AOH of Lawrence, is free and open the public.   Chaplain William Walters is leading a prayer service, followed by the laying of a wreath on the An Gorta Mor (Great Hunger) Memorial, which was installed at the cemetery in May 2006.     Local historians will also speak about the Irish Famine of the 1840s, which forced over two million Irish to flee Ireland, many of them arriving in the United States, including Massachusetts and the City of Lawrence. The An Gorta Mor Memorial in Lawrence was formally unveiled on May 6, 2006, thanks to the efforts of the late Dave Burke , Division Eight President William J. Sullivan and members of Division 8 AOH, who raised over $40,000 to...

Boston's Irish dance community is coming together to raise funds for the Richard family of Dorchester, whose lives were severely affected by the Boston Marathon bombing. The event, Dance for Jane ,  is taking place on Saturday, April 27, 2013 at 7:00 p.m. at the John Hancock Hall in Boston's Back Bay.  Tickets to the event, which must be purchased in advance, are $26.20 and can be ordered online . The Richard family is well-known and beloved in Dorchester for its community work and friendship, and suffered severely from the bombing.  Eight year old son Martin Richard was killed at the scene.  His seven year old sister, Jane, lost her leg. She is a stepdancer at the Clifton Academy of Irish Dance in Milton.Their mother Denise suffered head injuries at the finish line where they were standing. To find out more information, visit the Dance for Jane Facebook page.   If you are unable to attend and would like to donate, please send a check to Salem ...

Seamus Connolly , All-Ireland fiddle champion and Sullivan Artist-in-Residence at Boston College , is leading an Irish Ceiling Dance at Gasson Hall on BC's Chestnut Hill campus on Wednesday, April 17, 2013, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.  Admission is free. Connolly, who heads up the Gaelic Roots program, which is part of the Center for Irish Programs at BC,  is being joined by Boston College students who are studying Irish musical instruments and ceili dancing, as well as musicians and dancers from the local Boston scene. Also at the college is an exhibit entitled The Musical Roots of Seamus Connolly , on display at the John J. Burns Library, running through May 23, 2013. To read more about Connolly's work as a musician, composer, and collector of Irish traditional music, read this profile on Connolly from BITA's Travel & Culture Guide.  Find year round details on Irish cultural activities in Massachusetts by visiting IrishMassachusetts.com .

Boston Irish Tourism Association is offering a chance to win a Culinary Getaway Package to the Newport Restaurant Week taking place April 5-14, 2013 in Newport, Rhode Island.  The prize includes overnight stay, admission passes to local museums, mansions and wineries, and a $100 gift certificate at a participating restaurant. Enter the contest here , then submit your entry.  We'll notify winners on Friday, April 5, 2013, so be sure to check back! Here is a list of participating restaurants in this year's Newport Restaurant Week . The ten-day celebration offers prix-fixe, three-course lunches for just $16, and three-course dinners for just $30 in over 50 participating restaurants. Find out more about Newport this season and any time of year by visiting DiscoverNewport.