Irish Massachusetts

Michael Quinlin , author of Irish Boston: A Lively Look at Boston’s Colorful Irish Past , is discussing his new book at the Lawrence Heritage State Park in Lawrence on Sunday, March 2, 2014, from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. The lecture is the kickoff to Irish Heritage Month in Lawrence , which run through March 30 with a series of cultural performances, exhibits, lectures, luncheons, banquets and film screenings. These events are sponsored by the AOH Division 8 and the Irish Foundation. Quinlin's book begins in the early 18th century, when indentured servants and Ulster Presbyterians initially settled in the Bay State, and traces the evolution of the Boston Irish community through the 19th and 20th centuries. First published in 2004, a 2nd edition of Irish Boston was released in October, 2013. A founder of the Boston Irish Tourism Association and creator of Boston's Irish Heritage Trail , Quinlin has written several books...

A group of local Irish bands came together this weekend at the Beachcomber in Quincy to raise funds for the group, Cops for Kids with Cancer .   Among the bands were fiddler Aiden Maher, Erin's Guild , Boston's Erin Og , Irish Whispa , Saoirse Nua and Tin Can Hooley . The organization was formed in 2000 by police officers in Boston and Ireland who wanted to help children who were afflicted by cancer.  Since then Cops group has helped hundreds of families and raised over $1 million.  Find out more about Boston's Irish community by visiting IrishBoston.org .

Two guitar masters - Peter Janson and Tim Farrell - are performing in concert at the Blackstone River Theatre in Cumberland, RI on Saturday, February 22, 2014, at 8:00 p.m.  Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at the venue before the concert. An artist and faculty member at the Performing Arts Department at UMass/Boston, Janson brings a contemporary, individual style and treatment to American folk, Celtic and roots music.  Farrell is a noted composer who brings emotion and sensibility to his music. Here is a schedule of upcoming events at Blackstone River Theatre this winter and spring. Find year round details on Irish cultural activities in New England by visiting IrishMassachusetts.com .

Irish singer and guitarist Donal Clancy is performing at the Hibernian Cultural Center in Worcester on Sunday, February 23, 2014 at 2:00 p.m., in a concert presented by Coolbawn Road Productions . Tickets to the show are $15 in advance and $20 at the door.  To order tickets, contact Helen Foley at at htfoley@charter.net or Bud Sargent (508) 868-7552, at bud.sargent@gmail.com The son of Liam Clancy of the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem, Donal is one of the finest musicians of his generation, working with top touring ensembles like Solas, the Chieftains, Riverdance and Danu.  Here is a schedule of events hosted by the Hibernian Cultural Centre , located at 19 Temple Street in Worcester.  For more Irish cultural activities in Massachusetts and New England this St. Patrick's Day season, visit IrishMassachusetts.com.  For visitor information go to MassVacation.com .

Singer/songwriter Robbie O'Connell is performing a concert at the Burren Pub in Davis Square, Somerville, on Wednesday, February 19, 2014, at 7:30 p.m.  He is joined by uilleann piper Patrick Hutchinson and fiddler Armand Aromin. The concert is part of the Burren Backroom Series , an intimate gathering of music lovers and top Celtic musicians that is MC'd by Brian O'Donovan , host of the radio program, A Celtic Sojourn , on WGBH-FM. Tickets to the show are $24.80 and can be reserved online . The Burren, a premier spot for live Irish traditional music, is run by musicians Tommy McCarthy and Louise Costello . Find year round details on Irish cultural activities in greater Boston by visiting IrishBoston.org For visitor information go to MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com .

NESE's fishing host Charlie Moore is the Grand Marshall at this year's Cape Cod St. Patrick's Parade , taking place on Saturday, March 8, 2014, starting at 11:00 a.m.  The two-mile parade route starts at Long Pond Road and Route 28 in S. Yarmouth and ends on Route 28 in W. Yarmouth,. See map here . Moore is the ninth grand marshall for the parade, joining other notables like boxer Irish Micky Ward, former Boston Mayor and Vatican Ambassador Ray Flynn , and Boston Burins legend Bobby Orr and Derek Sanderson. Here is a full schedule of St. Patrick's Day parades in Massachusetts in 2014. Find year round details on Irish activities in Massachusetts and the New England region at IrishMassachusetts.com .

The Chieftains , Ireland's most notable traditional Irish music ensemble, is performing live at the Colonial Theatre in Keene, NH on Tuesday, March 11, 2014, at 7:30 p.m.  Tickets range from $49-$85 and can be reserved by calling 603 352-2033. Also, Boston Irish Tourism Association is giving away a pair of free tickets each to two lucky winners.  Enter the contest here . The Chieftains, led by piper Paddy Moloney, recently celebrated their 50th anniversary as one of the world's leading traditional musical groups.  See article in Irish America Magazine.   Located at 95 Main Street in downtown Keene, the Colonial Theatre has been one of New England's most popular concert venues since it opened ninety years ago in 1924. Find year round details on Irish cultural activities in the New England region by visiting IrishMassachusetts.com .

  Darrah Carr Dance Dublin's Irish Cabaret , featuring top Irish music, singing, storytelling and dancing, is coming to the Rogers Center for the Arts at Merrimack College in Andover on Saturday, March 1, 2014. Tickets to the show are $30 at the door or $25 in advance.  You can reserve tickets by calling 978 837-5355.  Also, the Boston Irish Tourism Association is giving away a free pair of tickets to the show.  Enter the contest here.  The Cabaret features Andy Cooney , a favorite Irish-American singer and musician, along with  comedian Noel V. Ginnity, one of Ireland's best-loved entertainers.  They're joined by the award-winning Darrah Carr Dance , an innovative troupe that combines Irish step dancing and modern dance.  And the Guinness Folk Band, featuring pianist Bugs Moran, drummer Jimmy Kelly, flutish and tin whistler player Matthew Fisher, and guitarist Colm Graham, provide music for the show. Here is a schedule of upcom...

Master flutist and Celtic singer Nuala Kennedy is performing two concerts in Massachusetts this week.  A native of Dundalk, Co. Louth, and now living in Scotland, Nuala is touring for her third and latest album, Noble Stranger She plays at the First Congressional Church, 650 Main Street in Chatham, Cape Cod on Tuesday, February 11, 2014 at 7:30 p.m.  Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at the door, or contact roseclancyfiddler@gmail.com.  Then on Wednesday, February 12, Nuala plays at the Burren Pub in Davis Square, Somerville, starting at 7:30 p.m.  Tickets are $23 and can be purchased online or at the door. Find more Irish and Celtic music in the New England states by visiting IrishMassachusetts.com .

Flogging Molly , the West Coast band that plays punk rock with a Celtic flair, is coming to the House of Blues in Boston at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, February 26, 2014.  Tickets are $30.50 - $40.50 and can be purchased online. The Boston Irish Tourism Association is giving away a pair of tickets to the concert.  Enter the contest here and check back for the winner on February 24. Flogging Molly formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1997, touring the country and then the world ever since.  This is the band's 10th Green 17 Tour , which begins in the United Kingdom and then takes them across the United States.  The Boston gig is their only New England appearance. Here are more concerts from LiveNation . Find year round details on Irish events in greater Boston by visiting IrishBoston.org . For visitor information go to MassVacation.com and BostonUSA.com .

The Merry Ploughboys - one of Dublin's enduring pub-singing, traditional ballad bands, is performing at Mechanics Hall in Worcester on Friday, February 21, 2014 at 8:00 p.m.   Tickets to the show are $20-$25 and can be purchased online or by calling 508 752-0888.  Group rates are available. Also, the Boston Irish Tourism Association is offering a pair of free tickets . The band has been together since 1989, and has its own pub - also named Merry Ploughboy - in Rathfarnham in Dublin.  The group made its first appearance in Massachusetts in 2010, and is back again this year by popular demand. Mechanics Hall will be turned in to a pub scene to provide atmosphere for the concert.  Traditional Irish pub food and beer will be served at the performance. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Find more information on Irish music in Massachusetts and the New England states by visiting IrishMassachusetts.com .

Irish dance teacher Ger Cooney is holding set dancing classes at the Burren Pub in Davis Square, Somerville, this Monday, February 3, 2014, from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. Admission is $8.00. The classes feature live music from the pub's traditional musicians.  Cooney is a native of Galway who has been teaching Irish set dancing in the Burren since the pub was opened in 1996 by owners Tommy McCarthy and Louise Costello .  The classes run the first and third Mondays of each month. Follow Burren Pub on Facebook for information on upcoming events. For year round details on Irish cultural events in greater Boston, visit IrishBoston.org, or follow Boston Irish Tourism Association on Facebook and Twitter @TheBostonIrish .

Singer Pauline Wells and Irish band Devri are performing at the River Club in Scituate on Saturday, February 1, 2014, in an event to raise funds for the Scituate St. Patrick's Day Parade . Wells , a decorated Lieutenant with the Cambridge Police Department, is a popular singer who has performed widely to support charitable causes in greater Boston and in Ireland.  Devri is a popular Boston Irish traditional band. The Scituate St. Patrick's Day parade was started by Jim and Janet Campbell as a neighborhood event, then steadily grew in a major occasion, with support from the Scituate Chamber of Commerce and parade organizer Ed Kelley.  Scituate is the most Irish-American community in the United States, with over 47% of residents claiming Irish ancestry, according to the US Census .  In the mid-19th century, Irish immigrants fleeing the famine in Ireland settled there to gather the moss along the coast, a highly nutritious product that was used in foods like pudd...