Rocking Irish Music with Sean Gavin, Johnny Connolly and Cary Novotny
Vashon Havurah,
15401 Westside Hwy SW
Tuesday, June 24th at 7.p.m.
Door open at 6:30

We are pleased to bring another concert in our Masters of Celtic Music Series. On Tuesday, June 24th at 7 p.m., three stellar Irish musicians will perform at the Vashon Havurah located ad 15401 Westside Hwy SW. Sean Gavin on Irish pipes and whistle, Johnny B. Connolly on button accordion and Cary Novotny on guitar will bring their considerable talents and energy to a performance that should not be missed. Suggested donation is $25 cash or check and reservations should be made by contacting Jan Strolle at 206-228-0730 or emailing janstrolle@comcast.net

Sean hails from Detroit where his family has deep roots in Irish traditional music. He was encouraged in music by his father Mick, a fiddler from Co. Clare. At age 12, he started work on the uilleann pipes with the late Al Purcell, former pupil of piper Leo Rowsome. Founder and Director of the Irish Music Institute, Seán Gavin is one of the most highly regarded Irish musicians of his generation. He’s the author of the popular new instructional book, The Tin Whistle Method, published by Hal Leonard and in 2016 he became the first musician born outside Ireland to win the prestigious Seán Ó Riada gold medal. Seán tours regularly with his critically acclaimed new concert series, “From Shore to Shore,” as well as with the groups Téada and Irish Christmas in America.

In addition to performing, Seán was Musical Director for the PBS program “I Am Ireland”, and for the long running “Atlantic Steps”. He’s one of the most highly sought instructors of Irish music, having lectured on the subject at institutions around the world including the University of Chicago, St. Andrew’s University in Scotland, and Na Píobairí Uilleann in Dublin. He is currently the Director of the Swannanoa Irish Music Gathering.

Johnny B. Connolly was born and raised in Dublin and has been immersed in Irish traditional music since he was eight years old. By the age of 15 he was a regular feature around his hometown, performing with musicians sometimes twice his age. Johnny’s dexterity on the accordion earned him a slot with established Celtic ensemble Anam at the age of 17. For the next two years, he continued to build his reputation back home in Dublin’s trad music scene and abroad with Anam, touring festivals throughout Europe and Ireland.

In 1996, Johnny moved to the U.S., eventually finding himself Portland, Oregon. A friendship with Kevin Burke, legendary Irish fiddler and fellow Portland resident, led to Johnny’s signing with Green Linnet Records in 2001. His CD Bridgetown was released to universally glowing reviews. A collection of traditional Irish and French tunes, the album features guest appearances by Burke and production by guitarist Ged Foley. In 2014 Johnny joined the internationally acclaimed Irish band Solas and is featured on their latest CD All These Years.

Cary Novotny was born in the Great Plains of South Dakota and later moved to the bluegrass of Kentucky at the age of twelve. In Kentucky, he began to explore music via early classical guitar training and absorbing the sounds of the region, namely, country, folk, and bluegrass music. After moving to the Northwest, Novotny earned a Bachelor of Music degree at the University of Portland, and then began a career as a professional guitarist, singer and songwriter in the folk and popular music scene in the Portland and Seattle areas.

After Novotny took a family trip to the West of Ireland and rediscovered his Irish roots from his Mother’s side of the family who had emigrated from Ireland, Novotny began learning many of the great songs from the Irish folk music canon, as well as the tools to become a great accompanist of traditional Irish instrumental tunes. From 1995 to the present, Novotny performed in “Cul an Ti,” which went on to become one of the most successful traditional Irish bands in the Northwest with hundreds of performances of a mixture of lively traditional Irish tunes and many of the great Irish folk songs.