The Center for Irish Music

Ensemble Classes

Ensemble classes meet 10 times per term:

• Adult Ensemble (over 21): Thursdays 7-9pm with Sean Egan
• Performance Ensemble (by audition only): Tuesdays 7:30-9pm

Ensemble classes take the playing of Irish music to another level. In private lessons, students learn to play well as soloists, but a big part of the fun of Irish music is in the social playing. Ensembles will introduce students to ways of playing together and progress skills for performance. A common repertoire will be taught and music arranged based on instrumentation available. Please note: a minimum of 4 students is required for an Ensemble class.

Center for Irish Music Performance Ensemble

The Center for Irish Music Performance Ensemble was formed in Fall 2005 around a group of talented students under 18 years of age who have been dedicated in their pursuit of this art. They’ve worked hard to create a cohesive blend of fiddles, tin whistles, flutes, guitar, harp, bodhran and vocals. They practice together weekly to keep on top of the current material and to add to their repertoire. The CIM Ensemble is directed by instructors Kate and Jode Dowling, however the students have a lot of creative input regarding what tunes or songs are played and how the arrangements are fashioned. Though they’ve only been together one year, the CIM Ensemble has received local and regional recognition as a group and as individuals, receiving scholarships and grants, performing at Orchestra Hall, and at many festivals including MN Irish Fair, Celtic Fest in Chicago, and Hobgoblin’s Celtic Festival in Red Wing.
The Center for Irish Music student ensemble, pictured in the Green Room at Orchestra Hall,
Minneapolis, December 2005.

From left to right:
Rebecca Gerrigan (tin whistle and voice)
Ceallach Gibbons (fiddle)
Mattie Ernst (harp, fiddle and voice)
Colleen White (tin whistle and voice)
Meghan White (fiddle and voice)
Ben Hogan (bodhran)
Amanda Hogan (tin whistle)
Tony Costello (fiddle)
Eric Johnson (guitar)