Wolfhound (Facebook)
Feb. 9, 2024 By Seán Ó Briain
Astoria-based Irish pub the Wolfhound will host a week-long Irish traditional music festival kicking off on Monday night.
The Wolfhound’s annual Trad Week, which takes place between Monday, Feb. 12 and Sunday, Feb. 18, features more than 20 traditional Irish musicians, with many flying in from Ireland to take part in the festival.
Irish Trad is a type of folk music that developed in Ireland and typically consists of instruments such as the fiddle, concertina, flute, tin whistle, and uilleann pipes (a type of bagpipes played with the elbow).
Trad music sessions are generally informal and often take place in a pub setting, with one musician leading the performance and other musicians invited to bring their instruments and join in.
Trad music has regularly taken place since the establishment opened in 2016 at 38-14 30th Ave.
This year’s Trad Week features a mixture of trad sessions and concerts, informal trad sessions taking place between Monday and Thursday and a series of concerts taking place next weekend.
Irish musicians Siobhan Peoples, Blackie O’Connell, Murty Ryan, John Kelly and Seanie McGrath will lead the Trad sessions between Monday and Thursday.
The pub will also be hosting an afternoon session at 4 p.m. on Thursday, with special guest Cillian Vallely, while Tony DeMarco – a founding member of the New York Trad Fest – will be performing on Thursday evening.
The Wolfhound is encouraging all musicians to join in during the midweek sessions, which are free of charge and kick off at 8 p.m. each night.
“This is part of the fun of Trad Week!” The Wolfhound said on social media. “We arrange a lineup, but we never know who could surprise us with a visit. These sessions are casual and communal.”
The Wolfhound will then host a series of concerts on a specially-built stage over the weekend, starting with Dave Fahy, Ivan Goff and Donie Ryan from 7 p.m. on Friday.
Renowned Irish-American flute and tin whistle player Joanie Madden will take to the stage at 10 p.m. on Friday and will be joined by All-Ireland champion accordion player Mirella Murray and husband-and-wife duo Bruce Foley and Mary Coogan.
All-girl Trad band Cailiní Nua (Gaelic for New Girls) will perform at 7 p.m. on Saturday, with New York-based Irish musician Peader Hickey taking to the stage at 10 p.m.
The Wolfhound’s Trad Week will conclude with a performance from Irish folk rock musician Allen Gogarty and banjo player Donie Ryan at 7 p.m. on Sunday, which will be followed by a performance from veteran fiddle soloist and two-time All-Ireland champion Pat Mangan and Boston-based guitarist Alan Murray at 10 p.m.
There will be a $20 cover charge until midnight between Friday and Sunday night, the Wolfhound said in a post on its website.
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