Voices Cafe Gets Its Irish On!

GIRSA, an all-female traditional Irish music band, will wrap up Voices Café’s fifth season on Saturday, June 10 at 8:00pm. Not to worry, we’ll be back in September!

GIRSA has captured the hearts of audiences everywhere with their melodious voices, electrifying musicianship and witty banter. Their energetic and enthusiastic performances have been met with outstanding acclaim.  Opening for GIRSA will be the local band CELTIC BLEND.

Voices Café is located at The Unitarian Church in Westport, 10 Lyons Plains Road, Westport, CT 06880. Seating is cabaret style (at tables) and table reservations (minimum 4 people) are accepted by contacting David Vita, david@uuwestport.org or calling 203.227.7205 x14. Doors open at 7:30.  Purchase tickets at: http://voicescafe.org/show/girsa/

Maeve, Deirdre, Blaithin, Bernadette, Pamela and Emily bring a creative mix of fiddle, accordion, banjo, tin whistle, bodhran, guitar and piano to their shows. Their individual instrumental and vocal excellence combine to create a powerful force that is breaking into the forefront of Irish music in the US. Their first two CDs received rave reviews and their 3rd CD is currently in the works.

It’s downright scary to think that GIRSA, already musically imposing and ever-refining their sound, has an even brighter future ahead of them. Earle Hitchner, music critic for The Irish Echo newspaper in New York wrote, "GIRSA has the ability, poise, taste, diversity, imagination, fire, and finesse to go as far as their commitment to staying together can take them.” And that was five years ago! He continued, “The combined talent of the girls is frightening” and described them as “a force to be reckoned with.”

GIRSA's repertoire is versatile ranging from strict Irish trad, to Scottish singer-songwriter balladry, to rock pop, and even a bit of bluegrass.

On the instrumental side of things, they can fire up tunes that fall into the "classic" category – "Eleanor Plunkett," "The Longford Tinker," "Paddy Ryan's Dream," to name a few – and contemporary compositions such as John Whelan's "Ian's Return to Ireland" or Eileen Ivers's "Afro-Jig." Their songs encompass an even greater range: traditional ballads like "I Courted a Wee Girl" and "The Home I Left Behind"; standards from the 1970s/80s Irish folk revival such as "Mary and the Soldier" or "I Live Not Where I Love"; latter-day crowd favorites "Immigrant Eyes" and "Galway Girl," and even a somewhat obscure Rod Stewart hit, "Rhythm of My Heart" – joined to Dave Richardson's jig "Calliope House," no less.

Again Earle Hitchner, “GIRSA has emerged as confident, poised, musically mature young women of undeniable inventiveness to match their exceptional skill, energy, and joyfulness.”  Their music is “adventurous and risk-embracing” as they endeavor “to expand the concert repertoire of what’s customarily expected from an Irish traditional band today without diluting or diminishing their strong training in and love for trad itself.”

For more information about GIRSA visit: http://www.girsamusic.com/

Admission is $20 Advance/ $25 at the Door. For Advance Tickets or further information visit www.voicescafe.org or call 203.227.7205 x 14.

 

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Submitted by Westport, CT

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