IUP to host Eileen Ivers for Irish Christmas concert

By Jeremy Hartley/Staff Writer

Christmastime is often marked with joyful music and a festive atmosphere. But what could make it more festive?  How about adding a little Irish to it?

Eileen Ivers, the Grammy award-winning fiddler, will bring her Irish Christmas show to IUP campus on Tuesday. Ivers, who has been lauded by the New York Times and Billboard magazine alike, mixes traditional Christmas music with an Irish influence.

"There are traditional tunes and some Irish traditional Christmas carols, as well as some more American tunes that audiences would be familiar with, maybe with an Irish flair," Ivers said.

"There's so much joy in the music this time of year.  It's a joyful season and that's brought out in the music."

Ivers, an Irish-American of Irish immigrant parents, grew up in the multicultural neighborhood of the Bronx, New York. After taking up the violin, she won multiple competitions within the All-Ireland Fiddle championships.  

Ivers has also played with many popular music artists and organizations, including Sting, Hall and Oates, the Boston Pops and Riverdance.

Ivers' music has also been featured in the film "Gangs Of New York."

Having previously performed at IUP earlier this year, she is more than happy to return for a full-scale show.

"It's a beautiful campus," Ivers said. "We love playing college campuses, especially when the students come down.  It just takes on this really great energy."

"I'm psyched," she added.

Ivers will be performing a broad range of music, from familiar Christmas tunes to old Irish songs as well as pieces that sample tastes in classical music such as Bach.

"We'll do some obscure Irish Christmas carols dating back to the 12th century," Ivers said. "It's pretty diverse."

But attendees can expect the show to have some modern classics mixed in as well, including the familiar Charlie Brown Christmas special theme, "Christmas Time Is Here."

Ivers also hopes to provide some education into what goes into a traditional Christmas in Ireland.  She plans to explain some of the differences between what is done in Ireland that may be different than America.

"Hopefully, they'll take away a lot more knowledge of how Christmas is celebrated in the Celtic nations of Ireland," she said.

Ivers will be joined by her band, Immigrant Soul. The band, a four piece group, includes Tommy McDonnell on vocals and percussion, Greg Anderson on guitar, Buddy Connolly on accordion and keyboard, and Leo Traversa on bass. Each member is an accomplished and decorated musician in his own right.

"We have a lot of energy on stage. There are even a lot of improvised sections with myself, our bass player and the percussionist.  It's really fun."

Ivers will also be joined by IUP's Voices Of Joy choir as accompanying vocals, as well as dancers from the Burke School Of Irish Dance.

Ivers hopes after the show, the audience will carry away some of the love for Irish music that she shares.

"I think at the end of it," she said, "I would hope that they would feel a lot of joy.

"We go out to the lobby afterwards to hang out and talk to the audience, and there are always a lot of smiles. I think it's really good this time of year we have those feelings.

"It's not just about Santa Claus and shopping and getting stressed out. It's feeling joy."

Tickets for Eileen Ivers: An Irish Christmas are priced between $14 to $30 with zoned and reserved seating. They are available at the HUB box office, by calling 724-357-1313, or through www.iuptickets.com.