Catskills Irish Arts Week, July 15-21, East Durham, NY

http://photos3.meetupstatic.com/photos/event/8/5/b/8/event_129634232.jpegThe 18th Catskills Irish Arts Week returns to East Durham July 15-21 and we just wanted to help spread the word and give those of you who are going a chance to connect with each other.

Catskills Irish Arts Week is a week-long immersion in Irish music, dance, art and culture. Instruction is provided in just about every traditional Irish musical instrument there is, including: fiddle, flute, tin whistle, button accordion, piano accordion, uilleann pipes, tenor banjo, harp, bodhran, harmonica, bouzouki, guitar accompaniment, piano accompaniment, and hammered dulcimer. Classes are also available in singing, Irish history and language, storytelling, set dancing, sean nos steps, Celtic arts and crafts, plus a children's workshop.

Classes are held at locations throughout East Durham. Tuition ranges from $325 part-time to $400 full-time for the entire week. The children's program (ages 5-12) is $200 for the week. Instructors comprise some of the top traditional Irish musicians from this region as well as from all over the world. There are also afternoon lectures, daily concerts with some of the greats of traditional Irish music, ceilithe every night as well as nightly sessions in just about every pub in town.

Catskills Irish Arts Week culminates with the Andy McGann Festival from noon to 7 p.m. on July 21 at the Michael J. Quill Irish Cultural and Sports Centre. Admission to the festival is $15, free to CIAW enrollees.

For more information and to register for Catskills Irish Arts Week, goto:

http://www.catskillsirishartsweek.org/index.html

This will not be an organized meetup, I've just created this invite to help spread the word about this annual event. But those who are going, please feel free to use this invite to connect, spread word about sessions and other activities, etc.

Whether you are attending or not, there is also a Kickstarter campaign to fund this and future Catskills Irish Arts Weeks and support the Michael J. Quill Centre. Both CIAW and the Quill Centre have been hit hard by the economic downturn of the last four years. While they have surpassed their initial goal of $10,000, they are still raising funds and there are some great prizes available for pledges: CDs, DVDs, books, private music lessons, etc. So if you are interested in helping out and supporting Irish arts and culture in this region, please goto:

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1296594426/rally-around-the-catskills-irish-arts-week-in-east