The NORTHEAST
CEILI BAND
Group members
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Bill Black - banjo, bouzouki, guitar
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Senior member of the band, Bill also handles publicity on behalf of the
group. Bill did his Irish traditional apprenticeship
in New York in the early 1970's and became an active member of the
Boston scene when he and his family moved to Cape
Cod in 1979. Bill is active in the Cape Cod session scene, performs
(with his Dublin-born wife Pat) in the local traditional
groups "Celtic Tide" and "Spinner's Lilt", and also does classical and choral composing and arranging as
well as traditional
tune composing, web archiving, production, song
writing etc. Bill's web home page is www.Qmcorp.net.
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Sean Reynolds - fiddle
Mike Reynolds - accordion, guitar, vocals
Pat Reynolds - drums
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Two brothers (Sean and Mike) and a cousin (Pat) who have been
intimately involved in the Boston traditional scene all their
lives, which is only to be expected when Larry Reynolds is your dad
(or, in Pat's case, your uncle!) Seán is a rock-solid
fiddler, Mike is a first-class accordion player and singer, and Pat is
arguably one of the top three ceili band drummers in the
U.S. All live in the Boston area, and in November 2002 all were
inducted into the Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann (CCE) Hall
of Fame for their efforts on behalf of traditional music over the years.
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Rose Flanagan - fiddle (guest artist)
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Rose Conway Flanagan is an traditional Irish fiddle teacher from
Rockland County in New York who originally began music
lessons as a child with Martin Mulvilhill while was growing up in the
Bronx. She further developed her Sligo style of playing
with the help of Martin Wynne and her older brother Brian.
Great New York fiddlers like Andy McGann and Paddy Reynolds were also
frequent visitors to the Conway household, which
was the Bronx version of a "teach ceoil" (house of music) in the best
Irish tradition.
Rose was an original member of the all-women Irish traditional band
"Cherish the Ladies". She currently has a large music school
in her hometown of Pearl River where she is hard at work preparing the
next generation of great traditional musicians, which include
several All-Ireland winners and medalists.
In her spare time she has been a teacher at the Alaska fiddle camp as
well as a regular instructor at the Catskills Irish Arts Weeks,
runs various sessions, and plays with her group the Green Gates Ceili
Band in the tri-state area.
Rose's husband Mike is also a fine traditional musician. The couple and
their four kids live in Pearl River, NY.
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Maeve Flanagan - fiddle (guest artist)
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Maeve is a daughter of the Flanagan - Conway family and a fine fiddler
in her own right. She took first place in her age category
at the All-Ireland Fleadh in 2001, and second place in 2006. As anyone
familiar with the Irish traditional scene will tell you, these
are excellent accomplishments for a young American! Maeve is presently
enrolled in Stonehill College in the Boston area and is
already active in the Boston session scene. Her command of the basic
ceili repertoire and the energy of her playing make her a
natural fit as guest fiddler with the NECB, and we're glad to welcome
her on board.
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Kevin Killeen - accordion
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Kevin is the other New York member of the band, and brings a wealth of
ceili playing experience to the group. He has been an
active teacher and performer in the New York trad scene for years.
Kevin and banjo player Bill Black first shared tunes at various
CCE conventions starting in the 1980's, and in the meantime Kevin
became acquainted with (and appreciated by) the Reynolds brothers
for his solid technique and command. His accordion playing style blends
very well with the style of Mike Reynolds to create a distinct
and powerful sound for the band.
