Scoil Acla - Concertina Classes

The word concertina refers to a family of hand-held bellows-driven free reed instruments constructed according to various systems. Strictly speaking: Concertinas are six sided, Aeolas are eight sided and Edeophones are twelve sided.

Concertinas have bellows and buttons typically on both ends of it. When pressed, the buttons travel in the same direction as the bellows, unlike accordion buttons which travel perpendicularly to it. Also, each button produces one note, while accordions typically can produce chords with a single button.

Scoil Acla Concertina Tutors

Jacqueline McCarthy

Jacqueline was born in London in 1957. Her parents had emigrated to England in the early 1950s. She grew up to traditional music, her father Tommy McCarthy being a piper and concertina player from Kilmihil, Co. Clare. She played with all the legendary players from Ireland who were living in London. Musicians like Máirtín Byrnes, Raymond Roland, Roger Sherlock, Danny Meehan, Paddy Taylor and Bobby Casey were all part of a thriving music scene that Jacqueline experienced first hand. She also recalls meetingJohn Kelly and Willie Clancy during frequent visits to Ireland.

With her father Tommy, sisters Marion and Bernadette and brother Tommy, Jacqueline performed throughout Ireland and the UK - including The Royal Albert Hall, London. She was a member of The Sergeant Early Band who performed traditional music for a contemporary ballet production Sergeant Early"s Dream by the London-based Rambert Dance Company. This association goes back to 1985 and has taken her to Poland, Egypt, Greece, Jordan, Zambia, and all over the U.K.

Since 1987 she has been living in Co. Galway where she teaches concertina. She is a regular performer at the Willie Clancy Summer School in Co. Clare and has toured the U.S. on several occasions with her husbandTommy Keane. In 1995 they released an album "The Wind Among the Reeds".

She is a member of Maigh Seola a group who specialise in songs collected in North County Galway at the beginning of the 20th century. In 1999 she released "The Hidden Note" featuring the McCarthy family, Tommy Keane and Alec Finn.

Michael O’Raghallaigh

Concertina maestro Micheál Ó Raghallaigh is no stranger to the world stage. As both a soloist and a member of traditional group ‘Providence’, he has performed in the U.S.A., as well as throughout Europe. He has also been part of two Céilí Bands who won the much coveted ‘three-in-a-row’ senior All-Ireland titles, namely ‘The Táin’ Céilí Band and more recently, The ‘Naomh Pádraig’ Céilí Band.

As one of the highest profile concertina players of his generation, Micheál has been engaged for events such as the ‘Catskills Irish Arts Festival’ in New York, workshops in Germany, ‘Tocane’ in France, the ‘Scoil Eigse’ as part of the All Ireland Fleadh, ‘Eigse Mrs.Crotty’ in Kilrush, Co Clare, Feile Frank McGann, Co Roscommon, as well as numerous third level institutes where the skills and expertise of such a performer are in great demand.

Following the unprecedented success of his debut album ‘The Nervous Man” in 2001, he surpasses all expectations with this second helping, “Inside Out”. They give us a glimpse of a musician totally at one with his craft.

Michael was Scoil Acla's musician in residence in 2008