Island performers at the BIS tonight
The ceilidh this evening at the Irish Cultural Centre in Charlottetown will feature Ward MacDonald and Keith Mullen.
MacDonald has been entertaining audiences for over two decades with his dance-fuelled fiddling prowess. A regular performer at festivals and square dances across the Island, he has taken his music from Canada’s North to South Australia. This past June he launched his first recording, “Ask Her to Dance”, which features several of his own compositions arranged tastefully with piano, cello, banjo and bagpipes.
He will be joined this evening by guitarist Jesse Periard of Ten Strings and a Goat Skin’ fame.
Mullen sang his first songs in public as an adult to a small gathering in Kings County. Since then he has been entertaining Island crowds from kitchens to small halls with his baritone ballads and rousing shanties. His voice has been called authentic, and his song selection reflects the style of the traditional artists that made up the soundtracks of his youth, including Stan Rogers, Ryan’s
Fancy, the Dubliners, Andy Irvine, the Irish Descendants and Great Big Sea. Expect real songs at every show as there are no tourist pub songs in his repertoire. Mullen will be joined by Irish guitarist Cian O Morain.
The ceilidh, which features Irish, Scottish and Maritime traditional music, will also have a 50/50 draw during the evening and a complimentary light lunch during the intermission. It takes place at the Irish Cultural Centre, 582 North River Rd., Charlottetown in an air-conditioned, wheelchair-accessible and licensed hall.
Doors open at 7 p.m., and the show starts at 8 p.m. Admission is at the door. For more information, call 902-314-8840.