AAFFM Presents: A Celtic Evening with Colcannon Society, and The Irish Brothers

THE COLCANNON SOCIETY

Kathleen Donohoe and Debra Peterson comprise The Colcannon Society. The Celtic music duo have performed together at parties, concerts, weddings and wakes for about 20 years.

Kathleen, a native of Cavan, Ireland, has had a lifelong passion for sharing songs, and music with audiences. Her performances offer a variety of songs of history, fun, love and in the Irish language. Now “an Irish rover the South over,” she shares the rich world of songs and stories from the traditional fireside hearth of her people. Kathleen has stayed in touch with her roots through regular trips to Ireland and has represented the U.S. as a finalist in all-Ireland traditional Irish singing competitions. Her CD offers compilations with Debra Peterson (on harp, whistle and flute). The recording features uilleann pipes, fiddle, mandolin, bodhran, bass guitar, guitar as well as a capella tracks.

Debra is a native of Olney, Illinois. She is an accomplished multi-instrumentalist and singer who has played Irish and Celtic music for decades. She has a B. Sc in Music Education, as well as a master’s in Music earned at UGA. She taught herself to play Celtic harp, flute, whistle and bombard. She even built one of her own harps. Debra has released three solo CDs and performs locally.

THE IRISH BROTHERS

We’re deeply gratified that The Irish Brothers make Fiddlers’ Green a regular stop every March, the busiest month for Irish musicians. “Captain” George Hergen and Sandy “Sandyman” Flynn may be Atlanta’s most popular and proficient performers of the beloved genre of traditional Irish music the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem introduced to the American Folk Revival.

They’re a unique team. Sandyman comes from the mountains of Western North Carolina, while the Captain hails from the canyons of New York City. The two started performing together more than 35 years ago when they worked “suit” jobs at IBM. Both draw from their Irish heritage for material. Their music practically maps the Irish cultural integration into the “new country” – from traditional Irish ballads to original songs of love, drinking, revolution and redemption.

Sandy is a former songwriter on Music Row (Tree-Sony/ATV) in Nashville. He was a founding member of the band Cullowhee, which toured nationally and internationally for ten years in the 70s and 80s. George started singing and playing after his first visit to New York’s Greenwich Village in the mid-1960s. He honed his craft by traveling throughout Ireland with the great Tommy Makem. The pair received the name “Irish Brothers” following a performance at The Folk Alliance several years ago in Memphis, Tennessee.

Sandyman Flynn
George Hergen

TEMPORARY COVID RESTRICTIONS IN EFFECT IN MARCH:

Attendance maximum 60. Come early!

Limited concessions provided outside before the show and during intermission, but feel free to bring your own. Eating is prohibited indoors. Brief sips of beverages are allowed inside.

Vaccinations and Booster shots will be required for anyone entering the sanctuary—attendees must be prepared to prove their status.

All people entering the sanctuary must wear a mask for the entire time they are indoors. N-95 Mask use is strongly suggested.

Social-distancing will be implied by the lay-out of the chairs in the Sanctuary (some single, some in groups of two, three, etc. Hand sanitizer and masks will be available.

Two portable Air filtration systems will be placed in the Sanctuary.