Now at the age of just 17, accompanied during her tour with Riverdance by her mother, the talented Richardson is a crowning jewel in the beloved Irish dance show. She has garnered a number of prestigious awards including both Junior and Senior Fiddler of Dooney titles and multiple All Ireland championships. Haley Richardson Meet the newest addition to the FEIS App team - Riverdance star - Haley Richardson, and enjoy a slip jig that she composed called ‘The Hummingbird’. Featuring the combined talent of the Riverdance lead dancers, the Riverdance Irish dance troupe, the live Riverdance band (now including Richardson) the show continues entertains audiences of all ages and cultures. They’re not treating me as if I’m 17. Richardson said it’s not exhausting, it’s “energizing.” She’s 17. While Richardson and her mother are now summer residents in Dublin, while touring with Riverdance, the young musician is no longer a stranger to Ireland by any means. Related Videos. They split us into groups of three and teach us a tune. | Book review, ‘The Rib King’: A meaty novel about ambition, race and revenge, Lisa Gardner marks a sharply written return in ‘Before She Disappeared’ | Book Review, Philly’s Acori Honzo couldn’t find figurines of Black folks, so he started sculpting them, ‘Yellow Wife’: An enslaved woman must become her own savior, These are the big books to read this winter, California residents do not sell my data request. I spent a lot of time when I was first getting into Irish music at the Commodore Barry Center [in West Mount Airy]. I was 5. “My parents always had music of different genres playing around the house when I was young,” she recalls via email. I have two older brothers. Tickets begin at €21 ($23.50) and make the perfect itinerary item on any trip to Dublin. Here's footage of Richardson in action, in May 2019, playing some Irish reels: What brings tourists to Ireland over and over again? Bill Whelan Riverdance 25th Anniversary Album. My dad is originally from the Wilmington, N.C., area. Haley is currently touring with the Grammy award winning 25th Anniversary of the production Riverdance. This Irishman rescued 3 foxes and now they won’t leave his side, An indulgent Guinness chocolate cake recipe, Coronavirus live updates: Number of deaths reported in RoI surpasses 3,000, The perfect recipe for Irish-style cabbage, Genetic mapping reveals ancestry between Ireland and Scotland, Independent investigation to be launched into Northern Ireland's Mother and Baby Homes, American Irish Historical Society's NYC headquarters on the market for $52 million, Irish Heritage Tree: Celebrate the women in your life this St. Brigid's Day. We’re FaceTiming all the time, I don’t know what we would do without FaceTime. As part of our education, they thought it would be a good idea if we took up an instrument. Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. John moved […] Haley Richardson is a virtuosic musician, whose talent has astounded audiences around the world. She explained “We went the first time I did the Fleadh. 0:55. Seeing Riverdance in the place where it all began should be on everyone's Ireland bucket list. © Copyright 2021 Irish Studio LLC All rights reserved. All Ireland Champion, Junior fiddler of Dooney, and multiple time MidAtlantic Fleadh champion. Review: The Riverdance 25th Anniversary Show Makes a Weekend … I went to Dublin over the summer and spent the whole summer there. Riverdance Fiddler Haley Richardson Interview Riverdance Fiddler Haley Richardson Interview. I’m the youngest. With her highly ornamented Sligo style perfected under the tutelage of fiddler Brian Conway, Haley has garnered a number of prestigious awards and honors, including multiple championships at the Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann (All Ireland World Championship) in Ireland, […] She recorded her debut CD, Heart on a String at only twelve years old and in March 2015, produced … “This is actually my tenth of 11th time in Ireland. Podcast: Interview with Riverdance Fiddler Haley Richardson New Jersey native Haley Richardson, a young fiddle player well-known within the Philadelphia traditional Irish music community, where her love of the genre first took root, joined the cast of Riverdance at the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin this summer. ! ​At the age of just 17, she’s also just released the fourth album she’s been involved with – When the Wind Blows High and Clear, where she’s joined by Quinn Bachand. She’s also won fiddling competition after fiddling competition, many in Ireland. In Montreal we played to 3,000 people — it was sold out and everything. Riverdance, Gen Z: This South Jersey teenager stars in a new … John Whelan & Haley Richardson Seven-time all-Ireland champion John Whelan is one of the world’s best living Irish button accordion players. We were touring a lot. So many of the musicians who are pure trad musicians who I've talked to about how they got involved in music and they're like "Yeah I saw Riverdance, I heard the music and that's how I got involved." The rest is history. Now Richardson’s hope it that her run with Riverdance can last forever. The power of the iconic Irish dance show is not lost on her. She was just three years old. “It's kind of funny - me learning this specific, particular style and my descendants are also from Sligo. I was transfixed, dead set on learning Irish music from then on. Reflecting on her career to date she told IrishCentral “It's funny how it all started out. She has garnered a number of prestigious awards including both Junior and Senior Fiddler of Dooney and multiple All Ireland championships. Riverdance returns for its 16th summer season at Dublin's Gaiety Theatre. I think the reason I’ve stuck with it, more than anything, is the community. Every Thursday, we'll send you ways to help you live better and stay connected while we’re social distancing. She and her brothers were all homeschooled, in New Jersey. » READ MORE: ‘The Band’s Visit’ arrives at the Academy of Music with gorgeous songs and a message that hits home right now. My mom saw a poster for a Kevin Burke concert and explained he played a different genre of violin music — Irish music. I've basically come full circle.”. The adults were very eager to have a young musician to share what they knew. Episode 2 Those three or four months were the longest I’d been in one place for a good few years. There’s not much Irish in me, but there’s a little bit. ", ‘The Band’s Visit’ arrives at the Academy of Music with gorgeous songs and a message that hits home right now, Why is ‘The Push’ so popular? The pair posed for photos at the event alongside Dave Fanning and his wife Ursala, and Pat Kenny, who attended alongside his wife Kathy. Haley Richardson Music I started with Suzuki lessons at age 3. I picked violin. Mick performs “You Lovers All” with Haley Richardson (Riverdance), a song that explores the diaspora of women in post Irish famine era to the United States—seeking love and independence. Outnumbered by the show’s 20-some dancers, the musicians spend most of the two-hour production onstage, playing not only rocking jigs, reels, and airs, but also flamenco and Russian fare. We moved to North Carolina a couple years ago. “Hopefully I can just continue touring with Riverdance for now. My brothers picked drums and guitars. Before Richardson’s success at the Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann her Irish American family had never visited the homeland. A perfect gift for both new and devoted Riverdance fans of all ages . Richardson’s amazing music career, apart from being quite exceptional for one so young, also has a wonderful symmetry to it. John was raised in the vibrant London Irish music scene of the 1970s, and learned his craft from legends Lucy Farr, Roger Sherlock, Paddy Taylor, Mick O’Connor and his teacher Brendan Mulkaire. The wonderfully talented Haley Richardson, fiddle player in the Riverdance band. The whole family came to Ireland for the first time when I was six.”. At 17, she is filling some big shoes, playing this summer in the Riverdance band at Dublin's Gaiety Theatre. My teacher is Brian Conway and he is very influenced by the Sligo style [of fiddle playing] and so his teacher would have been a student of Michael Coleman who is the go-to guy for fiddling. Haley is also one of the current @riverdance fiddle players It was a pleasure as always to dance to her music! She has garnered a number of prestigious awards including both Junior and Senior Fiddler of Dooney titles and multiple All Ireland championships. They’re so accepting and so welcoming, especially of young musicians. Meet the 16-year-old fiddle player who is taking the Gaiety by storm this summer. He went with wrestling. Here are her reflections on Riverdance, her career up to this point, and where she's going. The young musician’s father knew his family had strong links to County Sligo but had never visited now Richardson has not only reintroduced her family to their ancestral home but also plays fiddle in the Sligo style. I’ve spent my entire life in bars, in an entirely weird way. Irish fiddler, Haley Richardson’s virtuosic musicianship has astounded audiences around the world. Reflecting on her career to date she told IrishCentral “It's funny how it all started out. Haley Richardson young traditional Irish fiddler. She would stand behind the electric piano, which played pre-programmed tunes, and believed she was performing. Irish fiddler, Haley Richardson’s virtuosic musicianship has astounded audiences around the world. She recalls all the children always being curious about music that was played in the house, specific instruments and their sounds. Haley Richardson, 17, joins a group of four at the Merriam Theater as part of the revived, 25th anniversary tour of the Irish music-and-dancing extravaganza. It's so many people's intro to this genre and the Irish culture.”. I started doing a lot of online college courses that I could bring with me when I’m traveling. My parents were homeschooling all three of us. It’s so weird to not have any notebooks with me. Most of the other members are in their 20s. We have one ancestor we learned about after I got into Irish music. For super-fans or those seeking a more immersive experience, VIP packages are also available for €116 ($130) and include a premium seat in the Gaiety's Parterre, an exclusive VIP experience, a post-show meet & greet with the Riverdance Principal Dancers, individual photo and autograph opportunities, a pre-show experience with on-stage drills and a cast Q+A, and more. Richardson has performed and recorded all over the world, released two albums (with one more coming this spring), played with Altan, the Chieftains, Dervish, John Whelan, and more. Right after the show, Richardson told her mother, “I want to play like that”. Riverdance's 25th anniversary tour comes to the Merriam Theater from Jan. 21-26. When Riverdance made its theatrical debut, Haley Richardson was eight years away from making her world debut — as in, being born. Haley Richardson, performing in "Riverdance. My middle brother Dylan and I, we got into the Irish music. … It's a weird coincidence. The first to go to New York in the 1920s and 30s and his recordings came back to Ireland and still exist today. Later, when I was traveling, I found you can always find a community of Irish musicians or people passionate about Irish culture. Then, my mom and I were in the library one day, picking out books. I just love touring and performing and sharing this music with a bunch of other people, said Richardson. New Jersey native Haley Richardson, a young fiddle player well-known within the Philadelphia traditional Irish music community, where her love of the genre first took root, joined the cast of Riverdance at the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin this summer. Filmed live on 9 February 2020 at the 3Arena Dublin, this Gala performance celebrates 25 years since the first Riverdance show in 1995. Podcast: Interview with Riverdance Fiddler Haley Richardson – … I think I was home for maybe a month in November, which was super rare. This time around, her father only came to stay for a week with her mother chaperoning for the summer. Haley is already incredibly accomplished. For all those waiting.... New DVD - Riverdance the 25th Anniversary Show: Live in Dublin available for preorder on Amazon UK. Especially growing up in Philadelphia, there’s this huge Irish music scene. She soon asked for violin lessons and shortly after her mother spotted a flyer for a master Irish fiddle player, Kevin Burke, in concert. Hear all about her music in March on "Celtic Waves" every Tuesday at 9 p.m. Pic: VIPIRELAND.COM. I would always go in with my mom. Richardson, a precocious fiddler, stars in a band of four. Haley Richardson warms up before our show here in the The Gaiety Theatre. 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