July 5, 2007���� ����������������������� ����������� ����������� P.O.
Box 3934
����������������������� ����������������������� ����������� ����������� Gettysburg, PA 17325
����������������������� ����������������������� ����������� ����������� http://www.adamscountyirishfestival.com
����������������������� ����������� ����������� ����������� ����������� CONTACT:�� Patrick Bowling
����������������������� ����������������������� ����������� ����������� (717) 337-5999
����������������������� ����������������������� ����������� ����������� [email protected]
����������������������� ����������������������� ����������� �
Eighth
Annual Benefit at Gettysburg Moose Park on Saturday July 21
Offers
Full Day of Family Fun
����������� GETTYSBURG,
PA:� The Eighth Annual Adams County
Irish Festival will be held rain or shine on Saturday July 21, 2007 in the
shady grove of the Gettysburg Moose Park.�
The gate opens at 10:00 AM and the festival runs until 7:30 PM.� The park is located at 100 Moose Road which
is just off of US Route 30 in Straban Township about a mile and a half east of
the US 15 interchange near historic Gettysburg, PA.� Admission is $10 for adults and children under 12 are free.��
����������� With a full day of Irish music,
food, merchandise and more, the festival offers wholesome family fun while
primarily benefiting the Children�s Friendship Project for Northern Ireland
(CFPNI).� CFPNI is a peace and
friendship building program that selects and pairs Catholic and Protestant
teens from Northern Ireland to pursue a friendship between themselves, their
families and friends.� As part of the
program, CFPNI-paired teens spend time with host families in the U.S. where
they can pursue friendship and understanding in a neutral environment while
focusing on their similarities rather than differences.� The festival is again partnering with Moose
Lodge 1526 of Gettysburg to provide a monetary donation to CFPNI.� A long-term goal of the festival is to also
help fund the eventual establishment of a national Irish history museum and
library in the Gettysburg area.� This
year�s festival is sponsored in part by Environmentally Safe Products,
Harrisburg St. Patrick�s Day Parade Association, Garryowen Irish Pub and the
Wyndham Gettysburg.��
����������� Southcentral Pennsylvania is
traditionally known for being an area populated by German immigrants but what
is less known is its Irish heritage.� In
the latest census, about 15% of Adams County�s population claimed Irish
ancestry.� Many of the early 18th
century settlers in what is now Adams County were Irish or Scots-Irish
immigrants and various place names in the county such as Irishtown, Straban,
Tyrone and McSherrystown reflect the Irish influence.� Now in its eighth year, the Adams County Irish Festival appeals
not only to those interested in Irish heritage and culture but also to
bluegrass music fans as that genre has its roots in the traditional music of
Ireland and Scotland. �The oldest and
largest Irish festival in southcentral Pennsylvania drew a record crowd of over
three thousand people last year who enjoyed local, regional and internationally
known musicians, Irish step dancers, Irish food, music workshops, living
history exhibits plus art, craft and gift vendors.� The festival was recently voted the best festival/special event
of the area by the readers of Celebrate
Gettysburg� in the magazine's
first-ever �Gettysburg's Greatest� awards.
Bolstered by last year�s success, festival
organizers are looking to make the one-day festival into a weekend event.� To help people get �primed� for the festival
itself, the four-piece Irish band Rossnareen from Baltimore will perform at the
inaugural Adams County Irish Festival Kick-Off �Concert at 7:30pm on Friday July 20 in the Wyndham Hotel Ballroom
at Gateway Gettysburg.� Admission for
the concert is $5 and can be paid at the door.
Another big turnout is anticipated for
this year�s festival as organizers have once again assembled an impressive
entertainment line-up featuring� the
original Riverdance�s button accordion master John Whelan plus several popular
regional and local musical groups, a pipes and drums band and a special
children�s show by a noted folksinger.�
����������� Seven-time All-Ireland Champion
accordionist John Whelan will be making his Adams County Irish Festival debut
this year.� Although he grew up in
England, John Whelan was raised exclusively on traditional Irish music by his
parents who both came from Ireland.� By
age 14, Whelan�s skill on the two row button accordion had already earned him
several accordion championships and he recorded his first solo album, The Pride of Wexford, in honor of his
father who hailed from there.� After
moving to America in 1980, Whelan soon began performing with Riverdance fiddler
Eileen Ivers in what became� one of the
most popular Irish duos of the decade.�
Whelan also performed in the original Broadway production of
Riverdance.� In America, Whelan was
exposed to other types of music and he expanded the boundaries of Celtic music
through collaborative projects with artists from the country and world music
scenes.� In the late nineties, the John
Whelan Band thrilled audiences in America and Europe and Whelan was named
Traditionalist of the Year by the Irish
Echo in 1998.� Whelan has recorded
over a half-dozen albums.� In addition
to success as an instrumentalist, composer and arranger, Whelan has made
appearances on Connecticut Public Television, appeared in Ang Lee�s 1999 film Ride With the Devil and produced the
Celtic rock band Black Thorn in 2001.
Also making their festival debut is
Maidens IV, a fiery band of four sisters hailing from rural Ohio.� Back by popular demand for their third
festival appearance after a one-year hiatus is Barleyjuice, a kilt-clad high
energy band from the Philadelphia-Baltimore corridor. The ever-popular
Irishtown Road, the Adams-York area�s pioneer Irish band, will be making their
seventh festival appearance and will be performing their unique and lively mix
of traditional and original Irish jigs, reels, ballads and rebel songs.� Cormorant�s Fancy, an energetic and
spell-binding Irish folk band from Gettysburg, returns for the third
consecutive year to showcase their fine harmonies and multifaceted
instrumentals.�
A special attraction this year is
�Celtic-American Odyssey�, a children�s show by national recording artist Ray
Owen who is making his festival debut.�
Based in Gettysburg, Owen is considered one of America�s premiere
festival performers and his repertoire includes a veritable feast of Irish
songs and sea chanteys that provide an engaging musical journey celebrating the
role of the Irish in the building of America.�
Rounding out the music slate are the thunderous sounds of Harrisburg�s
Lochiel Emerald Society Police and Fire Pipes and Drums who are making their
second festival appearance along with The Spalpeens, a hard driving Irish band
from Baltimore.
In addition to all-day musical
performances, several other activities are offered at the festival.� Over two dozen vendors will be selling
different Irish goods plus food and beverage.�
Festival-goers can also participate in interactive music workshops on
the fiddle and bodhran (Irish drum)
and take in an Uilleann Pipes (Irish
parlor pipes) demonstration.� Living
history exhibits will include Civil War re-enactors from the 69th New York
State Volunteers, which was part of the Union Army�s famed Irish Brigade, plus
the West Cork Flying Column who portray the Army of Irish Volunteers from the
early twentieth century Anglo-Irish War that established the Irish Republic.
Among the Irish-American organizations that will be present include the Adams
County Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH), Central Pennsylvania Ladies AOH,
Irish Cultural Society and the Notre Dame Club of Gettysburg.� The Potomac Valley Irish Wolfhound Club will
also be on hand along with some of their four-legged friends.�����
����������� For more information, visit the
festival�s website at www.adamscountyirishfestival.com
.� The Adams County Irish Festival is
produced and presented by the Irish Heritage Foundation of Gettysburg, an
all-volunteer 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
Weekend Entertainment Schedule
Inaugural Adams County Irish Festival
Kick-Off Concert (Friday July 20, 2007 at the Wyndham Gettysburg Ballroom):
7:30pm����������� Rossnareen
Adams County Irish Festival Main Stage
(Saturday July 21, 2007 at Gettysburg Moose Park):
10:30-11:00am� �Celtic-American Odyssey� Children�s Show by
Ray Owen
11:00-12:00pm� Maidens IV
12:00-12:30pm� Opening Ceremony � Bagpiper Rodney Owens, 69th
New York State�
������������������������������� Volunteers,
West Cork Flying Column, Lochiel Emerald Society
�������������������������������� Pipes and
Drums
12:30-1:30pm����������� Cormorant�s Fancy
2:00-3:00pm����������� Irishtown Road
3:30-4:30pm����������� John Whelan
5:00-6:00pm����������� Barleyjuice
6:30-7:30pm��� The Spalpeens�
MEDIA COVERAGE INVITED!
NOTE:� Photos of artists and previous festivals are
available upon request.
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