EOH presents Beolach in Norwich

NORWICH – The Earlville Opera House presents the Cape Breton band, Beolach, who will arrive at the Martin Kappel Theater in Norwich on March 16th for an 8 p.m. performance. Formed at the Celtic Colours International in 1998, Beolach has since performed a mix of Cape Breton, Scottish, and Irish pieces. 

The band, Mairi Rankin (fiddle, step-dance), Andrea Beaton (fiddle, piano, step-dance), Patrick Gillis (guitar), and Ryan MacNeil (pipes, whistles) have thrilled audiences with energetic performances, witty presentation, and their versatility as step-dancers.  All four members of Beolach are seasoned performers and collectively, in addition to playing countless performances, have five solo albums among them and numerous guest appearances. Beolach has recorded two albums, Beolach (2001) and Variations (2004), both of which were nominated for East Coast Music Awards.  In 2005, the band was nominated for the Canadian Folk Music Award for Best Instrumental Artist.

Mairi Rankin (fiddle, vocal, step-dance) has performed all over Canada, the United States, Denmark and the United Kingdom. In 2002, she was nominated for an East Coast Music Award for Instrumental Artist of the Year. Andrea Beaton (fiddle, piano, step-dance) grew up on Cape Breton and became a popular fiddle player for dances, following her parents’ (Kinnon and Betty Lou) reputation. She recently released her third album, The Tap Session (2006), following her previous two albums, which were nominated for East Coast Music Awards. Ryan MacNeil (pipes, whistles) has earned a reputation as a talented composer and performer with his electrifying upbeat playing, strongly rooted in Cape Breton’s danced oriented tradition. He has since started manufacturing his own line of whistles, one of which, the MacNeil Whistle, is quickly becoming the choice of players worldwide. Patrick Gillis (guitar), also from Cape Breton, has toured the United States with Cuillin and has performed with fiddlers, Ashley MacIssac, Natalie MacMaster, and Glenn Graham. Growing up, he only had access to right-handed guitars, despite being left-handed, and learned to play upside-down and backwards because “no one ever told me the difference.”