Traditional Irish Song and Dance with Fódhla

Fódhla brings both high energy and stellar artistry to the traditional music stage. The trio’s sound is firmly rooted in the traditional Irish melodies and ornamentation that fiddler Ellery Klein and flute player Nicole Rabata honed during years spent abroad in Ireland’s cities Cork, Limerick, and Ennis. Fiddle and flute tunes are superbly supported by guitarist Bethany Waickman, whose inventive, tasteful chords unfold with driving rhythm perfected from years of playing in the New England contradance scene. 

Cognizant of their North American roots, Fódhla appeals to a broad audience by bringing variety, inventive harmonies and unique arrangements to traditional music. A typical concert starts off with high-energy traditional sets of Irish reels and jigs. Fiddle and flute then trade melody and harmonies on a Québécois waltz paired with an elegant French bourrée. A joyful and toe-tapping pair of barndances soar out on a high note. Finally, the soft notes of guitar bring in a melancholy, exquisite slow air – music that brings out audible sighs from a rapt audience. 

“Fódhla just played to a packed house in my concert series. They sent a hall full of people home with big smiles on their faces.” – Paul Wells, producer, Concerts in West K.

Fódhla can be heard at festivals, concert series, folk clubs and house concerts throughout the northeast and beyond. Recent appearances include the iconic Celtic music series at Portland’s Blue, Fiddle Hell, One Longfellow Square, Bangor Celtic Crossroads, Meetinghouse Arts and The Backroom at the Burren in Somerville, MA.  The trio has been well received at festivals such as Portland, Maine’s Saltwater Celtic Festival, the Maine Celtic Celebration, KVMR Celtic Fest in Grass Valley, CA, and Boston Celtic Music Festival.

Featuring Special Guest Irish dancer Kieran Jordan.

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Fiddler Ellery Klein toured nationally with the Billboard-charting Irish music group Gaelic Storm from 2003-2007 and was a founding member of the all-female ensemble Long Time Courting. In 2015 she was invited to be a featured soloist with Duluth, MN’s Lake Superior Chamber Orchestra, performing Nickitas Demos’ Double Concert for Celtic and Bluegrass Fiddle. She earned an MA in Traditional Irish Music from the University of Limerick. Ellery teaches private fiddle and violin lessons at her home studio and Powers Music School, as well as early childhood music at preschools in the Boston area. www.elleryklein.net

Irish flutist Nicole Rabata is highly regarded in traditional Irish, classical, and Brazilian choro music circles. She has toured America and Europe. In 2014 she spent two months in India where she performed and taught music at the Gandhi Ashram School in the Himalayas. She spent four years in the west of Ireland where she immersed herself in the local music and was influenced by the playing of many great musicians. She is on the music faculty at Colby College and the University of Maine Augusta, and has an active private home studio in Portland. www.nicolerabata.com

Bethany Waickman is a guitarist based out of Portland, Maine. She grew up in a musical family in the Adirondack Mountains of northern New York state. After college she spent some time traveling, hiking, and playing music in Ireland. Upon returning, she moved to Boston to focus on music. She co-founded the contra dance trio, Anadama, and is the guitarist for Vermont- based fiddler and singer Lissa Schneckenburger. She’s toured across the US, Canada, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, and Germany. A resident of Maine since 2013, Bethany is a mainstay of the Portland session scene and a guitarist in demand on the New England contra dance circuit. www.bethanywaickman.com

Kieran Jordan, based in Boston, brings a lyrical and expressive style to the rhythm and percussion of traditional Irish dance. She has been dancing since she was five years old, and has performed and taught locally and internationally for more than 30 years. Regarded as “one of America’s premier dancers and instructors” (Irish Echo), she is known especially for her creative contributions in sean-nós and old-style step dancing. In Boston, she fostered a vibrant non-competitive dance community through her company, Kieran Jordan Dance, which was active in the region for more than two decades. Kieran is currently the Dance Director for the Acadia Festival of Traditional Music and Dance, held annually in Bar Harbor, Maine. She is also Board Certified in Polarity Therapy — a trauma-informed approach to energy healing. She practices Polarity Therapy in Dorchester, MA and in Kennebunk, ME.