In nine days, the Pasadena Folk Music Society will present Celtic band RUNA, a quintet of very fine musicians from Ireland, the United States, and Canada. Their main singer, Shannon Lambert-Ryan, plays bodhrán and is a very engaging performer with an outstanding voice. Her husband, Fionán de Barra is an excellent guitarist from Dublin who comes from a very musical family. His brother, Cormac, performed here at Caltech with Moya Brennan a few years ago. David Curley is a talented multi-instrumentalist (guitar, banjo, mandolin, and bodhrán, among other instruments) from Galway who also sings and step dances along with Shannon! Cheryl Prashker is a versatile percussionist from Montreal who has toured the world and is fun to watch as she tastefully punctuates their music. Newest member, fiddler, Maggie Estes White, is from Kentucky, and though she was steeped in the world of bluegrass, she shows her great flexibility playing Celtic music. Hear RUNA‘s beautiful version of Gerry O’Beirne’s Holy Ground and get an idea of their many sides in two minutes. You might also try their version of Claudine Langille’s Jealousy:
Tickets for the show are $20 for adults and $5 for Caltech students and children. Order them at the Caltech Ticket Office from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday at (626) 395-4652 or in person (no service charge) at Winnett Student Center on campus. You can buy tickets online for this show, as well as upcoming shows: Bryan Bowers, great autoharp player and storyteller on Saturday, May 30 ($15/$5), and the bluegrass and mountain folk music of Susie Glaze & The Hilonesome Band on Saturday, June 13 ($15/$5) at http://purchase.tickets.com/
If you are looking for some good music this Saturday, try the South Pasadena Eclectic Music Festival and Art Walk! This free festival runs from 2-10 PM Saturday, May 2 and is easy walking distance from the South Pasadena Gold Line Station. See http://eclecticmusicfestival.
And for a concert series with real atmosphere (mountains, mules, burros, horses, and hiking), check out the schedule for the Adams’ Pack Station in Chantry Flats, above Arcadia in the San Gabriel Mountains at http://adamspackstation.com/
Finally, the 55th annual Topanga Banjo, Fiddle Contest and Folk Festival, always a real treat, is coming up on May 17. Learn more at http://www.topangabanjofiddle.