Classes & Ensembles, Adult

*In-Person Class*

Open Sky Ensemble celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2022! We have a great variety of instruments right now but are always happy to add more. If you know many tunes and have a fair amount of CIM instruction under your belt, come join this fun Monday evening adult ensemble!

New and interested students, please contact Brian Miller at dadgadguy@gmail.com before enrolling.

Reminder: All ensemble students need to take regular private lessons from a CIM instructor to be in a CIM ensemble.

Are you interested in playing with others in an informal setting, also known as a session, but aren't sure where to start? You are not alone! This class is a great, safe way to experience a weekly session and build your confidence around showing up to other sessions in the future. We will build on your existing repertoire of tunes by learning from each other, while also working on some Twin Cities session classics you can bring to any session around town!

This class will focus on melody players, but accompanists are welcome as well!

*In-Person Class*

An Luan has been together for many years, and is always on the lookout for new members - especially melody players on fiddle, concertina or accordion! This experienced group of musicians has a history of performing regularly around the Twin Cities with a large repertoire of session tunes and not-so-well-known tunes since 2010. They strive to play great music together and have fun while they are at it.

New and interested students, please contact Brian Miller at dadgadguy@gmail.com before enrolling.

Reminder: All ensemble students need to take regular private lessons from a CIM instructor to be in a CIM ensemble.

*In-Person Class*

Kate will teach a lovely new whistle tune each week and introduce basic (optional) ornaments such as cuts and rolls. At the end of this course, you'll know a tune from every rhythm family! Each class will include some review of previously-learned tunes, so you will see your repertoire build each week.

All budding whistle players who know at least 3 tunes are welcome to join Kate!

*Online Class*

We are lucky enough to have an abundance of old stories preserved in manuscripts dealing with Otherworld creatures and legendary kings, queens and heroes. In this class Dáithí and students will be reading translations of the old myths and legends — these always give rise to fascinating and entertaining conversations, often with lessons for the present. This class will be dealing with stories not covered in previous sessions.

*In-Person Class*

Join fiddler Danny Diamond for a new adult ensemble at CIM, open to students who have not been in an adult ensemble before. This new group will learn tunes from Danny, building up a common repertoire that they enjoy playing together in a mixed group of instruments.

This ensemble is open to melody players (fiddle, flute, accordion, concertina, whistle, uilleann pipes, banjo, mandolin for example) who can play at least 10-15 tunes by ear at a reasonable speed. Accompanists (guitar, bouzouki, bodhrán etc) should have experience accompanying Irish tunes and be able to choose chords if needed. There is room for one or two accompanists in this group (guitar, bouzouki, bodhrán etc), so please contact Lily at lgaetgaeow@centerforirishmusic.org before registering.

Over time, the group may work on developing arrangements, songs, or wherever Danny decides to lead you! Regular private lessons on your principal ensemble instrument are required to be in a CIM ensemble, and generally ensembles run year-round, especially Fall and Spring (summer class depends on student & instructor availability). The first 60 minutes of class time is with the instructor, and the last 30 minutes, the group is self-led.

Reminder: All ensemble students need to take regular private lessons from a CIM instructor to be in a CIM ensemble.

*Hybrid Class*

This Fall, we will offer two sections of this class so students can participate remotely and in person at CIM. Please check the location ("Online" or "MULT" for in person) before registering.

Pub songs are raucous, tuneful, and above all, fun! But like the most intricate reel, you need skill and a concentrated approach to play and sing them well. Todd will teach the vocal techniques and rhythmic strategies needed to help you stand and deliver these wonderful ballads and drinking songs. All instruments encouraged.

The 60s were an amazing era for growth in Irish music, with the development of new ways of presenting and arranging the music and the incredible popularity of folk and traditional music among the general public — everybody knew and sang the songs. Dáithí is looking forward to walking down memory lane and playing and teaching some of the music from the time and telling the story of the folk clubs and folk and traditional acts of the era (some now little known or forgotten in America), an era that laid the foundations for everything that has come since.