Childsplay is back, and rarin’ to go; Karan Casey joins up as lead vocalist

By Sean Smith
November 3, 2016
Sean Smith

Some of the faces may change for Childsplay (shown here in 2012), including new singer Karan Casey but artistic director and namesake Bob Childs sees a lot of continuity in the group -- especially its core sound.Some of the faces may change for Childsplay (shown here in 2012), including new singer Karan Casey but artistic director and namesake Bob Childs sees a lot of continuity in the group -- especially its core sound.

After a hiatus in 2015, the Boston-based all-star fiddle ensemble Childsplay is back with a new lead vocalist, Irish singer Karan Casey, and later this month will head out on a four-city tour that winds up with two shows at Somerville Theater in Davis Square on Nov. 20. The group also will play at Harwich Center in Cape Cod, New York City ,and Portland, Maine.

Childsplay comprises two dozen or so musicians – many from Boston or elsewhere in New England – performing fiddle music mainly from Irish, Scottish, Cape Breton, Scandinavian, French Canadian, and American folk traditions. All the fiddlers use violins created by Cambridge resident Bob Childs, who also plays in the ensemble and serves as artistic director as well as its namesake. Although most of Childsplay’s participants have active, full-time musical careers, they gather almost every fall for a few weeks to rehearse and present concerts in the Northeast.

Stopping by the shops will give you a taste of the Irish experience

By BostonIrish.com... (not verified)
November 3, 2016

By Judy Enright
Special to the BIR

Patricia Daly handpaints decorative items at Celtic Weave China in Cloghore, Ballyshannon, Co. Donegal.Patricia Daly handpaints decorative items at Celtic Weave China in Cloghore, Ballyshannon, Co. Donegal.
How does a traveler to Ireland take the pulse of this foreign land? Some visitors like to get the scoop from residents, read the country’s newspapers, or watch TV news. I like to go shopping – in craft shops, department and grocery stores – not necessarily to buy something but because I think you can learn a lot about a place by seeing what products are offered and how the offerings change from year to year.

CHANGING FOCUS
There was a day when tourist shops offered leprechauns, shamrocks, and other such traditional Ireland-themed gifts. But many of those same shops today sell original paintings, prints, hand-crafted silver jewelry, leather goods, hand-painted silk, pottery, woolens, and other craft items. There is still an errant leprechaun or two lurking about but generally the better stores focus on products created by Ireland’s many gifted craftsmen.

November's Here and There

By Bill O’Donnell
November 3, 2016
Bill O’Donnell


 A Happy Reunion for a Derry Man In Worcester – He was eleven years old when he came to Worcester in January of 1973, having been blinded by a British soldier’s rubber bullet in May of the previous year. Since those days when Richard Moore was welcomed by the city’s supportive Irish American community and spent a week with Dan and Joan Herlihy, he has founded an internationally respected youth charity, “Children in the Crossfire.”  Although permanently blind, he has made his life a testament to unselfish advocacy for children in need around the globe.

Beware the flawed, blustering horseman

By BostonIrish.com... (not verified)
November 3, 2016

By James W. Dolan
Special to the Reporter

The Trump phenomenon shows just how unexceptional we are. We, too, can be beguiled by a demagogue who channels the anger and resentment of many into a movement devoid of substance. Using lies, deceit, scapegoating, and conspiracy theories, an accomplished con man has convinced a vocal minority to place him at the threshold of immense power and influence.

‘Inner City’ Blues

By Bill Forry, BIR Editor
November 3, 2016
Bill Forry, BIR Editor

The Republican nominee for president –whose name shall not be written in this space for reasons of good taste – has succeeded mightily in lathering a once-Grand Old Party with all manner of slime and shame over the last year and a half. The Republican brand may never fully recover from the complicity and slavish behavior of its party members that were essential to its unlikely takeover by a sociopathic confidence man, even if he is eventually rejected by its own ranks.

The Irish and and our election: They’re interested, and worried

By Joe Leary
November 3, 2016
Joe Leary

The rest of the world has always paid attention to our presidential elections, but foreign newspapers and foreign leaders have generally been circumspect and very careful about what they say about the campaigns.

Most countries respect the leadership of the United States in world affairs. And those countries who accept American foreign aid certainly want to continue their good relations with the big brother nation that helps them.

The Irish and and our election: They’re interested, and worried

By Joe Leary
November 3, 2016
Joe Leary

The rest of the world has always paid attention to our presidential elections, but foreign newspapers and foreign leaders have generally been circumspect and very careful about what they say about the campaigns.

Most countries respect the leadership of the United States in world affairs. And those countries who accept American foreign aid certainly want to continue their good relations with the big brother nation that helps them.

This time around, we’re with her

Ed Forry
By Ed Forry
November 3, 2016

In 2008, the Boston Irish Reporter chose Barack Obama over Hillary Clinton as our preferred nominee for president. We wrote: “In a contest that increasingly seems likely to feature proven cross-over candidate John McCain on the Republican ticket, team Clinton seems likely to be a losing proposition for those of us focused on the ultimate goal of reclaiming Pennsylvania Avenue.”

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