Irish Innovation

Groundbreaking fiddle player Eileen Ivers visits WAC

Eileen Ivers, an Irish fiddle player, is known for her work in “Riverdance” and also the group Cherish the Ladies. Ivers and her band, Immigrant Soul, perform Thursday at the Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville.

Eileen Ivers, an Irish fiddle player, is known for her work in “Riverdance” and also the group Cherish the Ladies. Ivers and her band, Immigrant Soul, perform Thursday at the Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville.

Friday, November 9, 2012

Eileen Ivers’ uncle told her a story recently. He remembers her being about 4 years old, taking a spoon and moving it across the strings of a plastic toy guitar. She was playing air violin.

Ivers’ mother encouraged her to take up the arts. Naturally, Ivers gravitated to violin, a choice that would prove wise.

In the decades that have passed, Ivers has been recognized as the queen of Irish fiddle, performing with the original cast of “Riverdance,” with the Irish music supergroup Cherish the Ladies and as a performer who has been featured on more than 80 different recordings.

She shuns the labels she’s received from the media over the years, such as being called “the Jimi Hendrix of violin” by The New York Times.

“I feel like I’m a pretty simple person,” she says from her home in New York. “Performing is just such as passion for me.”

It’s one that continues to capture her attention, and in addition to upcoming gigs on both coasts, Ivers and her backing band, Immigrant Soul, will visit the Walton Arts Center for a show on Thursday.

She’s upgraded her toy violin.

Ivers now plays a custom-made Zeta electric fiddle. It has pickups for each string and is run through some effects pedals - that may be where the Hendrix comparisons come from - but it resembles the traditional instrument.

“It really sounds very acoustic,” she says.

The daughter of Irish immigrants, Ivers fell for the music she heard at home and also in her surrounding Bronx neighborhood, which was similarly filled with Irish culture.

Studying under Martin Mulvihill, an Irish-born traditional musician, Ivers grew into one of the most recognized Irish fiddle players in the world, winning nine All-Ireland fiddle championships.

But it was the production“Riverdance” that introduced her to wider audiences. She toured with the original production for aboutthree years.

“It was a great experience. There were some really wonderfully creative ideas at the start,” she says.

After leaving that group, Ivers was featured in the Irish music supergroup Cherish the Ladies, which features an all-female cast of musicians.

In 1999, the fiddler player launched her own project which would eventually become Eileen Ivers and Immigrant Soul. It’s that group that comes to Fayetteville on Thursday.

“We all love performing … The arrangements are very tight, but we have a lot of freedom onstage,” she says.

Fans and critics alike often note theband’s enthusiasm for the material, something Ivers says she shares, too.

“You just can’t fake or phone that in. We’re focused on creating a unique concert each evening,” she says.

The band spends the evening playing a combination of Irish jigs and reels and traditional music of America. In addition to loving Irish music, Ivers says her father also introduced her to bluegrass. Her current recording process follows that path. Called “Beyond the Bog Road,” the album is more of an American roots music collection than many of her previous efforts.

Joining the band on Thursday night will be the Fayetteville-based McCafferty School of Irish Dance.

Whats Up, Pages 14 on 11/09/2012