Saturday, October 14th  8:00 PM JAMES KEANE Irish Button Accordion Virtuoso James will also deliver an informal chat on the history of the music and his experiences growing up in Ireland and learning from the masters from 4:00 to 6:00 PM. Admission: concert $15 / informal lecture $10 / both events $20. For more information or reservations (recommended): (610) 925-6235 [days] / (610) 486-2220 [evenings].

Born in Drimnagh, Dublin in 1948, James Keane took up the button accordion at the age of six, drawing his primary musical inspiration from his mother, father and uncles and the rich cultural legacy of their home counties of Longford and Clare. By the age of ten, James had become a fixture on the late 1950's Dublin traditional scene where he literally walked among the giants of the music - Seamus Ennis, Leo Rowsome, Sonny Brogan, Tommy Reck - and honed his skills under their guidance and artistry.  While still in his early teens, he co-founded what would become, in a few short years, one of Ireland's most heralded music ensembles, the Castle Ceili Band.

Along with his brother, fiddler Seán Keane and flute player                     Photo: R. L. Geyez/Aesthetic Endeavours Mick O'Connor, he managed to assemble a roster of musicians that bridged three generations and whose names, today, seem to have been plucked directly from the annals of Irish music history: Joe Ryan, John Dwyer, Liam Rowsome, Michael Tubridy, Bridie Lafferty and West Clare fiddler John Kelly, whose parallel commitment to both the Castle Ceili Band and Sean O Riada's Ceoltoiri Cualann (later to include Michael Tubridy and Seán Keane) created as noted writer and musician Fintan Vallely has termed it, "The melting pot from which the Chieftains would emerge." In 1965, at the height of their popularity (when an appearance by the Castle guaranteed a sold out dance hall anywhere in the country) they won the All-Ireland Ceili Band Championship at the Fleadh Cheoil Na hEireann in Thurles, County Tipperary … an event still spoken of in traditional circles, in fond and fabled remembrances. At a time when winning an All-Ireland title meant going head-to-head with other future legends of the music, he emerged victorious as a soloist on four occasions - three of which were consecutive wins in the senior accordion division - an achievement that has yet to be equaled.

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