Augusta Irish, Boxwood Lunenburg, and Joe Mooney Summer School are all next week!

I’m feeling a little bittersweet this week, because the Augusta Heritage Irish/Celtic Week is next week – July 21 to 26 - in Elkins, WV and I won't be there.  I attended last year and took part in the Irish tenor banjo class.  It was the first (and so far only) week-long music camp that I ever attended.  Here’s a video about Augusta Irish week.

I’m not sure how much I actually learned during the week at Augusta, but more than anything it motivated me to delve deeper into learning music.  I kinda wish I was going back this year, or at least could be a fly on the wall at the late night sessions in the Icehouse pub on campus.

Davis and Elkins campus - site of Augusta Irish/Celtic week

Oddly enough, at least two other Irish music themed instructional weeks are also taking place next week:  Boxwood Canada in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia and Joe Mooney Summer School in the tiny village of Drumshanbo in County Leitrim, Ireland.

Lunenburg, NS Canada

Lunenburg is already at the top of my list of places to visit, and the fact that there’s an event like Boxwood there each summer makes it even more enticing.  A cool feature of the Boxwood festival is that all similar pitch instruments are allowed in any class.  Participants are encouraged to take a variety of classes each day so that throughout the course of the week, you will have met with a variety of teachers across a multiple of disciplines.

Session in Drumshanbo Ireland

Jumping across the Atlantic, if the number of instructors listed on the website is any indication, the Joe Mooney Summer School must be huge!  I counted over 50 instructors, with all the traditional Irish instruments represented.  How awesome would it be to attend an Irish week in Ireland?!

Oh well.  At least I am going to the Appalachian String Band Festival (AKA “Clifftop”) for a few days in late July.  Clifftop is more hillbilly than blarney, but it’s still a lot of fun!  And cheap!

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