In collaboration with the Feis App
“What story do you want to tell in your music?” It was a question that caught me a little off guard. As a trained Western classical pianist, I had never thought about this in terms of Irish music.
The question came from feis musician Sean O’Brien, who has been a teacher and mentor to me for several years in my exploration of Irish music — particularly feis music — and dance. It was something he asked me at my very first lesson learning piano accompaniment for feis music, but one that popped up again and again as I tinkered with learning the accordion and music production as well: “What is the story?”
So, what is it that makes good feis music? Technical skill on your instrument, certainly. Staying on time with your metronome or drum machine, of course. But what truly makes a feis musician stand out is their ability to take the listener on a journey through the music. Just as truly outstanding Irish dancers understand their steps down to the minutiae — the details of every jump, every weight-shift — these musicians are likewise making choices in how they execute ornaments and chord changes to bring the story of their music to life.
We as dancers are fortunate to have so many dedicated feis musicians in the scene at the moment, and wandering from ballroom to ballroom to listen to the music is honestly one of my favourite parts of attending majors. And the good news is, there are many rising stars for us to look forward to. We hear from some of Irish dancing’s brightest up-and-comers in the music scene about their musical journeys so far.
1. Eric Crone
Age: 20
From: Tucson, Arizona, USA
Plays: Button Accordion
Favourite tune: ‘The Wedding Reel’
Eric was first exposed to feis music through — where else — his Irish dance classes. Although he began dancing at five-years-old, it wasn’t until his early teenage years that he began keying in on the music. Eric had a musical background as a violinist, but after being inspired by the albums of Anton and Sully and Sean O’Brien, he found himself researching what accordion he wanted to play.
At the CLRG All Ireland Championships in 2016, Eric’s dance teacher, Christopher McGrory, helped him purchase his first accordion. He credits McGrory, whose feis albums are well known, with getting him started on the feis scene. Eric was additionally able to take lessons with Liam (Sully) O’Sullivan, which he says was a great help and significantly contributed to his playing. Eric played his first feis in 2019. “I am currently lined up to play two United States Oireachtas with my partner, Sean Warren, which is not only unbelievable, but a huge honor,” he says.
For Eric, one of the biggest challenges on feis day is starting and ending a competition on a strong note. “The first moments of playing will determine a lot about how the day will go,” he explains.
Find Eric on Instagram @crone_eric_music.
2. Jack Meimaris
Age: 21
From: Brisbane, Australia
Plays: Piano accordion, piano, banjo
Favourite tune: ‘A Slip Of A Thing’ by Jim Murray
Jack has a diverse musical background — training in classical piano until he was 16 — as well as training as an Irish dancer through his late teens. Outside of classes, Jack was first introduced to traditional Irish music at the age of 11 at his school’s Irish ensemble where he learned mandolin and tin whistle, before moving on to playing piano for the ensemble. After passing his final classical piano exam, he wanted to expand his musical repertoire and began studying piano accordion with Nerida Famer. “Despite her classical/jazz background, she had a profound influence on my playing style, making it well-rounded and versatile. I occasionally receive lessons from Sean O’Brien as well, a past student of Nerida’s,” he says.
“I decided to start playing for feiseanna largely because I yearned for a change from playing chords on the piano in the school Irish ensemble. I was also inspired by my experiences performing with the amazing local Irish band, Sásta, which strengthened my desire to learn the accordion,” Jack explains. “My goal was clear: I wanted to play traditional Irish music, which as a dancer, naturally led to learning feis music.”
He adds that one of the greatest challenges in performing feis music is fatigue. “The physical exertion of playing for eight hours straight can lead to soreness in my back, shoulders, and wrists. Additionally, maintaining focus and ensuring I remember to play the set dance at the correct time can be quite challenging.”
Find Jack on Instagram @planxtyjack.
3. Beth Nist
Age: 17
From: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Plays: Fiddle
Favourite tune: ‘Chicago Reel’
Beth, an Open Championship dancer with the Burke School in Ohio, was first exposed to Irish music at the Pittsburgh Irish Festival when she was just three-years-old. “Then, I saw Máiréad Nesbitt with the Celtic Women when I was five and decided that’s what I wanted to be,” she recalls. Beth started studying Suzuki violin (a music method that focuses on learning music by ear) shortly after seeing this performance, turning to fiddle techniques when she was nine.
After winning the u12 Fiddle Slow Airs competition at the Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann Mid-Atlantic Regional Fleadh, she started studying with Irish fiddle player and feis musician Katie Grennan. Learning and playing the tunes Beth and her friends danced to in class was something she particularly enjoyed. “My second music competition was at the Cleveland Feis and that is what really set me on my path as a feis musician. Helen Gannon was the judge and insisted that I go to the Regional Fleadh,” she says. Beth won the NAFC U15 Edward Callaghan Music Scholarship competitions in 2018 and 2020, and began playing professionally when she was 15-years-old.
Find Beth on Instagram @beth.nist.
4. Luke Sooy
Age: 15
From: New Jersey, USA
Plays: Piano Accordion
Favourite tune: ‘Mayor Harrison’s Fedora’
Luke, who also comes from a competitive Irish dancing background, received his first accordion in 2019. His mom had purchased it for $50 at an estate sale, and this gave Luke his first chance to play around with it and try to teach himself some tunes. “Ever since I started dancing, I loved every part of it, especially the music,” he says. “I admired the intricacy of every single tune, the stamina that’s required to play for eight hours, and the hard work that goes into the art of feis music. I always dreamed of being able to provide quality music for dancers like myself.”
That summer, he had the chance to play ‘Vanishing Lake’ with Anton, Sully, and Sean O’Brien. Needless to say, he was hooked and began taking lessons with O’Brien in 2020. “I told him my first lesson that I wanted to play a feis, and he helped me every step of the way to achieve that goal. I am so grateful to have him as my mentor, and I look up to him as both a musician and person.”
Although he notes that some of the challenges that come with playing as a feis musician includes fatigue, he has thrown himself into the feis music scene with gusto, playing his first feis in early 2023, and quickly booking several more shortly after. Having watched him play his first feis, like everyone else present, we were impressed by both his incredible musicality and high degree of professionalism. To go from learning an instrument to playing professionally on the feis scene in just three years is an impressive accomplishment.
Find Luke on Instagram @vanishingluke.
5) Ryan Ward
Age: 22
From: New Jersey, US
Plays: Piano and Piano Accordion
Favourite tune: ‘Happy Days’ (slip jig by Annmarie Acosta) and ‘Dave Collins’ (jig)
Ryan began playing Irish music when he was eight-years-old. “I had no idea what Irish music was at the time; I just wanted to play piano,” he recalls. Fortunately, his parents found Annmarie Acosta, a talented Irish musician who is a regular on the feis circuit, and he has studied with her ever since. He has played Irish piano and piano accordion for about fifteen years now, regularly competing at the Fleadh Cheoil in both the US and Ireland, participating in everything from solos to ceili bands. He is currently in university for music education and plays professionally with his group, The Consequences.
When Ryan was 16, Annmarie suggested he begin playing for feiseanna, and this was his first introduction to the competitive Irish dance scene. He shares: “I started playing with Annmarie and other established feis musicians and worked my way up to playing solo. I’ve quite enjoyed growing as a feis musician over these past years, and challenging myself to play in public for eight hours at a time has pushed me to improve my musicianship in a huge way.”
“The biggest challenge for me when performing feis music is most certainly the length of the day. Eight hours — sometimes more— is a long time to be playing music!” he says. “I have to focus on being efficient and smart with my playing so that I can make it through the whole day. It also requires significant mental focus on a number of factors: making sure that the dancers and judges are ready to start, keeping track of what tune type I need to play, different speeds, set dance lists, tune intros, sound equipment issues and volume levels.”
Find Ryan on Facebook and check out @theconsequencesband on Instagram.
Do you want to be next?
The music we hear in our studios and feiseanna day-in and day-out is critical to our success as dancers. Becoming a feis musician is so much more than understanding a reel is played at 113 BPM on a metronome. It’s a challenge, but one that can be greatly rewarding for those who wholeheartedly pursue it.
Are you interested in learning Irish or feis music? We asked two of the best feis musicians on the scene — Stephen Carolan and Sean O’Brien — for their top tips for budding musicians.
“Play as many feiseanna as you can in as many organizations as you can,” shares Stephen Carolan. “Even the smallest feiseanna count as experience and the more of that you clock up, the easier the job becomes.
“In addition to that, the more times people see your name on syllabi, it helps you to become well known and results in getting asked for bigger comps worldwide,” he adds. “Finally, practice as often as you can and never stop learning. Practice old tunes particularly when you learn new ones and build on your repertoire. This will enhance your compatibility with multiple musicians”.
“Establish a clear goal,” shares Sean O’Brien. “Is it to play live at an event, or are you just interested in learning more about the genre? That will help orient next steps.” He adds that budding musicians should seek out a mentor in the space. “A lot of feis musicians are happy to share the knowledge they’ve accrued, whether formally or informally,” he shares. “Lastly, get technically proficient on your instrument. Playing at feiseanna can be mentally and physically taxing — good technique will enable you to maintain high quality output whilst managing the mental and physical aches and pains that can and will arise.”
