Brad Pouleson

mandolin, whistles, guitar,

uilleann pipes, vocals Brad Pouleson Keith Reins guitar, whistles, vocals Jose’ Manaligod button & piano accordions,

vocals Tara Dutcher   The son of a former big band saxophonist, Keith began his musical life at the age of five with piano lessons. In junior high and high school, he was a band geek, playing clarinet and saxophone in concert and jazz band. At fourteen, he started playing professionally at country clubs and dance halls with his father and older brother.

After a brief flirtation with rock n roll piano in high school, Keith started hugging guitars and quickly became obsessed with traditional music. At various times throughout the last three decades or so he has played bluegrass, old time, classic country, country blues, all manner of American folk songs and most recently, traditional Irish music.

The eclectic, improvisational nature of Irish guitar accompaniment allows Keith to synthesize all of his diverse musical influences. A fiddler from the age of 3, Tara’s unique style blends her Irish and bluegrass family roots with her classical and jazz training from The University of Iowa, where she earned a Bachelor of Music degree in 2000.

Fiddling is a family tradition for Tara. Her mother, Carmel Vrabel (nee’ McGovern), is a fiddler from Swanlinbar, County Cavan, Ireland and her paternal great-grandfather, Homer Rayburn, was a bluegrass and old time fiddler in a family band in Michigan and Indiana. Tara and her sister Amelia began their musical studies at an early age and both continue to perform actively in a variety of classical and contemporary ensembles.

In addition to performing and parenting, Tara owns and operates the Cavan Fiddle Studio out of her home in Coralville. In a remarkable coincidence, Jose’ grew up in the same town as Brad, but on the other side of the tracks. Years later, they ended up in Iowa City with sons the exact same age, which is a short explanation for how a Filipino boy ended up playing Irish music.

Jose’ is a classically trained pianist who originally took up accordion a few years ago to play French cafe music. He tried violin in junior high, but never made it past Twinkles. He now also plays Irish music on both the piano and button accordions, taking his inspiration from accordionists like Sharon Shannon and John Williams. In his spare time, he is the piano accompanist for his children, who have all managed to accomplish more on the violin than he ever did. Originally from the Chicago area, Brad began playing guitar at the age of 14. In high school he was given a mandolin and has been an incorrigible flirt when is comes to musical intruments ever since. He often says that he never met an instrument he didn’t wish he could play.

In the mid-nineties he fell under the spell of traditional Irish music and taught himself the tin whistle and low whistle. Recently he has also become a student of the uilleann pipes.

Brad has been composing music since he began playing instruments, working in many different genres, including classical, rock, jazz and of course traditional Irish. His song ‘Part of Me’, will appear on the upcoming cd by Indonesian jazz singer celeb Anissa. bodhran Joseph Dutcher fiddle, vocals As as child, Joe was encouraged by his parents to take up any instrument that his heart desired…except the drums. He heeded their wishes until 2003, when he discovered the bodhran, the Irish frame drum.

For Joe’s first foray into Irish drumming, he used a cardboard box and a stick he whittled from a fallen branch. The instrument he plays today, handmade by Albert Alfonso, is a far cry from such humble beginnings.

In addition to the bodhran, Joe is learning to play the tin whistle and the Irish flute.

link to the Cavan Fiddle Studio