Episode 52: Ken Fleming (Banjo, accordion, guitar and singing)

Accordion tunes in the 90 degree heat. On the '80s Cowboys and Irish music in Dallas, Texas. On De Danaan kicking up a dust storm; the Charlie Piggott route to falling in love with the banjo and struggles in learning to play. The O'Flaherty Irish Music Retreat and the sweetness of playing music with your kids. 

Ken Fleming's such an easy going guy, but when you hear his story you'll realize he's driven. I mean, you can't get an Irish music festival up and running in Texas without some amazing combination of vision, commitment and a willingness to take a punt. It's probably not an exaggeration to say that without Ken's work over the past forty years, the Irish music scene there would be a shadow of what it's now become (thriving).

So - here's The North Texas Irish Festival, of which Ken was a key founder:
https://ntif.org/

And you can find The O'Flaherty Irish Music retreat here:
https://oflahertyretreat.org/

Check out their list of past guest musicians and you'll get an idea of the calibre of the weekend: 
https://oflahertyretreat.org/instructor_role/core-classes/

Thank you, Ken, for hacking through the long distance digital thickets with us to get this episode up and out. And thanks for your tunes and your chat.

As always the episode is free to stream or download from all the usual spots:
Our Website: https://blarneypilgrims.fireside.fm/52
iTunes: https://apple.co/2XsbLo0
Google Podcast: http://bit.ly/3cPTkis
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3aFuOPa

So - this is our 52nd episode. We launched last year at the National Celtic Festival and it was awesome. Thanks to Una McAlinden for that amazing kick start to the project. We got to hang out with...

Mary MacNamara and Eileen O'Brien
https://blarneypilgrims.fireside.fm/4
Maggie Carty
https://blarneypilgrims.fireside.fm/5
Beth McCracken
https://blarneypilgrims.fireside.fm/8
Austral
https://blarneypilgrims.fireside.fm/7
and
Bush Gothic
https://blarneypilgrims.fireside.fm/10

Not bad for a first weekend...

Now, Covid-19 notwithstanding, The Celtic Festival will be hosting a series of events online this year to mark the moment and take a breath before we start the journey towards next year's festival. Look for them here:

https://www.facebook.com/nationalcelticfestival

And finally, thanks to you all for supporting us to get this far. Keep it up and hopefully we'll have another year's worth of great chat and tunes by this time next year.

Love,

Darren and Dom

--

We know it's a tough time so we hope you can hang in there with us. If you liked this episode and think you got some worth from it, then please pledge at any level over at www.patreon.com/blarneypilgrims.

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Om Podcasten

The Blarney Pilgrims Podcast is a weekly journey to the heart of Irish music. We interview players of Irish music about how they first came to the music and the place it occupies in their lives now. We use the word ‘heart’ intentionally, because heart is what this music, and the people who play it, are all about. It’s a funny, warm and often unexpected journey – and the tunes are crackin' too. NOTE: Hey there - it's Darren and Dom here. So...we want to let you know that last week was the last episode (Ep 94) of the Blarney Pilgrims Podcast for now. We've come to a point where we've both decided to take a long pause and focus on a few other things. Knowing how much the podcast means to you all, it's a decision we've been really reluctant to take. What we DO know is how massively grateful we are for every text, every thumbs up, every raised eyebrow of support we've had over the past two years. You are all legends, and we're forever in your debt. Thanks especially to everyone who's become a Patron Saint and supported us through the toughest of economic times, and thanks most especially to the musicians. To those who have been so generous to share their tunes and stories with us, and to those who've welcomed us into pub sessions and festival gatherings and house sessions and campsite sessions. Wherever in the world we've chatted with players of the music, we've been made to feel like lifelong pals. It's a testament to the open heartedness of the communities who keep the music going wherever they are, and we can't thank you all enough. We hope this archive will remain of use to people even as we're taking a pause. So - please do stay in touch, don't be a stranger, and if you see us out and about, do say hello. And we'll see you when we see you. Dom and Darren.