Eileen Ivers (born July 13, 1965) is an American fiddler. Ivers was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

of Irish-born parents, grew up in

the Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

and attended St. Barnabas High School. She spent summers in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

and took up the

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, th ...

at the age of nine. Her teacher was the Irish fiddler Martin Mulvihill. She toured with

Mick Moloney Michael Moloney (15 November 1944 – 27 July 2022) was an Irish-born American musician and scholar. He was the artistic director of several major arts tours and co-founded Green Fields of America. Early life Moloney was born in Limerick, Ire ...

's band The

Green Fields of America The Green Fields of America is an ensemble that performs and promotes Irish traditional music in the United States. It was formed in 1977 in Philadelphia, led by musician and folklorist Mick Moloney. They perform Irish and Irish-American culture ...

, founded in 1977. She graduated ''

magna cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some So ...

'' from

Iona College Iona University is a private Roman Catholic university with a main campus in New Rochelle, New York. It was founded in 1940 by the Congregation of Christian Brothers and occupies a campus of in New Rochelle and a campus of in Bronxville, ...

in New York and has done post-graduate work in mathematics.

History

Ivers was a founding member of

Cherish the Ladies Cherish the Ladies is an American female supergroup (music), super group that plays Celtic music. The band began as a concert series in New York in January 1985. It was the brainchild of Mick Moloney who wanted to showcase the brightest female ...

. She recorded and toured with them for several years. In 1995, she replaced the original fiddler in the ''

Riverdance ''Riverdance'' is a theatrical show that consists mainly of traditional Irish music and dance. With a score composed by Bill Whelan, it originated as an interval act during the Eurovision Song Contest 1994, featuring Irish dancing champions Jean ...

'' Irish dance troupe and toured with them. Her original blue Barcus-Berry electric fiddle was eye-catching and inspired the name of her album ''Wild Blue''. She later replaced it with a blue ZETA Strados acoustic-electric fiddle, which is a one-of-a-kind instrument with unique sound and ambience. It was custom-made for her by ZETA Music Systems (who will be producing an "Eileen Ivers Signature Series" Blue

electric violin An electric violin is a violin equipped with an electronic output of its sound. The term most properly refers to an instrument intentionally made to be electrified with built-in pickups, usually with a solid body. It can also refer to a violin fi ...

exactly like hers). Ivers has recorded with Micheál Ó Súilleabháin, an Irish composer who uses folk, classical and jazz influences, on the television series ''River of Sound'' and on his album ''Becoming'' (1998). She also recorded a traditional air for the soundtrack to the film ''

Gangs of New York ''Gangs of New York'' is a 2002 American epic historical drama film directed by Martin Scorsese and written by Jay Cocks, Steven Zaillian and Kenneth Lonergan, based on Herbert Asbury's 1927 book ''The Gangs of New York''. The film stars Le ...

'', entitled "Lament for Stalker Wallace". She appears on the soundtrack for the film ''

Some Mother's Son ''Some Mother's Son'' is a 1996 film written and directed by Irish filmmaker Terry George, co-written by Jim Sheridan, and based on the true story of the 1981 hunger strike in the Maze Prison, in Northern Ireland. Provisional Irish Republican A ...

''. Ivers was also an inaugural member of the Independent Music Awards' judging panel to support independent artists.

Discography

Studio albums

Compilation albums

Cherish the Ladies

As a session or guest musician

* '' Riverdance: Music from the Show'' (1995) * ''Song of the Irish Whistle'' by

Joanie Madden Joanie Madden is an Irish-American flute and whistle player of Irish traditional music. She is best known as leader of the all-female group Cherish the Ladies, but has also recorded and performed with numerous other musicians, and as a solo art ...

(1996) * "The Celtic Album" by The Boston Pops Orchestra (1998) * "The Fiddling Ladies" by

The Chieftains The Chieftains are a traditional Irish folk band formed in Dublin in 1962, by Paddy Moloney, Seán Potts and Michael Tubridy. Their sound, which is almost entirely instrumental and largely built around uilleann pipes, has become synonymous wi ...

on the album '' Tears of Stone'' (1999) * "Becoming" by Micheál Ó Súilleabháin (1998) * ''Celtic Solstice'' by Paul Winter (1999) * ''

Seed A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering, along with a food reserve. The formation of the seed is a part of the process of reproduction in seed plants, the spermatophytes, including the gymnosperm and angiospe ...

'' (2003) by

Afro Celt Sound System Afro Celt Sound System is a British musical group who fuse electronic music with traditional Gaelic and West African music. Afro Celt Sound System was formed in 1995 by producer-guitarist Simon Emmerson, and feature a wide range of guest artists. ...

* "New York Town" by

Black 47 Black 47 was an American Celtic rock band from New York City, formed in 1989 by Larry Kirwan and Chris Byrne, and derives its name from a traditional term for the summer of 1847, the worst year of the Great Famine in Ireland. History Beginn ...

on the album ''New York Town'' (2004) * ''Voice of Hope'' by Tommy Fleming * ''Absolutely Irish'', a multi-artist session recording (2008) * ''Into the Deep: America, Whaling & The World'' by

Brian Keane Brian Keane (born January 18, 1953) is a multi Emmy and Grammy award-winning American composer, music producer, and guitarist. Keane has been described as "a musician's musician, a composer's composer, and one of the most talented producers of a ...

(2010) * ''An Irish Christmas'' by

Keith and Kristyn Getty Keith & Kristyn Getty are a Northern Irish Christian duo, best known for writing many popular modern hymns with veteran English songwriter and worship leader Stuart Townend. Due to the success of "In Christ Alone", the duo has spearheaded the m ...

(2011) * '' Copper: Original Soundtrack'' by

(2013)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ivers, Eileenl 1965 births American people of Irish descent Iona College (New York) alumni Irish fiddlers Living people People from the Bronx 21st-century American violinists 21st-century American women musicians Green Linnet Records artists