Month: February 2009

The Wisdom of Hands

Alma Boghosian, who turned 100 this past July, continues to make lace collars, doilies, and handkerchiefs without the use of patterns.

Qianshen Bai practices the ancient art of Chinese calligraphy. “The art really demands someone in a very peaceful state of mind. Second, you try to reach a state in which your mind and your hand are in a very harmonious relationship.”

Retired fisherman Marco Randazzo discovered that his facility in tying nautical knots lent itself to making sculptural objects out of rope.

The Irish “button box” in the hands of Joe Derrane is a powerful thing. Considered one of the best Irish accordion players on either side of the Atlantic, Derrane’s playing packs a punch.

“Gaelic Roots” lives on in concert series

It has been six years since the wonderful “Gaelic Roots” was last held at Boston College. Seamus Connolly put his heart and soul into gathering some of the most talented Irish and Scottish musicians, singers, and dancers for a week of performances, lessons, late night sessions, and an all round great time. Though “Gaelic Roots” week no longer takes place, a top-knotch concert series throughout the year does — and it is free to the public. Concerts take place in the historic Connolly House in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. An intimate space which basically feels like a house concert.

Tomorrow evening, February 10, the Center for Irish Programs presents Donna Hébert — Traditional Franco-American, Northern, and Contradance Fiddle Music.” A third-generation Franco-American, Donna Hébert co-founded two music groups, Chanterelle and The Beaudoin Legacy. A versatile performer, teacher, and author, Donna Hébert received a 2008 Massachusetts Artists’ Fellowship in the Folk Arts from the Massachusetts Cultural Council. Performing on fiddle and vocals, Donna Hébert will be joined by Max Cohen (guitar and vocals) and Jeremiah McLane (accordion and keyboard). For more information about the series this spring, go to the Gaelic Roots website.

Ready for some color in your life?

Or at least in your eggs? Carol Kostecki will demonstrate the wax-resist process of decorating Easter eggs known as pysanki on Saturday, February 7th, from 1:00-3:00 p.m. at the National Heritage Museum in Lexington, Massachusetts. This tradition, associated with Ukrainian church communities, came to Kostecki by way of marriage despite her own French-Canadian, German, and Abenaki descent. She is featured in the exhibition, Keepers of Tradition. Free admission. Snow date: Sunday, February 8.

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