THE GOTHARD SISTERS

Sunday afternoon was the first concert for this season of our local Community Concert Association.

Leading the musical entertainment series were The Gothard Sisters from Seattle, Washington. They are a dynamic Irish music and dance trio performing a lot of Celtic tunes and write their own compositions.

They perform Irish step dancing and have competed overseas at the World Championships.

The eldest, Greta 26, began training as a classical violinist when she was 5 years old. She plays guitar, cajon (plus several other instruments) and sings backup with her two sisters.

Willow is 23 and also learned to play the violin at a very early age. Like her older sister, she also competed in Irish dance competitions due to the family influence of Irish and Celtic music. In addition to the violin, she plays a bodhran, a mandolin, and sings backup for her younger sister.

Solana is just 18 but is the lead singer for the trio, also trained as a classical violinist starting at the age of 3. She also plays bodhran, pennywhistle, cajon, and various percussion instruments. She is also an accomplished Irish dancer and was the youngest to qualify for the World Championships at the regionals in 2006.

Their program included songs and music titles such as: Danny Boy, Scarborough Fair, Dueling Bodhrans, The Call and the Answer, Orange Blossom Special, and their special violin version of Charlie Daniels' The Devil Went Down To Georgia.

They were a crowd pleasing talent and have seven music albums and one video on iTunes and other outlets.

Note: a bodhran is a handheld, shallow Irish drum with a single goatskin head, played with a stick.