Séamus Connolly
IRISH TRAVEL & CULTURE GUIDE
SUMMER 2013
June 2013
SÉAMUS CONNOLLY
Ellis Island Medal of Honor
One Irish fiddle master Séamus Connolly has had a busy spring. On May 11 he was awarded the Ellis Island Medal of Honor for his distinguished contributions to the United States. Séamus was joined by 90 others, which included scientists, athletes, public officials and scholars, on a ceremony that took place in New York’s harbor.
Connolly also learned he is a recipient of the prestigious National Heritage Fellowship awarded by the National Endowment of the Arts. The national award is given each year to artists who have made contributions to the excellence, vitality and public appreciation of the folk and traditional arts.
Connolly, who is the Sullivan Artist in Residence at Boston College, is a ten-time All Ireland fiddle champion from County Clare. He has lived in New England since 1976, and founded the Gaelic Roots Irish Music, Song and Dance Workshops and concert series, which brings to Boston some of the world’s best traditional musicians.
Connolly is also a prolific researcher, composer and performer. Boston College recently had an exhibit entitled The Musical Roots of Séamus
Connolly.
bc.edu/centers/irish/gaelicroots