Kevin Burke is an Irish

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

 fiddle

Fiddle

The term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...

r considered one of the top living Irish fiddlers. Born in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 to parents from County Sligo in 1950, Burke took up the fiddle at the age of eight, eventually acquiring a virtuosic technique in the Sligo

Sligo

Sligo is the county town of County Sligo in Ireland. The town is a borough and has a charter and a town mayor. It is sometimes referred to as a city, and sometimes as a town, and is the second largest urban area in Connacht...

 fiddling style. In 1974, he moved to Ireland, where he formed a duo with singer-songwriter Christy Moore, a former member of the Irish band Planxty

Planxty

Planxty is an Irish folk music band formed in the 1970s, consisting initially of Christy Moore , Dónal Lunny , Andy Irvine , and Liam O'Flynn...

. In 1976, he became a member of the influential Irish traditional music group The Bothy Band

The Bothy Band

The Bothy Band was an Irish traditional band active during the late 1970s. It quickly gained a reputation as one of the most influential bands playing Irish traditional music...

. In 1979, Burke moved to the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 and settled in Portland, Oregon

Portland, Oregon

Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...

. He formed a duo with guitarist and former Bothy Band member Mícheál Ó Domhnaill

Mícheál Ó Domhnaill

Mícheál Ó Domhnaill was an Irish singer, guitarist, and composer, who was a major influence on Irish traditional music in the second half of the twentieth century...

. Together, they toured throughout the United States and Europe, and recorded two acclaimed albums, Promenade (1979) and Portland (1982).

In the early 1980s, Burke joined the Legends of Irish Music tour, where he played with influential Irish musicians Andy Irvine (vocals, bouzouki, mandolin and harmonica) and Jackie Daly (accordion). Together they formed the group Patrick Street. In 1992, Burke recorded a solo album with Mark Graham (harmonica, clarinet, vocals), Paul Kotopish (guitar, mandolin, cittern, bass), and Sandy Silva (percussion). These three comprise the core of his current band. Throughout the 1990s, Burke toured and recorded with Scottish fiddler Johnny Cunningham

Johnny Cunningham

Johnny Cunningham was a Scottish folk musician. He was a founding member of Silly Wizard, as well as a member of Relativity, The Raindogs, and Nightnoise. Throughout his career, Cunningham was also a fiddler, composer and producer. His younger brother, Phil Cunningham, is a multi-instrumentalist...

 and Breton fiddler Christian Lemaitre as the Celtic Fiddle Festival. In 2002, Burke won the National Endowment for the Arts

National Endowment for the Arts

The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created by an act of the U.S. Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. Its current...

' National Heritage Fellowship

National Heritage Fellowship

The National Heritage Fellowship is a lifetime honor presented to master folk and traditional artists by the National Endowment for the Arts. Similar to Japan's Living National Treasure award, the Fellowship is the United States' highest honor in the folk and traditional arts...

. Kevin Burke currently lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife and two children.

Discography

Solo albums

• Sweeney's Dream (1972) (rereleased in 2001 on Smithsonian Folkways
  Smithsonian Folkways
  Smithsonian Folkways is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution. It is a part of the Smithsonian's Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, located at Capital Gallery in downtown Washington, D.C. The label was founded in 1987 after the family of Moses Asch, founder of Folkways...
  
  )
• If the Cap Fits (1978)
• Eavesdropper (1981) (with Jackie Daly
  Jackie Daly
  Jackie Daly is an Irish button accordion and concertina player. He has been a member of a number of prominent Irish traditional-music bands, including De Dannan, Patrick Street, Arcady, and Buttons & Bows.-Biography:...
  
  )
• Up Close (1984)
• In Concert (1999)

With Celtic Fiddle Festival

• Celtic Fiddle Festival (1993)
• Celtic Fiddle Festival: Encore (1998)
• Rendezvous (2001)
• Play On (2005)
• Equinoxe (2008)

With Mícheál Ó Domhnaill

• Promenade (1979)
• Portland (1982)

With Open House

• Open House (1992)
• Second Story (1994)
• Hoof and Mouth (1997)

With Ged Foley

• In Tandem (2006)

With Cal Scott

• Across The Black River (2007)
• Suite (2010)

External links

• Kevin Burke official site
• Burke at Smithsonian Folkways
• Kevin Burke page from Green Linnet site
• Kevin Burke page from National Endowment for the Arts site
• "Promanade" by Kevin Burke and Micheál Ó Domhnaill (1978)
• "Glen of Aherlow" by Kevin Burke and Micheál Ó Domhnaill (1980)
• "The Daisy Field"/"The Abbey Reel" by Kevin Burke and Micheál Ó Domhnaill (1980)