Eileen Ivers (born July 13, 1965) is an American fiddler.
Ivers was born in New York City of Irish-born parents, grew up in the Bronx and attended St. Barnabas High School.[1] She spent summers in Ireland and took up the fiddle at the age of nine. Her teacher was the Irish fiddler Martin Mulvihill.[2] She toured with Mick Moloney's band The Green Fields of America, founded in 1977. She graduated magna cum laude from Iona College in New York and has done post-graduate work in mathematics.
History
Ivers was a founding member of Cherish the Ladies. She recorded and toured with them for several years.[3]
In 1995, she replaced the original fiddler in the Riverdance Irish dance troupe and toured with them.[4]
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 exactly like hers).[citation needed]
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).[citation needed]
She also recorded a traditional air for the soundtrack to the film Gangs of New York, entitled "Lament for Stalker Wallace". She appears on the soundtrack for the film Some Mother's Son.[5]
Ivers was also an inaugural member of the Independent Music Awards' judging panel to support independent artists.[6]
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions |
|---|---|---|
| AUS [7] | ||
| Fresh Takes (featuring with John Whelan) |
| — |
| Traditional Irish Music |
| — |
| Wild Blue |
| — |
| Crossing the Bridge |
| 96 |
| Eileen Ivers and Immigrant Soul (with Immigrant Soul) |
| — |
| An Nollaig – An Irish Christmas |
| — |
| Beyond the Bog Road |
| — |
| Scatter the Light |
| — |
Compilation albums
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| So Far: The Eileen Ivers Collection 1979–1995 |
|
| The Best of 1979-1996 |
|
Cherish the Ladies
As a session or guest musician
- Riverdance: Music from the Show (1995)
- Song of the Irish Whistle by Joanie Madden (1996)[8]
- "The Celtic Album" by The Boston Pops Orchestra (1998)
- "The Fiddling Ladies" by The Chieftains on the album Tears of Stone (1999)
- "Becoming" by Micheál Ó Súilleabháin (1998)
- Celtic Solstice by Paul Winter (1999)
- Seed (2003) by Afro Celt Sound System
- "New York Town" by Black 47 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 (2010)[9]
- An Irish Christmas by Keith and Kristyn Getty (2011)
- Copper: Original Soundtrack by Brian Keane (2013)[10]