Irish band Comas to play

REGION -- New England Celtic Arts will present Comas at the 50th Annual Windjammer Days in Boothbay Harbor on Tuesday at 11 a.m.; at The Phillips Area Community Hall on Tuesday at 7 p.m.; at Skye Theatre Performing Arts Center in South Carthage on Wednesday, June 27 at 7 p.m.: and at Unity College Centre for the Performing Arts in Unity on Thursday, June 28 at 7:30 p.m.

There is a pre-show jam session one hour prior to curtain at Skye and Unity. Audience members are encouraged to bring their instruments and jam with the artists for a few minutes before the show.

Since March 2003 Comas have been together as a band, before that, they toured individually in top acts such as The Drovers; Orion; Eileen Ivers; Urbantrad; Denez Prigent; and the internationally acclaimed Liz Carroll, to name just a few. Although coming from diverse musical backgrounds, and residing in different parts of the globe, they found each other in their similar approach to music, bringing together their many cultural influences to forge a unique blend of Traditional Irish music that literally had them, within months of coming together, playing on Major Festivals in Ireland; Belgium; France; England; Denmark; and Holland. This achievement alone is worthy of note, and is further testimony to their deep rooted talents. Comas is consistently asked back to every Festival they play at, "Before we even had time to put our instruments away" as Philip Masure aptly put it.

When you hear Comas you'll know their choice of name was no mere coincidence. Translated from Irish Gaelic as power, and power is exactly what this band is about. Depicting their own driving power coupled with a fine sensitivity for the inner strands of magic that is inherent in Irish music. Here, their Fiddle player, Aidan Burke comes into his own, delving deep into his Irish roots to pluck out a pure sound that transcends time and place. Guaranteed to touch any lover of Celtic music, Aidan's dexterity is evenly matched by the awesome talents of Isaac Alderson (flutes, pipes), Philip Masure (Guitar), and Jackie Moran (percussion). Comas plays enormously fast but with lots of feeling. Comas is a band firmly rooted in Irish music, but with enough space to allow original compositions. Open to new influences, but with a respectful eye on the past, brings Comas to the fore-front of what traditional music is all about today.

The Phillips Community Center is located on Depot Street in Phillips. Skye Theater is located three miles west of East Dixfield village at 2 Highland Dr. off Winter Hill Road and Rt. 2 in South Carthage. UCCPA is at 42 Depot St. in Unity. Ticket price is $15 at the door. For reservations call Skye Theatre at 562-4445 or UCCPA at 948-7469, and in Phillips at 639-3717. Reservations are strongly suggested at all venues.