Katie McMahon

Classically trained as a harpist and singer, McMahon is preparing to release St. Patrick's Day, a new album of traditional and contemporary Irish music that features local musicians Zack Kline (fiddle & octave fiddle), Karen Mueller (guitar & autoharp), Marc Anderson (percussion), and Jenny Russ. Prior to her CD release show this Saturday, McMahon agreed to answer a few questions about her heritage, her experience with Riverdance, and what St. Patrick's Day means to her (hint: her answer doesn't involve green-tinted pints of cheap beer).

Reveille: Where does your story begin?

Katie McMahon: I'm from Dublin, Ireland. Born and raised there until I was about 25, when I got into the Riverdance show.

Reveille: How did that happen?

McMahon: I knew the composer. I didn't have to audition or anything, he just asked me to do the solo... We did it in Ireland a couple of times, and nobody knew it was going to take off. We went to England for a couple of months, and then people from the US came over and starting being involved. We started touring the US and Australia in '96.

Reveille: And it was a phenomenon.

McMahon: Yes, it was. They had three shows running at the same time. Two in Europe and one in America. It was crazy!

Reveille: What was it like coming to America, and what was it about the show that made it so popular?

McMahon: It tapped into something—the Chieftains had a good success here, and they are one of the few that made it really big with traditional music—and Riverdance put a gloss on it. It was the same kind of music, and they put a lot money into it and made it into a show. They basically served it up in a very sexy way. It started off that it was Irish-Americans that were really into it, and then it was everybody. Within two weeks of it being on PBS, I was buying underwear at Bloomingdales and having people say “Oh, she's the singer in that Irish show!” I knew I'd arrived. People have been lovely in America; America was the best audience that we played to. English people are very reserved, but Americans went nuts.

Reveille: How would you compare the way Americans view Irish culture with how it actually is growing up in Ireland?

McMahon: In some ways, it's more similar than I would have thought. When we were touring with the show and the show split, we needed more dancers, and a huge amount of the new dance troupe came from America—I think more people were almost into Irish dancing here than they were in Ireland. In some aspects, [Americans] keep traditions more alive than we would have in Ireland. But then in another way, they are keeping traditions alive that are 200 years old, sort of stuck in a time capsule, whereas in Ireland everything has moved along. What surprised me the most was how conservative America was, under everything. Our picture of America was the movies, glamorous people doing exciting things, but there is this deep conservative vein.

Reveille: Tell me about your show on Saturday.

McMahon: It's a CD release show,for the CD I just did, which I really enjoyed making. Made it here in town. We're having a big concert, and we're also going to have a free Guinness reception from 7 to 8 p.m. Drinks on me! [laughs]

Reveille: How would you describe the songs on your new CD?

McMahon: The music is based on music we had been performing for St. Patrick's Day shows—we always get a lot of bookings that time of year, as you can imagine. I wanted to have some songs that are actually about St. Patrick, and there's one song that's written to those who died hearing St. Patrick's prayer. And then the other songs are a mix of my favorite traditional songs and some completely modern renditions of contemporary Irish music. There's even a bit of Cajun on there.

Reveille: In America, much of the meaning of St. Patrick's day is overshadowed by the way we celebrate; the holiday has turned into more of a drinking frenzy than a recognition of anything traditional. What does St. Patrick's Day mean to you?

McMahon: I don't even know why that day in particular was picked. Was it the day he died? I really don't know. I do know he brought Christianity to Ireland and banished the druids—he banished Paganism, and he was like a rock star in his time. Now it's become a big multi-cultural festival in Ireland. There's a big parade, and every country has a float. It's become a day where people celebrate being Irish, sometimes in really bizarre ways. [laughs] That's what it means to me.

Reveille: If someone wanted to learn more about traditional Irish music being made locally, where should they begin?

McMahon: A lot of the people in my band are in a group called Piper's Crow. I think they got the best acoustic group in City Pages. They're Irish and Scottish; they're really good. What's fun is there's also these Irish music sessions in bars, where there will be like 15 different people playing—Kieren's has those on Wednesdays. Also, there is the Irish Music and Dance Association, IMDA—they have links to all of the different groups on their website.

UP NEXT: Katie McMahon celebrates the release of St. Patrick's Day this Saturday, April 12 at the Cedar Cultural Center. 7 p.m. Guinness reception, 8 p.m. music. $24. All Ages.