Garry’s earliest recollection of live music was hearing his Granddad and uncle singing and playing in the front room of his grandfather’s house in West Virginia.  Not only was he hearing the likes of harmonica, guitar, and jaw harp, but he listened to his Granddad’s collection of records with artists like The Weavers, Jimmie Driftwood and Odetta.  His mother’s family, all educators with a love of reading and history, had its share of storytellers, as well. They always performed with the mantra of not letting the facts get in the way of a good story.

 

Garry spent his youth listening to popular folk artists of the day who specialized in close harmonies. While he expressed his creativity mostly through artwork and drawing, during college, he learned to sing 3-part harmony.

 

In the early 80s he joined the 42nd Highlanders; a Revolutionary War reenactment group. It was around those campfires that he first learned Scottish and Irish traditional songs and developed a love for sea shantys.

 

In 1989, Garry joined Terry Bellner’s band, Hogeye Navvy and spent the next 25+ years with the band.  When Terry moved to Massachusetts to be near his grandchildren, Garry (with the help of local musicians and Hogeye Navvy alumni) formed the band, Laughing Jack.

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Liz grew up in St Louis in a very happy healthy folk music community and was exposed to many types of ethnic music and festivals from a young age. As a teen, she started playing hammered dulcimer and spent every summer preforming at Fox Hollow Folk Festival in Petersburg, New York and many venues in the St. Louis, Missouri area.

 

In the 80’s she moved to Columbus, Indiana and continued to perform, give workshops and teach; expanding her teaching to include guitar, mandolin and piano.

 

Liz has competed in and won many fiddle contests in Indiana and Kentucky and has recorded with artists like Tim Grimm and West Coast songwriters Tom Hunter and Bob Reid.  Her wide-reaching repertoire includes music from the British Isles, Old Time, Bluegrass, Country and ‘60’s – ‘70’s genre. She plays in a number of bands including Hogeye Navvy, Laughing Jack, The Fifetones, The Old Reliables and Cotton Patch.

Raised in the wilds of Green County Indiana, Dmitri studied classical trumpet, but took up the highland bagpipes in his early 20’s.  He is probably best known for his 10 year-long stint as multi-instrumentalist with the renowned shanty band, Hogeye Navvy.  He holds a bachelor of Music Education from Butler University and has taught high school bands for nearly two decades.

 

He is the director of the Irish Arts Academy of Indianapolis, which teaches traditional Irish music and language and is also the director of the Indianapolis Ceili Band. The band is the Senior Ceili Band Champions 2015, Midwest Fleadh Cheoil and competed in Fleadh Cheoil na hÉrieann in Ennis, Ireland in 2016. He’s also the founding member of the Irish band, Ennis Clare.

 

He’s a multi-instrumentalist playing Irish flute, whistles, highland bagpipes, piano and button accordion and has been spotted playing the trumpet and highland pipes, simultaneously…

After failing at piano lessons as a kid, Mario picked up guitar for the typical reasons.  He learned a few rock and blues licks but gravitated toward jazz and classical guitar.  The music of Steve Goodman led him to investigate American folk music.  From there, it was a short journey to the music of Ireland. 

 

Mario plays a number of different instruments including guitar, mandolin, tenor banjo, and bass guitar. He currently plays in several bands including Ennis Clare, The Indianapolis Ceili Band, Laughing Jack, The Dukes of Django, and a myriad of others.  He can often be found at Farmer's Markets with a variety of accessories.

 

His repertoire is expansive, covering a multitude of genres, including; Gypsy Jazz, Mainstream Jazz, Classical Guitar, Traditional Irish, Bluegrass, and Old Time. He’s also known to frequent Open-Mic-Nights or Late-Night-Clubs where he hammers out contemporary folk and pop covers.