A touch of Ireland in the Flathead Valley

Tra le Gael has long been favorite of local Celtic music fans

If you ask a fan of Celtic music in the Flathead Valley if they've heard of local group Tra le Gael, it is likely that they'll answer in the affirmative.

Whether they know how to spell the group's name is a different matter.

Tra le Gael, taken from the name of a song (its meaning has something to do with an Irish strand of beach), is often turned into Tra "La" Gael, or two of the syllables are thrown together, or it's just twisted into any number of non-Gaelic permutations.

"We liked the tune and we liked the sound of it," Gary Morris, one of the original members of the group, said of why the sometimes-confusing name originally was chosen.

The group formed approximately nine years ago - none of the members is exactly sure what year - out of a Celtic music class that Morris was teaching through North Valley Music School. They've been a busy group ever since, participating in folk and Irish music festivals, playing private parties and weddings and giving local shows at more intimate venues, such as last week's Belton Chalet performance and their upcoming St. Patrick's Day weekend concert on Saturday at the Cottage Inn in Kila.

"We like being where we can connect with the audience," said Barbara Calm, the newest member of the group. "It's an important part of the experience for us."

Original member Karin Hilding said she believes the group, which has at times consisted of six musicians but is now a quartet, has thrived partly because of the timeless appeal of the Celtic sound.

"Different generations can relate to it and enjoy it," she said. "It's got a lot of great variety, with really beautiful melodies and then a lot of fun energetic jigs and reels. And it's a lot of fun to play."

Morris, a longtime music instructor in the valley, also believes the quality of the Tra le Gael musicians makes them stand out.

"We're not as commercially accessible to a lot of people, but I'm really proud of what we do," he said.

Band members pull together a number of instruments to make the Celtic genre their own. Morris, 56, plays guitar, mandolin, banjo, penny whistle and occasionally the concertina. Hilding, 48, makes up the wind instrument section with penny whistle, flute and recorder.

Katy Myers, also an original member, plays the 34-string Celtic harp and Calm is on hammered dulcimer, a percussion instrument with 72 strings.

They all sing and share lead vocal duties.

"We harmonize so well," Morris said.

Most of the song lyrics are in English, Morris said, with the occasional Gaelic words thrown in. To learn full songs in the difficult Gaelic language would be a bit too much to tackle, Morris said.

Calm, 49, said the first tunes she ever learned on the dulcimer were played by Tra le Gael. She joined Tra le Gael about five years ago as a substitute for another band member when the group was booked to play the Northwest Folklife Festival in Seattle.

"Musically, I'm really proud of this group, we listen to each other really well and we create together really well," she said. "We're willing to try just about anything."

They play traditional and contemporary Irish tunes, as well as some original music written by Morris. He has given himself his own education in the Celtic musical style, as has the rest of the group. Only Myers has been to Ireland.

Hilding, though, is traveling to Ireland for the first time this spring, taking her 11-year-old daughter to a wedding there. They plan to take in "lots of music" during their stay, she said.

Hilding said that the band has found plenty of Irish influences in the states, especially at events such as last summer's Irish Festival in Butte.

"There were a lot of musicians there who came over from Ireland, and it was pretty inspiring to be around these musicians that traveled all the way from Ireland to Butte," she said. "One even made a comment that she thought Butte was more Irish than Ireland."

And Myers, 60, says that her grandmother's maiden name, Kelly, must have put some Irish sensibility in her blood.

"I just like the emotions of Celtic music," she said. "The happiness of the lively jigs and reels, and the pathos of the laments. It just speaks to me."

Tra le Gael plays Saturday at the Cottage Inn in Kila from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. and March 20 at the Symes Hotel in Hot Springs at 8 p.m. For more information about the group, call Hilding at 862-7610.

Reporter Heidi Gaiser may be reached at 758-4431 or by e-mail at hgaiser@dailyinterlake.com