about áthas
áthas (irish for joy and gladness) is a traditional irish band based in milwaukee, wi. the instrumental trio features the talents of heather lewin-tiarks, amy richter and jeff ksiazek. playing mostly dance tunes, both original and traditional on fiddle, guitar and bodhrán (as well as viola, flute, whistles, concertina, djembe, and spoons), áthas strives to keep the tradition alive. to help spread the joy through their music, they often welcome guest artists to play, sing or dance along.
áthas has played at Irish venues such as lacrosse irish fest, milwaukee irish fest, and the irish cultural & heritage center, as well as frequently playing for set, ceili, and feis dancers all around the midwest. the members of áthas are avid session players and currently run some of the milwaukee area sessions. heather and amy were the 2006 midwest fleadh champions on viola and bodhrán, and also competed in the 2006 fleadh cheoil na heireann in letterkenny, co. donegal, ireland last fall. heather was the recent recipient of the 2007 ed ward music scholarship through milwaukee irish fest. in march 2007 áthas was featured in mke. they also landed radio spots on both lake effect and uwm today on wuwm radio. they just released their debut album, athas, in august of 2007.
More information can be found at:
www.athasmusic.com
www.myspace.com/athas
www.cdbaby.com/cd/athas
