ROCK ISLAND, ILLINOIS (March 15, 2024) — Tickets are on sale now for an exclusive evening performance by traditional Irish and Quebecois music trio Grosse Isle, part of Quad City Arts’ Visiting Artist Series residency program. Patrons will experience a full-length performance, followed by an intimate conversation revealing the artist's background and creative ventures.
The group will perform as part of Quad City Arts’ new performance series, “Quad City Arts Presents” at 7PM, Saturday, March 23, at Skylark Studios, Rock Island, Illinois. Tickets are $20 for general admission, $10 for students, and are available online at or at the door.
This event highlights performing arts’ pivotal role in connecting communities through stories and songs, from the traditions of people who founded places like the Quad Cities, to the current citizens who celebrate together in song and story.
According to The Irish Music Magazine, the traditional music trio Grosse Île was born out of the “absolutely magical” collaboration between three exceptional musicians from Quebec and Ireland. Together the band shines with their rich and enveloping music, featuring Sophie Lavoie du Lac-St-Jean on fiddle, piano, and vocals, with André Marchand on guitar and vocals, and Fiachra O’Regan, Irish champion on the uilleann pipes, whistle, and banjo.
The band name refers to the story of the mass arrival of the Irish in the 19th century, on Grosse Île in the St Lawrence River, as they fled the Great Famine. It is a striking encounter between two peoples and two cultures. This special trans-generational trio takes traditional Irish and Québécois traditional music and fuses them through Lavoie’s “lithe and masterful” compositions.
During their week in residence, Grosse Île will visit eight local schools in six school districts, six area libraries, and a community organization. Students and families attending their residency activities will hear how these histories of the Irish and Quebecois people carry through the melodies of the band’s music to bring us stories and lessons from the past.
The full 2023-2024 roster of artists participating in the Visiting Artist Series includes fourteen professional performing artists providing educational activities in music, dance, theatre, and visual-arts creation. Residencies featuring artists from across the US and around the world are scheduled through May 2024 and will focus on presenting educational performing arts-based engagements in and around the Quad Cities.
Schools and community sites can schedule visits from these artists for demonstrations, workshops, informal performances, and more. Details about the series and scheduling are on quadcityarts.com/vas.
Since 1974, the Visiting Artist Series has engaged Quad City residents of all ages in quality arts experiences with professional performing artists. Artists of various disciplines present demonstrations, workshops, and master classes at pre-K sites, elementary, intermediate, and high schools as well as college campuses and community organizations.
Your ticket makes a difference! Each ticket purchased not only offers you a gateway to exceptional arts experiences but also plays a pivotal role in enriching our community's cultural landscape. Since 1974, your support has welcomed GRAMMY Award-winning artists and fueled the success of our arts programming. By choosing to be part of this legacy, you're directly contributing to the Visiting Artist Series in schools, nurturing creativity and cultural appreciation in young minds. Take pride in being a patron of the arts — your ticket is a powerful contribution to cultural enrichment and educational opportunities in the Quad Cities. Each ticket offsets the cost of a performance in a school as a part of the programming of the Visiting Artist Series.
For more information on this residency program, visit quadcityarts.com/vas.
About Quad City Arts
Quad City Arts is a non-profit arts organization committed to enriching the quality of life in the Quad Cities Region through the arts. All Quad City Arts programs are funded in part by our Quad City Arts Partners (donors like you), Festival of Trees, and operating grants from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, and the Iowa Arts Council, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Quad City Arts is a proud partner of the Quad Cities Cultural Trust.
