The Gothard Sisters

The Gothard Sisters are three American sisters from Edmonds, Washington,[3] who perform Celtic music and choreographed accompanying Irish dance.[4] They play nationwide at county and state fairs, as well as festivals, and at other venues.[5] Greta, Willow, and Solana Gothard, are violinists, singers, and championship dancers,[6] having added guitar, bodhrán, mandolin, and the pennywhistle to their repertoire.[6][7] The trio has released several albums.[7]

The Gothard Sisters
Background information
OriginEdmonds, Washington, United States
Genres
Years active2006 (2006)–present
Websitewww.gothardsisters.com
MembersGreta Gothard (aged 31)[1][2]
Willow Gothard (aged 29)[1][2]
Solana Gothard (aged 23)[1][2]

Background

The Gothard sisters were raised in Edmonds, Washington. Greta began to take classical violin lessons when she was five years old, followed by Willow and then by Solana, when they reached the same age.[5] One day their mother brought home a video of the theatrical show Riverdance, which inspired the girls to enroll in Irish dance classes, and they also became fond of Celtic music.[8][4] All three became accomplished Irish dancers, and they began to perform classical music and Irish dance at farmers markets, wedding ceremonies, and festivals, to raise funds for travelling to regional and world championships of Irish dance, known as Oireachtas, where they have won awards.[5][9][4] The sisters qualified for the World Championships three years in a row.[10]

Career
The Gothard Sisters performing during a concert in 2018

While performing in their home town, the ensemble was discovered by a talent scout from Nashville in 2007, who became their agent.[4][3] As the sisters continued to compete in Irish dance championships,[11] they began to travel throughout the United States to many fairs and Celtic festivals,[4][12] and they polished their performances by gradually learning to play various other instruments, such as the guitar, electric guitar, bodhrán, mandolin, cajón and the pennywhistle, while also showing their dancing skills onstage. Additionally, they all became singers, with Solana performing as the lead vocalist.[12][4] The Gothard Sisters were named the Best New Irish Artists of 2013 by the Irish Music Awards.[13][9]

The group has released several albums of Celtic music, including new arrangements of traditional songs as well as original compositions.[12] The track "Little Drummer Girl" from their Christmas album (2010) was chosen for the Putumayo World Music 2014 Celtic Christmas compilation;[14][15] the song was also featured on BBC Radio Scotland's Travelling Folk show in December 2012,[16] as well as on the national public service broadcaster of Ireland, Raidió Teilifís Éireann, in December 2014.[17] Their album Story Girl (2011) was awarded Album of the Year by Celtic Radio.[18][7] The music videos that the trio upload to YouTube are filmed and edited by Greta, whereas Willow is in charge of sewing the costumes they use for performances.[12]

Discography
Title Release Year Media format
Christmas Violins 2006 CD
...and to All a Good Night 2007 CD
Now is the Hour 2008 CD
Daughters of Erin 2008 CD
Celtic Rainbow 2009 CD
Christmas 2010 CD
Story Girl 2011 CD
"Fairy Dance Jig" 2012 Single
Christmas Live in Seattle 2012 2012 CD
Compass 2013 CD
Christmas Violins 2014 CD[19]
Mountain Rose 2015 CD[20]
"Hummingbird" 2016 Single
Falling Snow 2016 CD
Midnight Sun 2018 CD
Celtic Christmas LIVE 2018 EP
It's the Little Things 2019 CD
"Chasing the Sun" 2020 Single

References
  1. "The Gothard Sisters". Redding, California: Shasta Community Concert Association. March 17, 2014. The sisters are described as 25, 23, and 17 years old in March of 2014. Their exact dates of birth are unknown and should remain that way per Wikipedia:DOB.
  2. Paulu, Tom. "In tune: Violin prodigy Aaron Meyer bows out for a while, finds new inspiration". The Daily News. Longview, Washington. The sisters are described as 20, 18, and 12 years old in November of 2007. Their exact dates of birth are unknown and should remain that way per Wikipedia:DOB
  3. Urbani de la Paz, Diane (December 14, 2012). "Geoffrey Castle's 'Celtic Christmas' show in Port Angeles on Sunday". Peninsula Daily News. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  4. Gallaher, Rachel (December 12, 2011). "Family Matters: Edmonds' Gothard Sisters Draw Inspiration From Irish Music". Patch Media. Retrieved March 22, 2015.
  5. O'Neal, Dori (December 23, 2011). "The Gothard Sisters to perform a Celtic blend of sounds". Tri-City Herald. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  6. Fiege, Gale (July 31, 2014). "Strong music lineup headlines this year's 'Best Lil Fair in the West'". The Herald. Retrieved March 22, 2015.
  7. Fleck, Deborah (April 16, 2014). "Gothard Sisters to perform April 24 at Irving Arts Center". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved March 22, 2015.
  8. Cornejo, Christina (April 10, 2014). "Gothard Sisters entertain Lodi elementary students with Celtic music, dance". Lodi News-Sentinel. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  9. Hart, Coreen (March 14, 2014). "Gothard Sisters Bring a Bit of Irish to Burley". Times-News. Retrieved March 22, 2015.
  10. Devlin, Vince (November 7, 2011). "Fiddling siblings: Gothard Sisters bring Celtic performance to Ronan". Missoulian. Retrieved April 28, 2015.
  11. "Results". Tony Comerford School of Irish Dance. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  12. Allmand, Chloe (December 4, 2014). "CWU welcomes back the Gothard Sisters". Daily Record. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  13. "Irish Music Award Recipients for 2013". Irish Music Association. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  14. "Celtic Christmas (12/15/14 – 12/21/14)". Putumayo World Music. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  15. Beresford, Susie (November 28, 2011). "Edmonds own Gothard Sisters on KOMO TV". KOMO-TV. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  16. "20/12/2012 Music Played". Travelling Folk. BBC Radio Scotland. December 20, 2012. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  17. "Nead na Fuiseoige Dé Céadaoin 17 Nollaig 2014". RTÉ.ie (in Irish). Raidió Teilifís Éireann. December 17, 2014. Retrieved April 27, 2015.
  18. "2011 Music Awards". Celtic Radio. April 3, 2012. Retrieved April 28, 2015.
  19. New Day NW Producers, KING 5 (December 2, 2014). "New album "Christmas Violins," comes out today". KING-TV. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
  20. "The Gothard Sisters, Local Ladies of the Dance". KING-TV. June 27, 2015. Retrieved May 9, 2016.
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