Johnny B. Connolly (Portland) is an internationally recognized master of the Irish button box accordion. Connolly hails from Dublin, but now lives in Portland, where he often plays in pubs with other local Irish musicians.
Bio
Johnny B. Connolly is an internationally recognized master of the Irish button box accordion. A native of Dublin, Ireland, Connolly first came to Portland in 1997 while on an Irish music tour of the U.S. Portland’s vibrant music scene, which included the world famous Irish fiddler Kevin Burke and a strong community of traditional Irish music aficionados, led to Connolly’s decision to make Oregon his home. As a boy, Connolly first played the pennywhistle; he became interested in the button box accordion when his father gave him one for his 12th birthday. Connolly took weekly lessons from local musician Paddy McNevin; McNevin taught Connolly to play by ear, requiring him to repeat a sequence of notes in a tune. By the following week, Connolly had to play the previous lesson’s music perfectly before McNevin would teach him the next section. Keen to learn as much and as fast as he could, Connolly practiced diligently to “earn” another lesson. At 15 he played his first gig; by the next year, Connolly was taking lessons from renowned accordionist and traditional Irish dance teacher Christopher McGrory. Over the years, Connolly has played with Anam, an eclectic, multi-national Celtic folk band. In 2001, he recorded his first solo album, Bridgetown, and garnered positive critical attention. Connolly performs both nationally and internationally. When home, Connolly can be found soulfully playing accordion at one of Portland’s many Irish pubs.
