When musician John Hannagan '28 accepted Holy Cross' offer of the Brooks Scholarship, a four-year, full-tuition award, the College faced a unique challenge: Find a button accordion teacher for him.
Hannagan, who hails from Pearl River, New York, is a multi-instrumentalist raised on Irish music. He plays the button accordion, the fiddle and the concertina, and is double majoring in music and neuroscience.
Holy Cross, though, does not have a traditional Irish music program. So, after Hannagan accepted the scholarship, the College needed to find a button accordion artist with extensive knowledge of Irish folk music, which maybe doesn't rise to the level of a needle in a haystack but certainly isn't an easy task.
But for Brooks scholars, it's just what's done, said Daniel J. DiCenso '98, associate professor and chair of the music department.
"When we bring a Brooks scholar or an organ scholar to campus, we go to the mat for them. Our violin players can play chamber music or with the orchestra; our singers can sing in the choir or in the musical," DiCenso said. "We couldn't just have John play accordion in the corner. We had to offer him a community."
The music department's job advertisement, assisted by word of mouth and online Irish button accordion groups, made its way across the Atlantic to award-winning musician and teacher Diarmuid Ó Meachair. Ireland's 2022 Young Musician of the Year, Ó Meachair hails from Cúil Aodha, County Cork, a Gaeltacht area in mid-west Cork. As Irish luck would have it, Ó Meachair had recently applied for and received an artist visa, making it possible for him to pursue his interest in the Irish American music scene in Boston while teaching Hannagan in Worcester. Ó Meachair also runs an occasional Irish pennywhistle class and Irish language coffee hours for the College, both new endeavors that are free and open to all members of the Holy Cross community.
Hannagan and Ó Meachair hit it off immediately. One of Ó Meachair's first assignments for Hannagan was to listen to a playlist of 1,000 Irish songs. "I'm trying to show him the process of finding his own style, his own license," Ó Meachair said. "We've been talking about what he hears in the recordings because he hears different things.
"I've studied all these different Irish musicians and it's helped me find my own voice on the accordion," Ó Meachair continued. "Channeling the great musicians of the past and making your own of it in a way that's respectful to the culture is the goal because everybody has their own voice in Irish music."
As for Hannagan, he seems happy with the arrangement and the curriculum. He's also an enthusiastic member of the (unofficial) Holy Cross Gaelic Football Club.
"Holy Cross has all the stuff that is important to me," Hannagan said. "Coming here is the best choice I've ever made."
Ó Meachair is also enjoying his time on The Hill. He's applied for an extension of his visa.
"I'm delighted I can share some of my knowledge with John — even though I'm only 27," Ó Meachair said. "But I've learned a few things, you know. And John's picking it up very quickly."
Ó Meachair grins.
"When we're playing together, it's always great fun because John's a great player," Ó Meachair said. "That's what Irish music is all about: having fun and enjoying it. You know?"
We do.
Named for the Rev. John E. Brooks, the College's 29th president, the Brooks Scholarship is a four-year, full-tuition scholarship given to a high school senior who will major in music or double major in music and another discipline. Recipients are chosen for their outstanding accomplishments in either instrumental/vocal performance or composition in addition to their overall academic achievement.
