Grammy-Winning Fiddler Eileen Ivers On How the Positive Energy of Music Brings People Closer Together

Ivers has been a guest artist with prominent orchestras such as the London Symphony Orchestra and the Boston Pops Orchestra. Courtesy of Eileen Ivers

Eileen Ivers uses her violin “Bluey” to help people overcome hardships through music, and to teach them to look for the positive and live life with gratitude.

Ivers—Grammy-winning violinist, composer, producer, educator, author of new children’s book “Will Someone Play Bluey?” and nine-time All-Ireland Fiddle Champion—has loved playing music since she was a child. But the fear of public speaking, of going outside her comfort zone, was a serious roadblock that she had to overcome. Her personal epiphany came when she realized that by speaking to an audience from the heart, as if chatting with a few close friends, she could make a huge and important connection with the story and theme of the music being performed, no matter how large the audience. Still, she had not yet dreamed of playing music as a career.

An Immigrant Tradition, Reimagined

“I am the daughter of Irish immigrants; both my parents hail from County Mayo, in the west of Ireland,” she said. “Like so many in their generation, my parents had to leave Ireland to find work to help support their parents and siblings. They chose to come to New York. My sister Maureen and I grew up hearing recordings of Irish music in the house, as well as many stories of life in Ireland.”