Irish
Yonkers, New York
Photo: David Knight
Over their 36 years as one of America’s most heralded Irish ensembles, Cherish the Ladies have won the hearts of audiences worldwide for their rousing blend of traditional music with captivating vocal interpretations and propulsive step dancing. Now bandleader Joanie Madden has won much-deserved recognition from the National Endowment for the Arts as one of this country’s most important tradition bearers; in presenting her with a 2021 National Heritage Fellowship, the nation’s highest honor for folk and traditional artists, the NEA hailed her as: “One of the great flute and whistle players of her generation … [and] a leading presence in the advancement of traditional Irish music, from its community grassroots to its modern presentation in the international concert hall.”
Joanie Madden is a native of the Bronx, raised by parents who had emigrated from Galway and County Clare. Her father, Joe Madden, was an All-Ireland Champion accordionist, much beloved as a bandleader in New York. “A lot of us who’ve been in the band are daughters of musicians,” Joanie Madden says today, “so for us, the music is like a golden chalice passed down. Cherish the Ladies is all about being true to the tradition and legacy.” In her teens, she sought out lessons from legendary flutist Jack Coen, a beloved local teacher who himself went on to receive a 1991 National Heritage Fellowship. Madden won the All-Ireland competition in flute and tin whistle at age 18, and then the next year, 1984, she took home the coveted Senior Division All-Ireland title on the whistle. Now her innumerable credits run the gamut from performing with the Boston Pops to being featured on the soundtrack for the final Lord of the Rings movie. She is also a composer and a dedicated and inspiring teacher—in the last decade, three of her students have gone on to win their own All-Ireland titles.
The genesis of Cherish the Ladies can be traced to the All-Ireland competition as well. On the heels of Madden’s wins there, she and folklorist and musician Mick Moloney created a weekend of performances building on Moloney’s belief that the groundswell of American women at the highest level of the All-Ireland competition deserved to be highlighted back home. Madden suggested the name “Cherish the Ladies,” the title of a popular jig which neatly summed up the series’ purpose of bringing respect and attention to the central role of women in Irish American music. Both the resulting audience acclaim and a shared sense of purpose among the performers spurred Madden to turn the concept into a band in 1985, and her tireless dedication to its mission has brought Cherish the Ladies to the forefront of traditional Irish music.
Over the years, Cherish the Ladies has served as both a supergroup and a talent incubator for some of today’s top traditional music luminaries. The ensemble’s storied career includes 17 albums, and performances around the world, including over 300 guest appearances with leading symphony orchestras. Both Madden and her band have amassed a long list of awards at home and in Ireland, including being forever immortalized with a street named in their honor on the Bronx’s Grand Concourse. No matter how far from home, their continued success as one of the best-loved Irish groups rests on their blend of virtuosic instrumentals, beautiful vocals, traditional and original arrangements, and stunning step dancing—presented with extraordinary talent, creativity, and humor.