CELTIC MUSIC FOR THE MASSES AT GLEN COVE VILLAGE SQUARE PLAZA 

Glen Cove, New York - July 21, 2015 - The bellow of bagpipes will ring through the Glen Cove Village Square Plaza when Celtic Radio Award winner MacTalla Mór performs during week five of the 2015 Downtown Sounds Concert Series on July 31 at 7:30 pm. This Celtic roots band features highland bagpipe and Gaelic melodies in a high-energy mix of traditional Celtic, rock, blues, jazz, reggae, Latin, hip-hop and Mor. 

MacTalla Mór was formed in 2002 when members of the Ofgang family decided to combine their talents to create a never-before-heard musical genre. Brothers Jesse and Levon play bagpipes, uilleann pipes, drums and guitar while their mother, Patty, plays a traditional Celtic hand drum called the Bodhran. Rounding out the group is brother Eric, who plays the bass in addition to displaying his craft as a professional magician. 

MacTalla Mór has performed at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, Windsor Station in Montreal and New York’s Central Park. Their music has also been featured on ESPN, CBS, NBC and ABC. This year, the band kicked off its east coast U.S. tour at British Memorial Gardens in New York City performing for Alex Ferguson, the presiding officer of the Scottish Parliament. Their fans also include Rolling Stone Keith Richards and Latin virtuoso Jose Feliciano.

“MacTalla Mór” is Gaelic for “great echo,” which is the perfect description for this Celtic roots band’s hard-driving sound. As they tour the country, they are packing festivals with their earth-shaking dance-making ground-breaking music and their enduring mantra: “The Pipes Are Calling, Resistance is Futile!”

Every Friday night during July and August, the Downtown Business Improvement District and the City of Glen Cove join forces to bring Downtown Sounds to the Village Square at the intersection of Glen and Bridge Streets. This annual outdoor concert series, which is free to the public, is designed to use music as a promotional tool to boost the local economy. The weekly concerts typically bring 600-1,000 people to the city’s streets, which increases patronage of local businesses including many area restaurants. The event has grown substantially since its debut in 1997 and the city now closes School Street due to the overflow crowds.

Presenting sponsors for Downtown Sounds 2015 are Bethpage Federal Credit Union and Garvies Point. Other sponsors include American Community Bank, North Shore-LIJ Glen Cove Hospital, North Coast Subaru, Kimco Realty, American Paving & Masonry Corp., Bridge Marine, The Downtown Cafe and The Glen Cove Printery. Media partner is The SUNY College at Old Westbury, OWWR Old Westbury Web Radio (www.owwrny.org) and OWTV Old Westbury Television. Host Joe Manfredi will be streaming the concerts live on www.ustream.tv; keyword: OWWRNY. Free parking for Downtown Sounds is available at the nearby municipal garage. In the case of rain, the advertised acts will perform at the Wunsch Arts Center at R.M. Finley Middle School on Forest Avenue. For more information, call the Glen Cove BID at 516-759-6570, or visit the Web at http://www.glencovedowntown.org or www.downtownsoundslive.org

---