We Have Lift-Off!

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Published: Feb 20, 2007

Kevin and Jimmy

It was a sight to behold: Web dudes (and dudettes) lined up to dance “The Siege of Ennis.”

This spontaneous and unrehearsed dance of the developers took place at the dedication of yet another sight to behold—or, rather, a site to behold. It was all part of the celebration for the newly redesigned Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann Web site at Happy Cog’s offices in Northern Liberties. Happy Cog, housed on the top floor of what used to be a brewery on North 5th Street, won the contract for the redesign last July. On Thursday, Comhaltas chapters throughout Ireland—and here in Philadelphia—marked the event with a trans-Atlantic webcast.

About 30 members of the Comhaltas Delaware Valley and New York chapters—including a slightly winded Tommy Moffit—scaled the narrow flight of metal stairs into Happy Cog’s “geek chic” open space of exposed brick, shiny aluminum ductwork and strands of multicolored coaxial cable. Off to the side of the stairs was a large screen and projector, where the webcast video was displayed.

Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann (translated as “gathering of musicians of Ireland” and pronounced “cole-tus kyol-tory air-in”) is the world’s leading cultural organization dedicated to traditional Irish music. But for a bunch of folks dedicated to the old ways, the folks at CCE seemed determined to adopt a brave new approach to the re-launch of the site.

Starting at CCE’s world headquarters in Monkstown, Dublin, moderators called up remote video views of other Comhaltas chapters, including Tullamore, Dundalk, Manchester and Brú Ború in Cashel. It was not a glitch-free performance—at times it resembled the first fuzzy trans-Atlantic Telstar broadcasts. (Or kids playing with toy walkie-talkies.)

The webcast ended in Philadelphia with a chat between Happy Cog president Greg Hoy and Comhaltas webmaster Breandán Knowlton.

But the main attraction, unquestionably, was the new site itself. (See review.) Viewed purely from the aesthetic perspective, the redesigned site sports a sleek and tasteful new look, with not a shamrock or a harp in sight. “We needed to steer clear of the cliches,” explained Greg Hoy, who met with Comhaltas leadership and Knowlton to craft CCE’s new way forward. “It (the site) was contributing to the stereotypes of Ireland. And they wanted the site to speak to the new generation.”

The old site was also “a bear to maintain,” said Hoy. It was clear CCE needed a system that was easier for non-technical folks to update. Happy Cog set up a new system that not only makes it easier for CCE headquarters staff to update the site, but it also lays the groundwork for CCE chapters to adopt the new technology. “We set up a foundation where each branch can upload content to the site,” said Hoy. “That’ll be phase 2, but the pieces are in place.”

Paul Keating, public relations chairman for CCE North America, welcomed the improved site. In his comments during the webcast, he said “it’s a propitious time to be doing the launch over here (in the States). This is the 35th anniversary of Comhaltas in North America. It (the new site) certainly is going to bring us closer together.”

Serious purpose and speeches aside, it wasn’t long before webbies and Comhaltas folks let their hair down and started to party. Kathy DeAngelo and Dennis Gormley joined Kevin and Jimmy McGillian to provide some great tunes.

Tentatively at first, and then with abandon, guests started to dance along.

The Happy Cog folks looked on for a while, and then Paul Keating decided it was about time they got to experience the culture in much more than a merely virtual sense. All of which led to many tech types being hauled out onto the floor as Paul began to teach them the steps.

And, yes, it was a lot like bumper cars for a while. But in time they caught on and started to make like Riverdancers.

And who knows … maybe someday soon they’ll join the worldwide web of Irish music and dance.