Piano Accordion Progressions with Marie McTeague features 13 extremely well thought out and presented lessons for both the melody (right hand) and the bass accompaniment (left hand) of the piano accordion.
Each lesson consists of 4 parts: LISTENING to the tune played by Marie, LEARNING the tune by ear, slowly phrase by phrase, FOCUSING on technique using the right hand, and ACCOMPANIMENT using the left hand.
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This course has more than a hint of Donegal in it! Marie talks about the influence of the Donegal pipes and the fiddles on some of the ornamentation she uses and this influence is clearly apparent in her choice of tunes. The Donegal lilt of her accent is an added bonus. Nevertheless, Marie does depart from Donegal for a couple of tunes – down to Cork and Kerry for a slide and a polka to keep things varied.
Marie McTeague (formally Clarke) hails from Letterkenny, Co Donegal. She began playing the piano accordion and tin whistle at the age of 5 and competed in the Fleadh Cheoil over the years, winning the Senior All Ireland Title in 1997 for the Piano Accordion. Marie studied Music and Irish at UCC and furthered her studies there with a H.Dip in Education. In 2002 she graduated from the University of Limerick with a Performance MA in Traditional Irish Music. She also holds the TTCT diploma in teaching Traditional Music from Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann.
Marie was part of ‘The Rising Step’ Dance and Music show, which ran successfully in An Grianan Theatre in 2008 and 2009. She has played at many musical events in Ireland and abroad including Milwaukee Irish Fest, Shetland Island Accordion & Fiddle Festival, and Eurofest in Greece and Italy. She played and recorded with several artists and groups over the years including Fiddlesticks, Eamon Friel, Arcanadh, and Ceoltóirí an Aonaigh. Marie is currently based in Letterkenny and teaches music in the local Secondary School, Coláiste Ailigh.
