Style Weekly
Richmond's alternative for news, arts, culture and opinion
Taking their name from a small island off the western coast of Scotland, a location that was for centuries the center of Celtic Christianity, the members of the Washington band Iona have spent almost two decades mixing traditional Gaelic melodies with visual dance. With a host of multi-instrumentalists behind the elegant vocals of lead singer Barbara Ryan, using everything from guitars to wooden flutes and fiddles, the veteran band does well in providing some inspirational mysticism. Members are entertainers who involve their audiences with the history and cultural backgrounds of the music they play, even teaching words to the songs sung in a Celtic tongue. Iona is scheduled to play an intimate show at In Your Ear Studio on Friday, Jan. 22, at 6:30 p.m. $15-$20.
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