The 22nd Annual Boston Celtic Music Festival will take place from Jan. 16-19 across various venues in Cambridge and Somerville. The event celebrates the traditions of Irish, Scottish, Cape Breton, Quebecois and other Celtic cultures.
A Brian O’Donovan Legacy Artist Grant will be awarded for the first time at this year’s festival.
The grant recognizes an artist who embodies the spirit of community and musical collaboration. Rakish, the inaugural recipient, will be featured during the festival finale, with more artists to be announced, along with a tribute to O’Donovan.
“We wanted to do something that would celebrate his musical legacy,” said Lindsay O’Donovan, reflecting on her late husband’s influence on the Boston Celtic music scene on Boston Public Radio Friday.
One of the festival performers, fiddler Hanneke Cassel, credits Brian O’Donovan for fostering the spirit of live music.
“It’s really hard to even come up with a great description of everything he did for the scene,” said Cassel. “Boston is such a unique place ... bringing together the Irish, Cape Breton and Scottish communities.”
The festival has expanded over the past two decades, reflecting the growing appreciation for Celtic traditions in Boston.
“We were doing things mostly in Harvard Square, but being able to expand it into bigger spaces in Davis Square has been a really great thing to bring more people in,” said Matt Smith, managing director at Club Passim. “This is the biggest BCMFest ever.”
“When you’re playing music with people, it kind of surpasses … even if people have different ideas and opinions about how things should be run, music brings that together,” said Cassel.
