Concertina II: Advanced Beginners (Winter 2020)

Douglas Barr has been an instrumental music teacher on Staten Island for the past 37 years. He was the conductor of the Salute to Music Program for 33 years and has conducted several times in Carnegie Hall.  In 2010, Douglass was honored by the Music Educators’ Association of New York City (MEANCY) for his longtime contributions to music education, and received a grant from The Council on the Arts & Humanities of Staten Island (COAHSI) to bring an Irish music session to Staten Island that same year. He was also involved with The National Endowment for the Arts to create a traveling exhibit of folklife on Staten Island. In 2012, Douglass was awarded a New York State Council of the Arts (NYSCA) Grant to study concertina with one of his greatest influences, Monsignor Charles Coen. He was the regular host of a session in the pub Slainte in Manhattan and has hosted sessions at the Landmark Inn, Saint James Gate, the Kilkenny House, the Flagship Brewery, and the Irish American Association of Northwest Jersey (IAANJ). He has recorded with the guitarist/harpist Iris Nevins and can be heard on her CD “Celtic Guitar Dreams” and “String Theory.” He also hosted and recorded a live session CD at the Irish American Association of Northwest Jersey (IAANJ).