The four musicians from SW Michigan regularly perform with over a dozen instruments. Their repertoire includes lively traditional dance tunes, pub tunes, love songs, and aires mainly from the British Isles. The band’s skills are demonstrated in the blended four-part vocal harmonies and the well integrated instrumental arrangements. Margery Dusek, a music therapist who performs on a number of instruments with Rare Combination said, “We perform a diverse collection of Irish-Celtic traditional music in an enthusiastic way…everything from pub fare to classical harp pieces and in-between”. Margery and Thor McMillen (who plays standing bass) do most of the arranging for the group.

The group debuted at O’Duffy’s Irish Pub in Kalamazoo in the spring of 2004. Since then they have performed at several festivals, theatre venues, brewery-pubs, and restaurants. Eighteen-year-old Sofia Peters, the group’s fiddle and mandolin player said, “My formal training has been largely classical violin. Performing with Rare Combination has offered me a new outlet. We’ve performed before such energetic audiences and there’s just nothing that compares to the feeling of knowing you’ve brightened someone’s day with your music”.

"People will occasionally ask me, "What's a priest doing playing Irish music?", said Fr. Patrick Murphy. "Apparently it was once a tradition in Ireland that the priest was expected to use whatever music talent he had at the reception of the newly married so, in a sense, I'm just picking up the tradition." He said, "I've been playing Irish folk music, both solo and with groups, since my seminary days over 20 years ago. I've seen the effect on people.almost magically lifting spirits."

In September 2005, Rare Combination released their first CD “Unlocked”. The CD demonstrates the eclectic broad-spectrum range of the group’s interests; humorous, lively, mournful, beautiful, and sometimes original. They have made the collection available at their performances, at a variety of retail stores, and by mail order on their website.

The band can be contacted at the website www.rarecombination.com for further information and bookings.

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Rare Combination:
	Sofia Peters	fiddle, mandola, percussion, and voice
	Margery Dusek	flutes, whistles, recorder, keyboard, and voice
	Thor McMillen	upright bass, and voice
	Fr. Patrick Murphy	guitars, bouzouki, bodhran, and voice

Contact Rare Combination at

Fr. Patrick Murphy
269 968-6057
mail@rarecombination.com
website  www.rarecombination.com

 

Updated:  11/10/06