Hire Catherine Gough | Accordionist in Leicestershire

Check availability and get a free quote now - no commitment to book

From£200

1 hour

Like Catherine?

Watch & Listen

1-3 of 4 videos

Cooley's reel and The Earl's Chair. (Robert Hickman and Catherine Gough)

The Roman wall and The Donegal Lass. Robert Hickman and Catherine Gough

Dancing Queen (an arrangement)

About Catherine

An energetic Piano Accordionist based in the Midlands, Catherine is a also a multi-instrumentalist, performer, tutor and arranger.

3 of 8 photos

Accordionist

Leicestershire

Public liability insurance of £10 million

Catherine began life as a pianist and clarinettist, discovering folk early on in pursuit of her music degree (in the pub, not the university library!) Fast-forward 24 years and she's finally settled on the Piano Accordion as her instrument of choice, having built up a large repertoire of Irish and English tunes with the odd Scottish, North American or Swedish one to add variety. Her rhythmic and inventive accompaniment style is widely admired by fellow musicians. Catherine has gigged on local and national stages, run workshops and tutored young musicians at Sidmouth and Warwick Folk Festivals, directed Lichfield's youth folk ensemble - Wildfire Folk, played for ceilidh, clog and rapper dancers and been to rather a lot of sessions! She currently performs with Chase Mist and plays for Whip the Cat Rapper and Clog.

Catherine

5 out of 5

1 verified review

Satisfaction

5.0

Professionalism

5.0

Communication

5.0

Punctuality

5.0

Catherine's Reviews

5 out of 5

Catherine was fantastic - I could not recommend her more highly. She was patient, professional, played and studied all the music we wanted for our mums wake and got the family and friends attending involved. Catherine is an excellent musician and beautiful person who did everything she could to make our event perfect- thank you Catherine! Much appreciated xx Sarah

Thank you for playing with me, it wouldn't have sounded anywhere near as good without your backing.

I must say your box playing is genius; you've nailed that sweet spot of how much to do/not do. Love it!!

Encore badges

1st Anniversary

This act has been working with Encore for over a year

Member of the Encore community forum

Catherine's Song list

Folk:

Catherine has an every growing repertoire of tunes, gathered from books, recordings and fellow musicians. Below is a list of some of the tunes Catherine plays most often:

Irish:

Banish Misfortune

Tolka Polka

The Castle

The Cliffs of Moher

The Cock and the Hen

The Donegal Lass

Jimmy Ward's

Father Kelly's

Kesh Jig

Mug of Brown Ale

The Earl's Chair

Famous Last words

Farewell to Whalley Range

Waterman's

Oblique jig

and many more!

English:

Argiers

Sussex Cotillion

Morpeth Rant

Go Mauve

Tanteeka

Old Molly of Oxford

Old Tom of Oxford

Jack Robinson

Barham Down

Princess Royal

The Shepherd and the Shepherdess

Morning Rattler

and many more!

Scottish:

Frank's reel

Atholl Highlanders

Da full rigged ship

Spootiskerry

Drummond Castle

Tam Lin

Miss Susan Cooper...

Swedish:

The 30 year Jig

Bussen

Eklunda Polska no 3

Slangspolska...

North American:

Brenda Stubbert's

Ciel D'automne

Elzic's Farewell

Catharsis

Fleur De Mandragore

The Reunion...

Classical:

Catherine has performed both as a soloist and accompanist. An example of some of her solo repertoire includes:

Piano:

Debussy - Arabesque No. 1

Beethoven - Sonata no 8 op 13 - II Adagio Cantabile

Frank Bridge - 3 Sketches - Rosemary

Khachaturian - Toccata

Clarinet:

Brahms - Sonata in Eb Op.20 no.2

Finzi - Five Bagatelles op 23

Weber - Concertino

Catherine's Prices

Last updated: 2024

Note: prices may vary based on travel distance. For an exact quote, click “Check availability”.

Performance duration	Price
Short performance (up to 15 min)	£140
Up to 1 hour	£200
Up to 2 hours	£350
Up to 3 hours	£500

Concert/Ceilidh depping

£25/hour for rehearsal time (if needed) in addition to a share of the event fee.

£25

Recording

£25/hour for the recording session and any rehearsal time needed in advance.

£25

Arranging

I can arrange and notate an existing piece of music for your ensemble or write a new harmonic/rhythmic accompaniment to create an original arrangement of a melody of your choice. Rate = £25/hour

£25

Ceilidh calling

I can provide a programme of dances for the event or call the dances you would like me to if depping for your regular caller. I can provide my own microphone if needed.

£150

Customer questions

What if my timings change after I've booked you?

I will try to be as flexible as I can to ensure your event runs smoothly. If timings change slightly in the run up to the event, please let me know as soon as you can.

How much time do you need to set up?

I will aim to arrive in good time to set up and warm up. The amount of time set aside for this will be dependent on the length and nature of performance you require.

Can I pick the pieces you play from the set list?

I have an ever-growing repertoire. Please let me know if there is something in particular you would like me to learn.

Do you bring all the equipment you need to perform?

Accordion/whistle: I will bring the mics I need. Please provide a PA if required: I need one XLR or jack input for each instrument. I have a stage piano which can plug directly into your PA or I can bring my own 45W amplifier.

Can you learn specific pieces before the event?

I have a history of arranging well-known songs for piano accordion (see in particular, my month-long 2.6 challenge: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLG7jOp5b4pyDFZ6Dmf5hTquyCPmq7A9ei) I can create an arrangement of a song or piece you love.

Musicianship

Genres:

Folk, Classical, Traditional English folk, Traditional Irish folk

See all genres

Instruments:

Accordion, Piano, Clarinet, Tin whistle, Alto saxophone, Tenor saxophone, Cajon, Guitar

See all instruments

Event types:

Concert, Charity event, Recording session, Church service, Private event, Burns night, Funeral / Memorial service, Wedding

See all event types

Other skills:

Arranger, Orchestrator, Accompanist, Fluent sight-reader, Repetiteur, Instrumental teaching, Theory teaching