Musicians

Trudi Cochrane has a Bachelors Degree in Music Education from Boise State University and a Masters Degree in Music Education from Northwest Nazarene University. She has taught music in Idaho for 15 years and is also a member of Boise's ContraBand.

John Cochrane has a Bachelors Degree from Middlebury College in Vermont, a Masters Degree in Music from Boise State University, and a Professional Artist's Diploma from the Westchester Conservatory of Music in White Plains, New York. He plays viola in the Boise Philharmonic. He is a fiddler and arranger for Boise's ContraBand and is the founding member of Mariachi Sol de Acapulco. He has been teaching music in Idaho for 24 years.

Mary Ross, accordionist and instructor, resides in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. She has been involved with various styles of music and dancing since the age of five. Mary's heritage is Scottish, which contributes to her strong ties to Celtic Music. She enjoys being a Feis musician, traveling throughout North America; providing music for dancers of all ages and categories. Mary also provides music for Scottish Country Dances and Workshops, Ceilidhs, German and Austrian Shuhplattler dance groups, and Oktoberfests. She is a accompanist for the Victoria Police Chorus, entertains with a Scottish Comedian/singer, adjudicates at accordion festivals, and has taught accordion lessons for over thirty years.

Jimmy Butke has been playing the accordion for over 30 years. He is well-known in the Midwest feis circuit. A former dancer, Jimmy was Midwest Champion in 1978 and 1979. He has recorded two solo CDs, "A Feisin' Statement" and "Treble Maker". Not one to boast about his accomplishments, he is a proud big brother of Kristin Butke-Zagorski, who danced opposite Michael Flatley as lead in Lord of the Dance, Las Vegas, and Feet of Flames. Jimmy resides in Akron, Ohio with his wife, Katie and sons Billy(5), Connor(3), and daughter Molly (0).