Mike McHale (1934 – 2023) was born in Tulsk, Co. Roscommon. His upbringing was surrounded by music, and he took up the tin whistle and later the flute, both at a young age. After winning the senior All-Ireland tin whistle competition and Connaught flute competition in 1958, McHale emigrated to the United States the next year in 1959.  

When he initially landed in the States, Mike lived in Boston playing with the New State Céilí Band. After settling down, he moved to East Durham, New York in 1967 where he would become a staple in the Irish traditional music scene there for over five decades. McHale was instrumental in the success of the first annual Catskills Irish Arts Week in 1995, teaching regularly at it in the following years.  

In 2000, he released an album titled, “The Schoolmaster’s House” with guitarist Mary Coogan, which was met with high acclaim from fellow musicians. He later released two volumes of tune books in 2017 titled, “Mike McHale’s Favourites”, with the help of Benedict Koehler and Hilari Farrington Koehler, including his settings of tunes taught in workshops as well as original compositions.