Michael Gavin has been playing and teaching Irish music for over 30 years. He grew up in an environment rich in traditional music where he learned from his father, Co. Clare fiddler Mick Gavin. A member of popular Detroit-based band Blackthorn, Michael has regularly shared the stage with such greats as Liz Carroll, Kevin Burke, and Ashley MacIsaac. He is a virtuoso multi-instrumentalist, with a mastery of guitar, fiddle, banjo, bouzouki, and vocals. No stranger to the art of teaching, Michael is also a professor of philosophy, with degrees from the University of Michigan and Wayne State University. His pupils, both musical and otherwise, have gone on to great achievements throughout the USA, Ireland, and beyond.