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The Ely Music and Drama Club announced the 2024-25 Community Service to the Arts Award’s recipient: Irene Hartfield, talented musician and dedicated arts promoter.
Every year, the Ely Music and Drama Club selects a person—whether living or posthumously— who has gone above and beyond in their commitment to the arts in Ely. In Hartfield’s case, that commitment has spanned a lifetime which has come full-circle by her return to the Ely arts scene.
Hartfield says she “was born with” her love of music. She began singing as soon as she could talk, and playing piano by the age of three.
At age four, her family moved to Ely to operate a resort. When her mother inquired who was the best piano teacher in town, she was told, “Ina Dunstan, but she doesn’t take students until the age of eight.”
Hartfield’s mother took little Irene to audition for Mrs. Dunstan, who, seeing her talent and passion, agreed to take her on as a student, despite her young age. Hartfield started playing piano and organ at Our Savior’s Lutheran (now Grace Lutheran), and became the paid accompanist at First Lutheran Church of Ely at the tender age of 12.
When Hartfield returned to Ely in 2002, she also returned to the role of church musician at First Lutheran, in addition to Evangelical Lutheran in Babbitt. Between those two significant musical bookends is a career that spans both coasts, ocean cruises, different continents, solo acts, and various collaborations.
While growing up in Ely, Hartfield recalls her life was filled with musical performance opportunities in all music genres.
In addition to the church music, she also played for school choirs and musicals, talent shows, and in ensembles. After high school, she attended Gustavus Adolphus College with a music scholarship. Again, she was able to play a variety of musical styles, including a jazz trio.
Hartfield said she appeared in “a big talent show,” and “when opportunity presented itself, I said, ‘Yes!’” Her experiences with the jazz group at Gustavus brought her an introduction to a professional agent who hired Irene to tour with “self-contained show groups,” while she “gigged and toured all over the East Coast.”
Back in New York City, around 1971, she formed the “Irene Hartfield Trio,” where, in her words, “I was really able to be myself.”
In addition to the trio, she also worked as a studio musician and even recorded jingles. Hartfield performed not only in New York, but also at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. In 1980, Hartfield landed a solo gig on a cruise ship, performing in her successful “piano bar” style, singing soulfully to her own accompaniment.
Meanwhile, Hartfield taught herself word processing and eventually web design. In 1996, she moved to Minneapolis, where she worked for a tech company and was a founding member of “Exultate” Choir.
In 2002, home started tugging at Hartfield’s heart, and she returned to Ely to care for her mother until her passing. Since returning, Irene has established herself as both a local web designer and go-to pianist and performer.
Hartfield not only returned to her church music roots, but also created the Babbitt Community Choir and North Country Singers, accompanied the Christmas Cantata for many years, performed at The Loft with Robin Anders and at the Winton Roadhouse with Anders and guitarist Earl Bulinski, was the Reflections Dance Company’s music director for five years, has accompanied and performed in community musicals, accompanied kids’ musicals, the Boundary Waters Choral Festival, and with the Mesabi Symphony Orchestra, both as an instrumentalist and vocal soloist, and at many “Tuesday Night Live” evenings with Jeff Cierniak, as well as solo concerts around the area, especially her popular Valentine’s Day concerts.
In addition to all of her musical activities, Hartfield worked on the “Arts in Ely” directory and calendar (now under the administration of NLAA), and currently functions as the administrator of the “What’s Up, Ely?” FaceBook page and is marketing director for Clearwater BioLogics.
Hartfield is the current Chair of the Donald G. Gardner Humanities Trust, which gives grant monies to local artists and arts groups. Coming up, Hartfield will be performing with the Mesabi Symphony Orchestra on June 13 (Eveleth) and 14 (Ely) in their “North of Broadway” concert.
Irene Hartfield’s name will be displayed on the Ely Music and Drama plaque outside of the Vermilion College Theater, with a long lineage of arts supporters.
