About The Band:

And So It Goes is an Irish performance group that provides high energy jigs and reels, with Irish, English and American songs in powerful Irish arrangements.

With Michael Dugger on button accordion, David Agee on fiddle, tenor banjo, vocals and mandolin, Robert Sommer on guitar and keyboards, and Dennis Lucas on all things percussion, you’ll hear their love of the Irish music idiom in every note.

The future is wide open for And So It Goes. To see/hear the band, see the ASIG YouTube channel, or see the Events Calendar for info about upcoming shows. Write us! We’re always happy to hear from you.

Michael Dugger has been playing Irish traditional music since 1982, when he was a founding member of Scartaglen, America’s first international touring Irish music ensemble.

He performed at the Winnipeg Folk festival, the Owen Sound Folk festival, and the Calgary Folk festival in Canada, with the internationally known singer Connie Dover, the Irish piper Kirk Lynch, the great fiddle player Becky Pringle and mighty bouzouki player Roger Landes. He has also performed at the North Texas Irish Festival, the Philadelphia Folk festival, the Harvard University Concert Series and dozens of venues, radio programs and television shows throughout the U.S.

Initially a string player on tenor banjo, guitar, and fiddle, he also adds vocals to the band’s performances. In 2001, a left-hand neuropathy forced him into continuing playing the Irish music he loves on the button accordion, which he has been studying extensively for the past 22 years.

David Agee became interested in folk music after his first trip to the festival in Winfield, Kansas. Dave played bluegrass for a few years and then turned his attention to Irish music after hearing the Chieftains 7 album. He became a member of Kansas City’s early Irish band Talisman in 1981 and later founded Scartaglen with Michael Dugger and Roger Landes. Scartaglen grew to include the great American singer Connie Dover and noted Irish piper Kirk Lynch.

Dave was invited to play with the Irish band Kelly featuring singer Kelly Dougherty, and he continued his musical collaboration with Michael, performing shows with Irish flute player Turlach Boylan. Fiddle player Julian Lambertson and guitarist Joseph Carmichael joined the group later. Kelly performed at numerous festivals and concert venues all over America. He is a talented addition to And So It Goes.

Dennis Lucas, raised in Kansas City, began playing a drum set at the age of twelve.

Dennis performed professionally in several groups playing Rock and Roll, Latin music, Country Western, Jazz and Celtic music all over the Midwest. His performance abilities on percussion instruments including congas, timbales, bongos, cajón, and Irish drum (also known as the bodhran) are well known throughout several musical idioms.

Dennis has attended dozens of drum workshops, and has also been asked to teach as well. Dennis has been a member in good standing in Musician’s Union Local 34-627 for 25 years.

Robert Sommer comes from a family steeped in Irish tradition. He began playing guitar in the sixth grade and formed his first band at thirteen – the top (and only) rock group in his upstate New York neighborhood!

Kansas City’s great Irish sessions and Old Time jams gave Robert the opportunity to refine his technique in Celtic-style guitar, and to meet some of the great people playing this music in KC and beyond. Michael Dugger led one of those sessions and invited Robert to partner in the duo Good Thyme at the Kansas City Irish Fest in 2023, and later to join the KC-based Irish band And So It Goes.

Robert brings a longtime passion for Irish music to And So It Goes. An admirer of legendary Irish guitar greats like Arty McGlynn, John Doyle, Dennis Cahill, and Donogh Hennessy, Robert is continually learning new tunes and techniques, and striving to contribute to the wonderful tradition of Irish music.