It’s not every day one gets to hear the melodious sound of a button accordion while a couple of handsome Irishmen accompany on banjo and guitar.

Add to that their voices, belting out some of the richest songs of the Celtic tradition.

From coffeehouses to Irish-society gatherings and, of course, in pubs across the land, Fánaí is a band that blends a nomadic spirit with the traditional music of Ireland.

And as all great wandering musicians eventually do, the trio makes its way to Whidbey Island at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 26 at Mukilteo Coffee Company’s Cafe-in-the-Woods in Langley.

The word Fánaí is Irish for “traveler” and this trio, made up of a native Dubliner, a London-born Irishman and an American, have seen their share of travels. Ireland, England and the U.S. are where they each began but now that they all live stateside, Fánaí has clocked many miles and many experiences together.

John Walsh plays banjo, mandolin and sings. Jamie O’Brien plays guitar and sings and Dan Possumato plays button accordion and melodeon.

Possumato talked about his connection to traditional Irish music and its pertinence to audiences today.

“A friend of ours described it best when she said, ‘In Irish music, there are three elements: goltraí, so sad it brings tears; genatrí, so lively it makes you want to dance; and suantrá, so soothing you want to sleep.’ We hope to evoke all three of these elements at our concerts so that listeners leave with a sense of what real Irish music is like,” Possumato said.

Walsh said people identify with traditional music naturally because of cultural ties to the music.

“I think a great majority of people connect to this and other traditional music because of their own ancestry and I’m not even sure if this is a conscious thing or not,” he said.

Fánaí creates a sound steeped in tradition while still appealing to modern listeners. Their repertoire features many lesser-heard tunes inherited by the players on their long musical journeys.

The same is true of the songs sung in native Irish by Walsh and O’Brien — songs which reach deeply into the rich cultures of both the Irish at home and abroad.

“The sound is a banjo and box combination,” Walsh said. “I have always loved the sound of the banjo and accordion together and Jamie’s guitar kind of weaves in between the two.”

Years ago, Possumato and Walsh got together in Alaska where they both were living and formed “Last Night’s Fun,” a band that toured extensively throughout the U.S. They met O’Brien in 1998 and since then have been touring as Fánaí.

It’s their long experience together, Possumato said, that gives them an old-fashioned camaraderie that informs the music and keeps it fresh.

“Some concerts you feel the energy from the audience to the point where you never want the evening to end,” he said.

“Each time we get together we play new tunes as well as our old standards, but there is always a spontaneity that occurs from reacting with one another, so much so that it’s really a new experience for us every time we play.”

It would seem that players of traditional Celtic music are limited by the style, but Fánaí’s mastery allows them to explore what they do in performance and have a bit of fun with tradition.

“We play a tune that is a corruption of the classical Pachelbel’s Canon transformed into a Cape Breton-style reel,” Possumato said.

“We also throw in a lively ragtime tune, some French Canadian waltzes and a dance tune from Brittany.”

The history of the music seems to be important to Fánaí and Walsh said that he hopes people leave a gig with the desire to explore traditional Irish music further and perhaps even get actively involved in some way.

“When you hear this music live, it’s not hard to imagine being transported to a pub or dance in Ireland where there is a simple sense of enjoying the moment,” Possumato said.

A cover charge of $10 will be taken at the door. Cafe-in-the-Woods is located at 5331 Crawford Road in Langley. For more info call 321-5262.