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Christy Moore with Declan Sinnott Songs For Somalia, is a benefit for Concern’s East Africa Crisis Appeal. It will be held in Vicar Street, Dublin on September 26th, 2011 and with all proceeds from the concert will be donated to Concern’s East African Crisis Appeal. Concern Worldwide is one of the few aid agencies who operate in Somalia. The country is being devastated by the worst drought in 60 years, affecting 10 million people.
The eagerly awaited debut fiddle album entitled Bits ‘N’ Pieces by Dónal McCague is out in shops now. Dónal is a Monaghan native and comes from a great musical stronghold of Rooney’s and McCague’s. On this debut, Dónal is joined by Michael McCague (At the Racket, At First Light), Brian McGrath and Johnny Ringo McDonagh (both De Danann). The album consists of 15 beautifully constructed tracks with the most “sympathetic accompaniment”.
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Aoife Ní Argáin from Sutton, Co. Dublin winner of the 2011 All-Ireland Senior Harp Competition at Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann in Cavan recently. Aoife and Michael Rooney were the two harp tutors at this year’s Joe Mooney Summer School in Drumshanbo in July. In October Aoife will be performing at venues accross Ireland for two weeks with Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann on its annual Macalla na hÉireann tour.
Once again Comhaltas will bring over a group of excellent musicians to the USA for their annual autumn Echoes of Erin tour. This time round there are 14 musicians in the party who will give performances in such places as New York, Cincinnati and Kansas City. The musicians come from the Republic and the UK, surprisingly there are no musicians from branches in the six counties. You can get a taste of the tour at their Farewell to Ireland concert on Sunday October 9th in Dublin’s Cultúrlann na hÉireann.
For more details please email: eolas@comhaltas.ie or Telephone: 01-280 0295
Andy Irvine & Paul Brady
Vicar Street, Friday, November 11th and Saturday, November 12th, 2011
Billed as “A momentous occasion for Irish music, these concerts will have the two great musicians reunite to recreate the magic of their eponymous self-titled 1976 album on Mulligan Records and the work they collaborated on within Planxty in the mid-1970’s.” Back in 1976, Brady and Irvine recorded an album of traditional tunes and folk songs that was destined to become one of the most enduring folk recordings of the last three decades. Just like the songs contained within it “Andy Irvine and Paul Brady” is a musical document that has been handed down from generation to generation and magically sounds as fresh today as it did then. It is an essential work borne in one of the great fertile periods of Irish music and includes Paul Brady’s definitive version of Arthur McBride and Andy Irvine’s soaring opener Plains of Kildare.
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Accompanying Dave Swarbrick is a documentary portrait of the legendary English fiddler Dave Swarbrick. The documentary was originally conceived and written by Swarbrick’s long-time friend and collaborator Lars Kjaedegaard, a Danish novelist and musician who has backed Swarbrick on many tours of Denmark in the last thirty years. The film was made by Lars’ daughter Sascha Pepke and her working partner Line Buttenschøn. Accompanying Dave Swarbrick offers an intimate portrait of Swarbrick on the road and chronicles his fifty-year long career, his victory over severe illness and shows his unique playing as seen through the eyes of his friend and accompanist.
The film gives an intimate portarit of life on the road for a folk musician and in this case a fiddler who has overcome severe health problems and continues to enjoy making music around the world.
He’s a regular at Rosie O’Grady’s in New York and hosts a Sunday session in the 11th Street bar, but you won’t have to go that far to hear and learn from one of New York’s finest Sligo fiddlers when Tony De Marco visits the Seamus Ennis Centre this September.
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Imay’s Dream is the first in a trilogy of albums charting Irish history from the Titanic to the Troubles. The work of Belfast singer/songwriter, Padraig Lalor, these will be released over the next two years with the first album Ismays Dream out now on Proper Records in the UK.
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Beoga are stepping out as one of the busiest bands on the scene at the moment with two big European tours announced for the Autumn, taking in venues in Germany and Denmark with a spot at Euro Disney in Paris also confirmed. The tour will highlight their new album, How to Tune A Fish. Fans in Ireland can catch them on September 10th at Iontas, Castleblayney, Co. Monaghan and on October 27th in Dolan’s Warehouse, Limerick.
Celtic Colours will be exploring its Cajun and Appalachian connections in 2011 with this year’s Artists in Residence: songwriter Ron Bourgeois from Cheticamp and Old Time Appalachian fiddler and singer Bruce Molsky from the US.
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