Ennis, Aug 15th | Dublin, Aug 16th | Cavan, Aug 18th | Kilkenny, Aug 19th

(Dublin, 05.07.2012) Scottish singer ALYTH McCORMACK joins Irish band GUIDEWIRES, Scottish and English musicians KAN, and a group of BRETON MASTERS, for DÁN, a series of four concerts this August in Ennis, Dublin, Cavan and Kilkenny.

Melding traditional and jazz musical cultures from Ireland, France and Scotland, with elements from the Middle East and Galicia, this first-time collaboration will infuse our musical and spoken word legacies with originality and innovation. DÁN’s exploration of the place where the traditional and the modern meet, by 14 world-respected artists at the height of their creativity, will invigorate the interconnectedness of music from the Celtic Fringe and challenge musical conventions.

The Irish Gaelic word ‘dán’ is beyond an exact translation in the English language but can be interpreted to mean poem, a gift or talent, and destiny or fate, and poems by Aosdána member, and previous Director of Poetry Ireland, Theo Dorgan, will be woven into the performance. Acclaimed for over a quarter of a century for work which includes accounts of long journeys under sail, Theo’s DÁN contribution is a poetic narrative of a sea journey along the coasts of Brittany, Ireland, Wales and Scotland – the sea which enabled our ancestors to explore, share their cultures, and create new means of expression.

Made possible through the support of the Arts Council’s Traditional Arts touring award, the four performances of DÁN at Glór, Ennis on Wednesday August 15th, Dublin’s National Concert Hall on Thursday August 16t, Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann in Cavan on Saturday August 18th, and at the Kilkenny Arts Festival on Sunday August 19th, will express ‘dán’ and much more. Presented as a choreographed set of distinct ensemble works, the concert will explore musical synergies found in original, traditional, re-arranged and shared material, moving from intimate collaborations to the full force of the ensemble.

The musical tapestry will move from Irish jigs and Scottish stratspeys to English hornpipes and Breton gavottes, bringing together the diverse cultures of its passionate players through a shared discipline for traditional music-making, in an expansive and exhilarating production.

DÁN are (in alphabetical order): Aidan O’Rourke, Fiddle; Alyth McCormack, Vocals; Brian Finnegan, Flutes / Whistles; Etienne Callac, Bass; Geoffroy Tamisier, Trumpet / Bugle; Ian Stephenson, Guitar; Jacques Pellen, Guitar; Janick Martin, Accordion; Jim Goodwin, Drums; Karol Lynch, Bouzouki / Banjo; Padraig Rynne, Concertina; Paul McSherry, Guitars; Sylvain Barou, Flutes / Uilleann pipes; and Tola Custy, Fiddle.

Listings and Tickets

Wednesday 15th Aug | Glór, Ennis | 8pm | €18/€16 concession | 065 684 3103 | www.glor.ie

Thursday 16th Aug | National Concert Hall, Dublin | 8pm | €20/€18 concession | 01 417 0000 | www.nch.ie

Saturday 18th Aug | Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann 2012, Town Hall, Cavan | 8pm | €25 | www.fleadhcheoil.ie

Sunday 19th Aug | Kilkenny Arts Festival, St Canice’s Cathedral | 8pm | €22 / €19 concession | www.kilkennyarts.ie

About GUIDEWIRES
Four members are from Ireland and one from Brittany.
Musicians are Pádraig Rynne on concertina; Sylvain Barou on flutes and uilleann pipes; Tóla Custy on fiddle; Paul McSherry on guitar; and Karol Lynch on bouzouki.
Guidewires play an innovative mix of traditional Irish, Breton, Middle Eastern, Galician and newly composed music.
Their Debut album Live was released in 2009 and described by The Irish Times as ‘a spectacular, multicoloured debut’ and was of the best selling albums in Ireland that year.
They released their second album entitled “ll” (2) in April 2009.

About KAN
Features the flute virtuosity of Brian Finnegan, from Armagh; the fiddle deftness of Aidan O’Rourke, from Scotland’s Isle of Seil; the organic drumming of Harrogate’s James Goodwin; and the guitar reinventions of Ian Stephenson, from Selby in Yorkshire.
Kan is one member of Lau, one member of Flook and two members of more bands than even they can remember.
Their debut album is Sleeper (2012), of which SONGLINES said: ‘a live wire of rhythm and melody - a tapestry of textures, there is magic in this’ ****

About Breton Quartet
Four musicians from Brittany who play Breton music and have enjoyed many previous musical collaborations.
ETIENNE CALLAC, bass player, studied jazz at the CIM in Paris and the Berkley School of Music, where he played regularly at Harbour Conservatory for Performing Arts in Spanish Harlem.
GEOFFROY TAMISIER, trumpet and bugle player who studied jazz at the CNSM in Paris and in 1997 won first prize for Composition at the National Jazz competition with the Jazzophone Quartet, and again in 1998 with his group OLH Acoustic.
JACQUES PELLEN, traditional Breton music and jazz guitar maestro.
JANICK MARTIN, a superstar of accordion/melodeon.

About Alyth McCormack
A Scottish singer and actress from the Hebrides, currently collaborating as a duo with Triona Marshall, and with The Chieftains, along with her own project Ályth.
Specialises in folk, jazz, and classical performances and appears on 23 albums including her first solo release, An Iomall (The Edge), released in 2000, and in 2009, released her second solo album, People Like Me, which featured members of the Scottish band Lau (see KAN).
In 2007 and 2008, performed worldwide with The Chieftains.
Has shared the stage with folk greats such as Martin Carthy and Norma Waterston; jazz singers Jacqui Dankworth, Sara Colman and Leanne Carol; the legendary Ry Cooder; Brazilian ensembles and Bulgarian voice choirs; and Scotland’s own Eddi Reader.
Has performed at venues world-wide including: Boston Symphony Hall, Carnegie Hall, Walt Disney Hall Los Angeles, The National Concert Hall in Dublin, The Waterfront Hall in Belfast, The Liverpool Philharmonic and The Festival Hall in London, and Festivals all over the world.