6:30pm & 9pm // DeBarras Folk Club // September 14
(9pm show ALSO LIVE-STREAMED)
“Free wheeling, free spirited and powered by an appetite for traditional music’s outer reaches” Séamus Begley & Jim Murray are among the most dynamic duos in Irish Traditional Music.
Jim Murray is one of Ireland’s finest guitarists and his formidable reputation has been established as a player of traditional music – both as a melody player and as an accompanist. Throughout his childhood, Jim who hails from Macroom in West Cork performed with various groups including his father’s celidh band. In his late teens he formed a group with fellow local musicians which quickly lead him to be invited to play professionally with many of Ireland’s renowned artists. Over the last decade, Jim has combined a wide range of music and influences to create a unique and exciting modern sound in guitar accompaniment bringing it to the ‘now’. Jim plays regularly as a member of Sharon Shannon’s band and has also toured and recorded with Altan, Mary Black, Sinead O’Connor, Steve Earle, Donal Lunny and many other musicians.
Accordion player and singer Séamus Begley is one of the most popular Irish traditional musicians, coming as he does from one of the most musically acclaimed Irish families. He is the quintessential Irish musician, an eager storyteller known for his sharp wit and famous for pumping out tune after tune at all night sessions. He plays with an energy that is alarming, bringing a frisky spontaneity to his box-playing, belting out jigs, slides and polkas with rapid sprays of reckless ornamentation before making a sudden key change into a bitter-sweet air, sung or played on the accordion.
His repertoire reflects his own place and his style of playing is much influenced by a now gone generation of accordion and fiddle players who came to céilí in his family home. Seamus’s style is unique and he is considered by many to be one of the finest players of the dance music of West Kerry and is never happier than when people are dancing to his music. Séamus divides his time between his small holding in the West Kerry Gaeltacht and travelling Ireland and the world playing music. He has toured extensively with Jim Murray, Altan, Steve Cooney and Mary Black to name but a few.
In 2001 Séamus and Jim released their first album, the highly acclaimed ‘Ragairne’ which was winner of the 2001 Hot Press Magazine ‘Folk and Trad Album of the Year’ and The Irish Times ‘Traditional album of the Year’. Their highly anticipated second album, Eiri Go La was released in Early 2009 and has received rave reviews to date.
a new duo Feat Colin McLean & David Keating playing lots of Tangos by the South American composer Astor Piazzolla and other interesting duets.
Colin McLean
Colin McLean is one of Ireland’s leading Classical Guitarists. He has studied with some of the most prestigious teachers including Jerry Creedon, Fabio Zanon and Tilman Hoppstock. He has received master classes from Paul Gregory, David Leisner Magnus Anderson and Craig Ogden. Some of his achievements include winning Feis Matthew two years running for solo Classical Guitar and being the first ever guitarist to win the Senior Recital in the Cork School of Music. He has an Honor’s Degree and an Honors Masters from the Cork School of Music which he completed with the great virtuoso Fabio Zanon. Colin currently travels back and forth to Germany to receive lessons from Tilman Hoppstock.
David Keating
Irish guitarist David Keating was recently awarded a First Class Honours MMus Degree in classical guitar performance at the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester, where he studied with Craig Ogden. Previously David studied in Dublin with John Feeley and in Cork with Jerry Creedon. He achieved a First Class Honours degree at the CIT Cork School of Music, where he now teaches classical guitar.
David has won many of the important music prizes in Ireland including the John Vallery Memorial Prize in the Irish Freemasons Young Musician of the Year Competition, the CSM Senior Recital Competition (adjudicated by Alan Smale – Former Leader of the RTE National Symphony Orchestra) and in 2013 he was the winner of the Feis Ceoil Cup and Gold Medal for Classical Guitar Performance.
David has attended masterclasses with some of the world’s leading guitarists including Xue Fei Yang, Gary Ryan, William Kanengiser, and Scott Tennant. Following his London debut at Bolivar Hall in November 2013, David was honoured to be invited to perform at a masterclass with the renowned classical guitarist John Williams.
David has performed extensively throughout Ireland and has appeared as a soloist with the Cork Youth Orchestra and Cork Sinfonietta. On April 29th 2013, David gave the world première of Buen Camino, a piece written for him by the Irish composer and pianist John Gibson. During his studies at the RNCM, David gave numerous recitals in the UK receiving extremely enthusiastic responses from both audience and promoters.
Aside from his solo playing, David also has a keen interest in chamber music and is a regular member of the Diversus Guitar Ensemble. Future plans including releasing his debut CD, recitals throughout Ireland and the UK, a collaborative album of original music with Irish guitarist John Boyle, and concerto appearances with orchestra. David acknowledges support from Music Network Ireland.
Junior Brother is 24 year-old Co. Kerry, Ireland native Ronan Kealy, who fuses elements of Irish and English folk with a deeply unique and progressive sensibility.
Born outside Killarney, Co. Kerry, Kealy developed a strong love of music from an early age, writing his first song at 9 years old after having taught himself guitar on a banged-up nylon acoustic.
With the crucial addition of foot tambourine to his musical set-up, Kealy in a live setting creates complex fingerstyle picking patterns which blend with unique tambourine rhythms and richly lyrical wordplay, creating with each performance a singular and deeply memorable live experience.
The Sing Along Social is a zero-commitment choir hosted by Aoife McElwain, designed for people who can’t really sing. It’s for the singers who were told to mime in other choirs or kicked out of karaoke bars for being off key. You don’t need to practice. You don’t even need to know the words. It’s about caterwauling along to your favourite songs in the company of friends and strangers. Good singers are welcome, too.
Following last years huge success Aoife brings another specially curated Sing Along Social to CIGF19 full of Cheesy face melting Guitar riffs & sing along Choruses
At just 24, Calum Graham has already enjoyed a career that would be the envy of most artists twice his age. The Alberta-based guitarist and singer/songwriter has released five acclaimed albums, won major national music competitions, performed at the Olympic Games in both Vancouver and London, racked up some phenomenal views on YouTube, and was recently named one of the top 30 guitarists in the world under 30 by Acoustic Guitar Magazine.
Born in British Columbia and raised in High River, Alberta, Graham’s musical journey first took flight when he began playing the guitar at the age of 13. Five years later in the summer of 2010, Graham attended the Canadian Guitar Festival and entered the prestigious Canadian Fingerstyle Guitar Competition. Impressed with his original compositions, the judges awarded Graham with a first place finish; a feat no other teenager has accomplished in the history of the festival. The clip of his winning performance has now generated almost 1 million hits on YouTube.
As Calum Graham’s name continued to grow in Alberta and across Canada for his guitar work and musicianship, Graham proved that his talent was not limited to his extraordinary ability to play the guitar. In 2011, Graham won the Canada’s Walk of Fame nationwide “A Song For Canada” contest based on his poetic acuteness. His winning poem was used in the song “I’m Here, (A Song For Canada)”. The song was performed by Chantal Kreviazuk and co-written by Graham, Raine Maida (Our Lady Peace) and Stephen Moccio (“I Believe”, 2010 Vancouver Olympics theme song/”Wrecking Ball” – Miley Cyrus)”.
“Calum’s entry resonated strongly among the judges. His poem celebrates the cultural mosaic that is Canada. He has captured the diversity of this country – something that we as a nation are renowned for and proud of.” – Stephan Moccio
In the late winter of 2012, and with two albums already under his belt, Graham teamed up with iconic Fingerstyle Guitarist Don Ross. The result was an instrumental acoustic duet album titled, “12:34”. Recorded at famed ‘Metalworks Studios’ (Toronto, ON), and released through CandyRat Records, the album featured six originals by Graham, three by Ross, and a cover of the OutKast hit song, “Hey Ya!”
In November of 2013, Graham released a solo instrumental album titled “Phoenix Rising” (CandyRat Records). The title track has already generated over 2.5 million views on YouTube, with other songs also notching impressive numbers. The success of the album enabled Graham to expand his global fanbase and he soon began touring internationally, both on his own and with the likes of Don Ross and Andy McKee.
With Graham bringing an innovative sound to the industry, it wasn’t long before Canada’s top booking agency ‘The Feldman Agency’ also counted themselves a fan of Graham’s music. So much in fact, that in July 2014, they decided to partner Graham with renowned Canadian producer Gavin Brown (Billy Talent, Metric, The Tragically Hip) on his “Sessions X” series. The series was recorded at Toronto’s Five-Star ‘Noble Street Studios’ and features Graham alongside a number of acclaimed musicians including; Tears For Fears, Feist, Three Days Grace, Metric, and Ron Sexsmith.
In September 2014, Graham teamed up with IMAX composer Steve Wood to write the musical score for ‘Humpbacks’, an underwater 3D adventure documentary for IMAX and other giant screen theatres. Narrated by acclaimed actor Ewan McGregor, the film is directed by Greg MacGillivray (“The Living Sea”, “Everest”), presented in association with Pacific Life and was released February 13, 2015 to IMAX theatres worldwide.
In April of 2016, Calum released ‘Tabula Rasa’ – which features his already developed guitar virtuosity, and introduces his smooth, soulful vocals for the very first time. Produced by world-renowned fingerstyle guitarist Antoine Dufour, ‘Tabula Rasa’ was funded by a very successful kickstarter campaign from fans across the world.
Calum is currently working on releasing new videos in the coming months on his YouTube channel, and continues to tour throughout Canada, the USA, and Europe.
The Pennsylvania Dutch Country’s swashbuckling, pseudo-legendary pioneers of the Amerikindasorta style of string band music, Vinegar Creek Constituency channels the venerable old ghosts of American folk music tradition through imaginative, emotive original songs delivered with rock n roll intensity. Full of shouting, floorboard- stomping soul, their live performances are uplifting, high-energy events with fans dancing in the aisles and clapping, stomping, and singing along.
The musicians of Vinegar Creek Constituency come from diverse musical backgrounds that range from formal Classical performance to experimental, police-summoning garage Rock to traditional Old Time Appalachian string band music to Gypsy Jazz. Consequently, the bandâ€TMs sound draws on elements of many styles, including high-octane bluegrass, Sun Records-era rock’n’roll, early swing, vaudeville, outlaw country, and ragtime.
Vinegar Creek Constituency was assembled in 2005 by Lancaster Pennsylvania singer/ songwriter Leo DiSanto, then fronting an obscure rock band called The False Bottoms, who spent most of their offstage time recording noises and drinking heroic quantities of Pabst Blue Ribbon beer in a suburban garage.
After a few years of sporadic performances, in May 2008 VCC traveled to Cumberland, MD performing in and winning the first annual Delfest band competition and providing a catalyst for the band’s growing creative energy and commitment.
VCC has released four studio albums of all original material to date- The Vinegar Creek Constituency (released 2008); Angel of the Last Waltz (2010); Don’t Go Back In Time (2013); and Amerikindasorta (2018). They frequently perform in clubs, pubs, theaters, festivals, street corners, living rooms, and venues of all sorts in a continuously-expanding range throughout the US and Europe as the full 5-piece band or in a stripped down duo or trio configuration.
Northern Irish experimental folk songwriter and producer Joshua Burnside is something of a regional anomaly. With a brooding, powerful sound echoing artists of places afar and time long gone, his enthralling craft defies local comparison in striving towards an aesthetic as much as visual as it is sonic. Recorded at home in Lisbane, Co. Down, his new single ‘Black Dog Sin’ is the current distillation of his increasingly unmistakable approach; a fragile, yet ultimately commanding, chamber folk sound gloriously underpinned with unique zeal.
While 2017 wrapped up with Joshua winning the Northern Irish Music Prize , 2018 began with NPR choosing the young folk musician as ‘100 of the artists to watch at this years SXSW festival.
QUOTES:
‘Rumbling, brooding, powerful, magnetic’ – The Irish Times
‘There’s an indefinable quality and charm to Joshua Burnside’s debut’ – The Sunday Times
‘It makes you glad to have a pair of working ears’ – Phil Taggart, BBC Radio 1
‘It is an endless adventure, a record that won’t tire, such is the depth and scope of what you hear’ – Daily Mirror
‘Dynamic and wide ranging in scope but stands as a complete and focused work. The end result is a triumph’ – Chordblossom
Honest songs for honest people. This is the mission statement of Anna’s Anchor, the brainchild of Limerick born musician Marty Ryan, which was created during the summer of 2014. What began as a solo, indie/emo project taking influences from the likes of American Football, Rites of Spring & Fugazi, has since blossomed into a full band affair that has played over 200 shows across 11 countries with a slew of releases including 2016’s debut album Nautical Miles which was released on Struggletown Records.
Anna’s Anchor’s strong DIY ethic and efforts to push the boundaries of creativity was first put on full display in the national eye with the 2015 release entitled “The Islands”. Anna’s Anchor embarked on an eight week journey visiting eight different islands, performing eight memorable gigs, and writing eight unique songs. This was the challenge that brought Marty to some of the remote and harshest environments of Ireland on a song writing adventure like no other. Combining the adventure of touring off the beaten track with writing, recording and releasing a song about the experience each week, this project gained national acclaim in Ireland.
In September 2016, Anna’s Anchor released its debut LP on Struggletown Records (UK) and Never Meant Records (Ire) to critical acclaim. The 10 highly charged songs bearing immense emotional weight have given Anna’s Anchor the chance to tour the album across Ireland, the U.K,mainland Europe & America. As for 2018, with a new album on the way, the road beckons for Marty and his crew as they travel by land, air and sea to ensure everyone hears this fabulous record.
“There’s something inherently beautiful about the work ethic of Anna’s Anchor.” – Already Heard.com
“There’s something very special about ‘Nautical Miles’. The songs come to life at each turn, and the labour of love that Ryan has poured into Anna’s Anchor shines through.” Punktastic.com
In 2008, the core trio that make up Woven Skull began gathering together in the home of two of the members, set deep in the bogs and forests of County Leitrim: an empty, sparse area in the northwest of Ireland known for its myths of banshees and tales of lake monsters. Several years experimenting with combinations of instrumentation, kitchen utensils, seashells, footsteps, chimes, recordings of cats purring and frogs mating led to their current sound which combines densely propulsive guitar, distorted mandola and endless cyclical rhythms. Woven Skull strip and scrape what they can out of minimal instrumentation to teeter on the brink of total sonic meltdown creating engulfing, raw primal drones and damaged rock manoeuvres; the result of which has often been described as the traditional music of a self-imagined land. This sound draws on the influences of the combined backgrounds of the trio with Aonghus (guitar) and Willie (percussion) born and bred in Dublin and Natalia (mandola) born in Ukraine and raised in Baltimore, Maryland. Beaten through strings and blasted through amplifiers in a live setting, the group (whose members can swell from 3 to 4 or 6 or 10) meld repetitions that spiral through each other to create multiple layers of beautiful but harsh entrapments.
Along the way Woven skull have collaborated with such artists as Daniel Higgs, Mike Gangloff, Neil Campbell, Core of the Coalman and Paul leBrecque among others. Many of these collaborations have been documented on limited cassette and cdr releases.
They have also played on line ups alongside Richard Dawson, Six Organs of Admittance, Eternal Tapestry, Circuit Des Yeux and Liturgy to name but a few.
The band tour extensively, embarking on at least two tours of the UK, Ireland and main-land Europe annually alongside a number one-off festival dates.
PRESS
“Woven Skull’s edge comes from their ability to rock without rocking, squeezing unexpected sounds from their relatively minimal setup (they don’t appear to do much when it comes to effects pedals). Woven Skull always manage to feel their way into some dead trippy corners”-The Quietus
“the trio skitter confidently in a roving trance across loose ragas, spliced field recordings and a range of exotic wind and percussion, creating an atmosphere that nicely cushions sections of more intensive kosmiche meditation”-Decoder magazine
“the band recall the ramshackle anthems of Exuma and the spirited improv of Six Organs Of Admittance, suggesting that without furious discipline they can make very beautiful sounds. It’s within them to make pretty music, but for the most part Lair Of The Glowing Bantling sounds like it’s shaking itself from nightmare to existence.”-Norman Records
“Maybe it’s because Woven Skull have recorded stuff in dark haunted woods and the attics of abandoned houses that has lent them such an otherworldly air. Or maybe it’s because they’ve spent years experimenting with recordings of cats purring and frogs mating that have given them their edge, but whatever it is they’ve piqued interest far beyond Ireland. Using mandolins, guitars and drums, their latest album is a trip in every sense of the world, taking listeners on a wild ride into some polyrhythmic pastures” -The Crack magazine
“ it’s so beautiful it makes my withered old heart soar. I love these people and I love their music and the world is just immeasurably better for having Woven Skull in it.” -Narc magazine
“Ireland’s Woven Skull are another level of magnificent blasted noise altogether, through distorted guitar, stripped-down drum kit, mandola and viola lock into a discordant mantra with an eastern edge, building and building and building some more, until you’re swept up in something truly transcendental………It’s absolutely fucking incredible, folk music at it’s most irregular, from the demonic mandola solo that flashed in and out of a wall of feedback, to the best drum solo ever played on just a floor tom and a cymbal.” -Nightshift magazine