News
RĂ© an tSolais
Hello everyone, I’ve been really busy composing music for An GrianĂĄn Theatre, Letterkenny, Co Donegal. This will be part of this year’s Letterkenny Trad Week 2021. I love composing new music and this time I have also composed a song for the suite. RĂ© an tSolais means the Time of Light and I am optimistic…
Read MoreNollaig Shona…..Happy Christmas
IMG_0178 A chairde, friends, BuĂochas Ăł chroĂ ar son bhur gcomhluadar agus tacaĂocht i mbliana, chuidigh sibh uilig go mĂłr liom frĂd an dianghlasĂș. How can I thank you for helping me during this year on this new venture of fiddle classes. You do not know how it helped me through this strange time,…
Read MoreHappy November
A Chairde, FĂĄilte roimhe na fidlĂ©irĂ Ășra! Welcome all the new fiddlers! Looking for some guidance for my next recording of lessons which I hope to record soon. What tunes, that I might  know, would you like to learn? Should I put some pointers up about tone/bowing etc? I really want to make these lessons…
Read MoreCork Folk Festival (watch full concert)
It has been a strange time. Altan were supposed to play last Friday September 25th in Ăislann Chill Chartha but because the Covid 19 numbers were going up and Dublin and Donegal having the highest incidence of cases we and the committee decided to postpone this concert until it is safer to have it. Next…
Read MoreMasterclasses at Philadelphia Ceili Group Festival this weekend & Altan Live!
I have been kindly invited to teach two master-classes this Saturday, September 12th, for the wonderful Philadelphia Ceili Group Festival. I’ll be teaching songs in the Irish language, phonetically and also teaching a fiddle master-class. You can find more information or register at philadelphiaceiligroup.org. Please let your friends know! I’m also so excited that Altan…
Read MoreNew lesson â âCĂĄilĂn na Gruaige Doinneâ
Van’s birthday and RTĂ1 radio interview with music and song (listen again)!
Hello, how are you all doing? I have been busy,busy busy! Just to let you know that Altan were invited to share a cover of the wonderful Van Morrison’s song âWhenever God Shines His Light on Meâ for Irish music magazine HotPressâ Youtube celebration of his 75th birthday, which falls on August 31st. We had…
Read MoreNa Mooneys and SĂFiddlers â live and TV sessions
I’ve been busy busy busy with my family band. Na Mooneysâ new pieces for the Earagail Arts Festival 2020 premiered last Sunday July 19th on their An SruthĂĄin (Small streams) channel on Youtube. The compositions include a new song, SiĂșl i Suain (Walk in Slumber), written by my brother GearĂłid and sister Anna. The rest…
Read MoreMy new compositions featured tonight (28 June) on The Rolling Wave, RTĂ Radio 1 @ 9:00pm
During the lockdown I was commissioned by producer, Aoife Nic Cormaic, of the RTĂ Radio 1 traditional music programme, The Rolling Wave and by the Irish Traditional Music Archives to compose a piece of music inspired by my impressions on the COVID-19 lockdown for a special Rolling Wave Show called Faoiseamh (which means ‘respite’ or ‘relief’).…
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