String Sisters’ Launch New Album in Letterkenny

Thursday January 11, 2018
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Letterkenny Trad Week is delighted to present the only Irish performance and the Irish launch of the eagerly awaited new album ‘Between Wind and Water’, by the internationally renowned String Sisters at An Grianán Theatre, on Sunday, January 21st.  The performance is one of only three Irish and UK concerts following headlining appearances at Glasgow’s Celtic Connections and the prestigious Sage Gateshead (Newcastle). Featuring the superb fiddle playing and singing talents of Donegal’s Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh, alongside Grammy nominated Chicago artist Liz Carroll, Shetland virtuoso Catriona MacDonald, Scandinavian ‘hardanger’ exponent Annbjørg Lien, Swedish singer and fiddle player Emma Härdelin and Kentucky-born former Riverdance lead, Liz Knowles, the richness and diversity of the programme on offer ensures that there will be few, if any, better traditional concerts to be enjoyed anywhere in Ireland this year. The ten-piece ensemble also includes the incredible musical talents of  Dave Milligan on piano, Tore Bruvoll on guitar, Conrad Molleson on bass and James Mackintosh on drums. The concert opens with a new composition written by Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh that will be premiered on the night by Coirm, the brilliant young group from Letterkenny’s Ceol na Coille traditional Irish music school.

The 4th annual Letterkenny Trad Week starts on Saturday week January 20th and runs until Saturday 27th. The festival brings some of the world’s finest traditional musicians from Ireland, Scotland, Scandinavia and the United States to Donegal to perform in four brilliant concerts, two at An Grianán Theatre and two in the specially created festival venue at Kinnegar Brewery. The Week kicks off with four leading Irish musicians from Arcady, Altan, Dervish and Solas – vocalist Niamh Parsons, fiddler Ciarán Tourish, flautist Liam Kelly and guitar virtuoso John Doyle, at Kinnegar Brewery on Saturday 20th. The undoubted highlight of the Week is the only Irish performance by the internationally renowned String Sisters at An Grianán Theatre on Sunday 21st. This sensational band features six of the world’s finest female fiddlers – Annbjørg Lien (Norway), Catriona Macdonald (Shetland), Emma Härdelin (Sweden), Liz Carroll (United States), Liz Knowles (United States) and our own Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh (Ireland). Lau the pioneering contemporary folk trio comprising three of the UK’s finest traditional musicians – Kris Dreever (vocals, guitar), Martin Green (accordion, electronics) and Aiden O Rourke (fiddle) play Kinnegar Brewery on Monday 22nd. The final concert features the brilliant Irish accordion player Sharon Shannon and her band at An Grianán Theatre on Saturday 27th. All concerts start at 8pm and tickets can be booked at An Grianán Theatre on 00353 74 9120777, or online at www.angrianan.com

Letterkenny Trad Week is organised by Regional Cultural Centre Letterkenny and An Grianán Theatre, in association with Earagail Arts Festival, Donegal County Council Arts Office, Donegal Music Education Partnership, Music Network and Kinnegar Brewery. The media partner is the Donegal News and the accommodation partner is Station House Hotel.