Join acclaimed pianist Ruth McGinley for a relaxed and immersive concert at Earagail Arts Festival, centred on the mesmerising music of Philip Glass. The programme features iconic works including Metamorphosis, Mad Rush and selections from The Hours, alongside reimagined interpretations of contemporary popular music.
McGinley is known for a career that defies the traditional classical path. A highly sought-after collaborator, she has worked across genres including jazz, folk, electronic and film music, bringing a rich, exploratory sensibility to her performances. Her debut album Reconnection (2016) and follow-up Aura (2022, with Neil Martin) were both widely acclaimed, and in 2024 she received the Arts Council of Northern Ireland’s Major Individual Artist Award.
Her playing has been praised for its emotional depth, subtlety and expressive power, creating soundscapes that are both meditative and deeply moving. This informal concert offers a rare opportunity to experience McGinley’s unique musical voice up close—blending minimalist clarity with warmth, introspection and a spirit of quiet innovation.
“Ruth’s playing is exquisite and these airs move like the landscape in which they have emanated from; at times powerful with an undulating emotional outpouring, yet also peaceful and serene. I love Níon a’ Bhaoilligh for its nighttime quality and deep melancholy that can hover like a mist over those lush Irish mountains.”
Hannah Peel, BBC Radio 3
“Aura feels like it has healing properties…it is soothing in the truest sense of the term. It washes over and around you, and calms and comforts. The way the notes hang in the air, the way it takes its own time to resolve…it’s a reminder of the idea that peace and calm are still out there.”
Steven Rainey, BBC Radio Ulster
‘[McGinley’s] Stylistic variety is seamlessly blended throughout in intelligently proportioned playing, as sincere as it is supple. More please.’
Michael Quinn, Classical Ear
