The Dublin Irish Festival is pleased to cohost An Irish Christmas Concert in conjunction with the Association of Irish and Celtic Festivals (AICF), with generous support from the Embassy of Ireland, as a way to virtually celebrate the holidays.
The AICF, composed of more than 170 Irish and Celtic festivals from across the United States and Canada, is dedicated to sharing Irish music, education, food and dance with the world to ensure that Ireland’s time-honored traditions live forever.
“We look forward to sharing the spirit of Ireland and its rich culture through the power and magic of music during this special time of year,” said Dublin Irish Festival Director Alison LeRoy.
On Wednesday, Dec. 16 at 8 p.m. EST, the AICF will showcase seven of Ireland’s best musical acts, from established performers to up-and-coming groups, to spread holiday cheer throughout the world. Audiences can watch from the comfort of their homes on Facebook or YouTube, links to the concert can be found at IrishCelticFestivals.org.
“The world’s largest annual Irish festivals aren’t in Mayo, Meath, Kilkenny or Dublin, Ireland, but in cities across the USA. These and other festivals across this continent perform an incredible service, celebrating our culture and connecting Americans with their heritage,” said the Ambassador of Ireland to the United States H.E. Daniel Mulhall. “This Christmas, as we stay apart to contain the pandemic, I’m delighted that so many of our friends have come together virtually to present this concert. As we say in Irish, ní neart go cur le chéile – we are strongest together.”
Performers for the event include:
- Aoife Scott, who has steadily risen to the top of the traditional and folk music scene, has long enjoyed success as an established artist in her own right. Fragile and ethereal one minute and strong and vibrant the next, her dynamic and profound vocals explore the emotional depths of her lyrics, leaving the audience entranced.
- Dervish, a group that marries technical brilliance with a rare sensibility, born of an understanding of the music and many years of playing together. Dervish are long established as one of the biggest names in Irish music internationally. They’re renowned for live performances, which match dazzling sets of tunes with stunning interpretations of traditional songs.
- The High Kings, one of the most well-known Irish ballad groups in modern culture, bringing a new take on traditional Irish ballads to audiences of multiple generations. The High Kings continue to set the bar extremely high for Irish Folk bands across the world and are widely regarded to be at the forefront of the genre.
- Screaming Orphans, a group of four sisters with the good fortune to have been raised in the magic of Bundoran in County Donegal, Ireland. The sisters, since they were young, have been singing and playing traditional Irish music, but knew they wanted to do more, and as they grew older, became a pop-rock group, growing into the group they are today.
- Shane Hennessy, an Irish virtuoso guitarist who has established himself as one of the leading guitarists on the world stage, known widely for his fingerstyle, flatpicking and percussive guitar-playing approaches. His energetic live performances and his cinematically vivid compositions tie in influences from Bach to Beyoncé – and everything in between.
When asked for his thoughts on this upcoming performance Shane said, “AICF and all its members have made me feel so welcome each time I’ve visited the United States. What started as a showcase appearance a few years ago has turned into a wide network of friends and supporters, and their nurturing of my fellow Irish artists and myself has introduced us to new audiences all over the USA. I am so thankful for their support now, at the most difficult time for musicians and artists in recent history. This stream will bring a lot of joy to fans of Irish culture all over the world, in particular those of us who desperately miss the festival scene!”
- Socks in the Frying Pan, who are a multi-award winning trio from County Clare on the West coast of Ireland, the universal hub of Irish traditional music. Their dynamic vocal harmonies, virtuosic musical ability and their onstage wit has captured and captivated audiences the world around.
- We Banjo 3, who has since emerged as fast-rising touring darlings in the country that two of the members now call home. The Galway, Ireland and Nashville-based quartet––comprised of two sets of brothers, Enda and Fergal Scahill, and Martin and David Howley––continually push musical boundaries while maintaining an unwavering devotion to the essential audience experience.
The stream will be produced by O’Neill Events and Marketing.
For more information about this event, or for Irish and Celtic festivals interested in joining the AICF, please visit IrishCelticFestivals.org.
For more information on the 2021 Dublin Irish Festival, visit DublinIrishFestival.org.
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Media Contact:
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