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Lúnasa coming to town April 16
Since coming together in 1996, Lúnasa has performed over 2,000 concerts and achieved a worldwide reputation as a different breed of Irish traditional music group – one with the repertoire of lifelong traditional musicians, the intricate harmonies of a jazz combo, and the energy of a rock band.
The all-instrumental quintet is noted for double bass and guitar-driven rhythms, original compositions mixed with material from Celtic regions such as Brittany, Galicia, and Asturias, and a surprising focus on slower melodies involving three-part harmonies played on the traditional pipes, fiddle, and flute. Lúnasa includes Cillian Vallely on uileann pipes and whistles, Kevin Crawford on flutes and whistles, Colin Farrell on fiddle and whistles, Trevor Hutchinson (formerly of The Waterboys) on bass, and Patrick Doocey on guitar.
Lúnasa recently appeared at the prestigious Celtic Connections festival in Glasgow, Scotland, where they led the celebration for the 50th anniversary of the Armagh Piper’s Club, a club founded by the parents – Brian and Eithne Vallely – of Lúnasa piper Cillian Vallely.
The club, which is internally renowned as a model of traditional music education, began life in 1966 because Brian and Eithne were concerned that the playing of uilleann pipes was in danger of dying out. Today, some 250 students each year, mostly children and young people, receive tuition across the full range of traditional instruments, as well as in sean-nós song, and the club has proven to be a launch-pad for numerous professional careers – including the Vallelys’ own sons, Cillian, Niall, and Caoimhin. Cillian has also been at work on a new solo release – sadly not yet available for this tour.
Lúnasa also headlined the famed Temple Bar Tradfest in January. The festival is Ireland’s largest festival of traditional music, and it offers concertgoers unique opportunities to experience live music in some of Dublin’s most historic places. Lúnasa’s performance took place in Dublin Castle. The Celtic Times called the band’s performance there this year “pulsating.”
Lúnasa is one of the few Irish traditional bands today that seems to be constantly touring. Last year, found them on three different tours in the United States – including one with Mary Chapin Carpenter, and another with their popular holiday shows, featuring Ireland’s number one songstress Karan Casey. They continue their travels in February and March, playing their way across the United States from Maine to Hawaii. Then, in April they’ll be in Canada, and over the summer, they play concerts and festivals in Italy, France, and Germany. The band is known in world music circles for their consummate musicianship and their infectious stage presence.
“Anyone who listens can’t help but find them [Lúnasa] contagious,” Billboard magazine declared.
Lúnasa are appearing at Key City Theatre on Saturday, April 16 at 7:30 p.m.