When Luke was given the Declan Affley “Best Rising Talent” award in 1998, one year after first picking up the mandolin, his days as a classical piano player or indeed anything else, were numbered. He quickly became recognised for his playing and was brought in around Australia to record. In 2002 he joined Scottish supergroup Shooglenifty as a full time member. In Scotland Luke established himself as a firm session leader both as melody player and accompanist.

In the 8 years that have followed Luke has made 11 albums and made guest appearances on numerous others. An avid composer, his tunes can be heard dominating the Shooglenifty repertoire but he also likes the challenge of writing for other forms. His skills as a teacher and scholar have also not gone unnoticed. He has been flown to New Mexico annually to teach Bouzouki and Mandolin at Zoukfest, to Victoria Australia to teach fiddle and mandolin at Music Under the Southern Cross and has led numerous workshops and tutor weekends around Scotland.

Now more based back in Australia, he has broadened his musical experience with a national tour of the theatre show Cafe Rebetika, and performances with the Australian Ballet’s recent production of Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet. The return home has also seen Luke’s skills and experience in the studio in high demand as both producer and session musician.

His solo debut “A Splendid Notion” is released on Shoogle Records.

Dáire Mulhern is from Ennis in County Clare in the west of Ireland, the home of traditional music and is related to the renowned fiddler Michael Coleman.

Dáire has won five solo all-Ireland Fleadh titles as well as many first place finishes in Ceili Bands, Duets & Trios. He has toured with groups such as Ragus, Celtic Legends, Session A9, Blind Harper, Celtic Fusion, & Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann, and has performed at Carnegie Hall New York, the National Concert Hall Dublin and the main stage at Lorient Festival Interceltique.

He has taught traditional music on the button-accordion for the last ten years, and his students have won All-Ireland titles. His teaching services have also been sought by the Online Academy of Irish Music and the World Academy of Irish Music & Dance at the University of Limerick. Most recently he taught at the Feakle Traditional Music Festival, Scoile Éigse (Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann) summer school and the Ennis Trad Fest. Dáire also composes music, some of which was featured on the Grammy short-listed Beoga album “The Incident”.

An All-Ireland winning multi-instrumentalist, Patrick is quickly becoming one of the most in demand accompanists on the Irish music scene today. Predominately self taught on guitar, Patrick’s exciting style on both nylon and steel string guitar combines influences from many genres.

Born in Worcester, Massachusetts and having lived in Foxford, County Mayo, Patrick now resides in New York City. His talents have brought him all over Europe, Asia, America and Africa.

His musical journey so far has seen him perform with artists such as Sharon Shannon, Liz Carroll, Lunasa, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Teada, Buille, Cathal Hayden, Karan Casey, Sean Keane.

Born in Manchester, England, into a very musical family to parents from Co.Galway and Co.Cavan, Colin started playing the fiddle and tin-whistle from an early age and won numerous titles at the Fleadh Cheoil. He began playing with St. Malachy’s Ceili Band when he was 12 years old, and was a founding member of the band Ceile, with whom he recorded the album, Mancunian Way. Since then, has made a name for himself performing and recording with an array of great musicians in Europe and the US, including such performers and groups as Flook, Grada, John Doyle, Tim O’Brien, Lúnasa, Karen Casey, the Elders, Project West, the Michael McGoldrick Band and Lunasa. Colin is also a composer whose tunes have been played and recorded by numerous bands and musicians. In 2005, Colin was awarded a Masters Degree in Music from Limerick University.

As a follow-up to his critically acclaimed debut album, On the Move, he has recently released his second album Make A Note which was voted Instrumental album of the Year by Live Ireland

www.colinfarrellmusic.com

 

Born in Birmingham, England, Kevin Crawford’s early life was one long journey into Irish music and Co. Clare, to where he eventually moved while in his 20’s. He was a founding member of Moving Cloud, the Clare-based band who recorded such critically-acclaimed albums as Moving Cloud and Foxglove, and he has also recorded with Grianin, Raise the Rafters, Joe Derrane, Natalie Merchant, Susan McKeown and Sean Tyrrell. Kevin appears on the 1992 recording, The Maiden Voyage, recorded live at Peppers Bar, Feakle, Co. Clare, and appears on the 1994 recording, The Sanctuary Sessions, recorded live in Cruise’s Bar, Ennis, Co. Clare. He now tours the world with Ireland’s cutting-edge traditional band, Lúnasa, called by some the “Bothy Band of the 21st Century,”with eight ground-breaking albums to their credit: Lúnasa, Otherworld, The Merry Sisters of Fate, Redwood, The Kinnity Sessions, Sé, The Story So Far and La Nua. His latest project is the Teetotallers, a supergroup trio that also features Martin Hayes and John Doyle. A virtuoso flute player, Kevin has also recorded several solo albums including The ‘D’ Flute Album, In Good Company, On Common Ground, a duo recording with Lúnasa’s piper, Cillian Vallely, and his most recent, Carrying the Tune.

Ben is a multi-instrumentalist who has risen to become one of Australia’s most sought-after Irish musicians.  In 2000 he won the Declan Affley memorial award for excellence in a young performer, and was a featured soloist on the soundtrack to the Nicole Kidman – Hugh Jackman film “Australia”.  An extraordinarily versatile musician, Ben has gained a fierce reputation for his driving and subtle DADGAD guitar work, His powerful flute playing and crisp whistle sound. Ben has performed and toured with some of the cream of Irish traditional music including the legendary piper Paddy Keenan, flute maestro Alan Doherty and fiddler Louise Phelan.  An accomplished Irish flute and bodhran player, Ben is also a member of the acclaimed Australian Irish Trad Band “Trouble In The Kitchen”.

Having been swept into the tunes as an unsuspecting youngster, Ado has earned a reputation as one of the finest Irish fiddle players Australia has produced. In recent years Ado has made something of a second home in Ennis, Co. Clare, and his time in Ireland has given him the opportunity to soak in the music of some sublime traditional musicians. An accomplished performer, and the winner of the inaugural Chris Wendt award at the National Folk Festival in 1998, he is never more at home than in the thick of a lively session. He is also an experienced teacher of traditional music, and has taught extended workshops at events such as Ceol Aneas in New Zealand, the Easter School at the National Folk Festival and at the Turning Wave Irish festival.  Along with co-conspirator Benno Stephenson, he was joint recipient of the National Library of Australia Folk Fellowship, the product of which was their award-winning album Undertones: Irish music from Australia.

Brendyn Montgomery is an award winning traditional Irish musician based in Nelson, New Zealand. Brendyn is one of New Zealand’s leading traditional Irish musicians, playing and teaching flute, whistle and fiddle. He has an M.A. in traditional Irish music performance (1^st class honours) from the University of Limerick. His album “Mountain Air” with Mike Considine (bouzouki) won the ‘Tui’ for best Folk Album of 2003 (NZ music and entertainment awards). Brendyn has performed at numerous music festivals in Australia including Woodford Folk Festival and The National Folk festival in Canberra. He has also guested at Auckland Folk Festival, Wellington Folk Festival, Whare Flat folk festival and The Gaidhealtachd in New Zealand. He is a frequent tutor at Ceol Aneas.