Cian Kissane comes from a very musical family and was encouraged to take up the banjo by his father Dominic who played accordion. He grew up near Ballybunion, Co. Kerry and was influenced by the unique North Kerry style of the region. He learned tunes from Anne and Nicky Mcauliffe, John Larkin and Brian Friel and at an early age performed at at Siamsa Tíre, The National Folk Theatre of Ireland, Tralee. Cian was a member of Ballydonohue/Lisselton CCE and received numerous awards as a young player in both group and solo competitions at Fleadh Cheoil na hEireann. While still in his early teens, Cian was part of the group Claisín who for many years performed around County Kerry. They did record an album and is available by request but only on cassette tape!

In 2014, in his new home of Perth, Australia, and after a long break from performing, Cian met fiddler Rob Zielinski (aka Stafford). Together with Phil Waldron and Jackie Lynch O Dwyer they formed the group Siar – which is Irish for westerly. In April, Siar are guests at Fairbridge Folk Festival where they are described as producing “Lively and haunting Irish Trad. at it’s very best.”

Jeremy Dunlop has been a sought after musician and teacher for 20 years. As a guitarist he has played with many fine folk musicians including the Simon Bradley Trio, Luke Plumb, Laura Targett, Jenny Fitzgibbon and many more. Jeremy’s main passion is Irish traditional music but his versatility extends to other styles and instruments.  He is qualified in secondary teaching and has many years experience teaching guitar, fiddle and various ensembles at schools, music camps and folk festivals throughout Australia.

Susan Miller is Irish born, plays and teaches button accordion, concertina, fiddle and piano. She is currently living in Sydney and teaches at the Gaelic Club.

In Australia, Susan has played at numerous international festivals including The National Folk Festival, Canberra and the National Celtic Festival, Victoria as a member of the bands Restless Legs and Shamrock Sheilas. Inspired by legendary musicians such as master accordionist Joe Burke and 1992 All-Ireland senior button accordion champion Ned Kelly, Susan spent every summer at the Willie Clancy Festival in County Clare and Joe Mooney Festival, Drumshanbo, County Leitrim.

Susan has numerous All-Ireland Fleadh Ceoil medals for both solo and ceili band competitions, in addition to winning the 2014 GAA Scor All Ireland Final. Prior to studying pharmacy in University College Cork, she joined Bru Boru music group, based in County Tipperary and has performed internationally with this group.

Susan will be bringing her accordion to Ceol Aneas.

John McEvoy hails from Birmingham, UK. Though his music is heavily influenced by the fiddle masters of Sligo, and west Clare John has his own unique ornate style, expressive and encompassing considerable flair. Previous releases include the critically acclaimed albums ‘The Kilmore Fancy’ with his sister Catherine McEvoy and ‘Pride of the West’ his exciting collaboration with Roscommon’s John Wynne. ‘Traditional Irish Fiddle’ represents John’s love of solo and duet playing and features some new compositions and a variety of guest musicians.

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.

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.

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.

John Wynne is one of the finest flute players of his time. From Roscommon town, John was naturally drawn to playing in the celebrated North Connaught flute style. John released his solo debut album entitled “With every Breath” in Late 2000. The album was launched in style to a great crowd in the Temple Hotel on the 12th of November 2000 as part of the Ennis trad festival. The album has since won critical acclaim, well known musical writer and critic Eule Hatchner placed “with every breath” in his top 20 albums for the year 2001.

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”.

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