Frankie Gavin and De Dannan

Irish music today is a global brand. Millions around the world can recognize a fierce, rip-roaring set of traditional jigs or reels when they hear it. But Frankie Gavin and De Dannan bring something different and unique to today’s audiences. Sure, they play furious jigs and reels – it’s always been one of the band’s trademarks, but their music now has other very special qualities.

Their choice of material, arrangements and style of playing combine powerfully to set traditional Irish music in a wider cultural context. What other line-up infuses this inherited music with such a wide range of influences – from gypsy jazz to contemporary pop music, and from mainstream European classical music, to sentimental Irish-American ballads?

The band’s latest recordings, the CD Jigs and Jazz II (2013) and their 2014 single, which pairs Handel’s The Queen Of Sheba with Paul Mc Cartney’s Calico Skies, are perfect illustrations of the fusion of sounds and influences you will hear at a live gig.

It is this special blend which enables Frankie Gavin and De Dannan to thrill audiences wherever they perform – from Sochi Music Festival before the Winter Olympics to a state dinner for President Micheal D. Higgins, and not forgetting their several White House performances for American presidents, all the while maintaining close contact with their roots: many of the band’s home gigs are in bars, hotels and theatres across Ireland.

By any standard, theirs is a remarkable achievement, made possible by the genius and vision of Frankie Gavin himself and by the commitment and musical skill of each member of the band. They are:

Frankie Gavin – fiddle, flute and whistle
Barry Brady – accordion
Bernadine Casserly – vocals
Dan Bodwell – double bass and vocals
Colm O’Caoimh – guitar and vocals

Experiencing this twenty-first century line-up live will change your view of Irish music. It may even change your life!

Saturday 7th November, 8pm, tickets €20