“Óiche Mhór Féile Naomh Pádraig i gCill Chainnigh”
Hear the songs and tunes of ancient Ireland from one of Ireland’s grammy nominated artists, supported by one of our most upbeat and animated local choirs in one of the acoustically and historically spellbinding venues in Ireland.
The Lady Desart Choir
The Lady Desart Choir is a dynamic and much-loved community choir based in the medieval city of Kilkenny. Under the musical direction of Gill Coulter, and with 75 members ranging in age from 26 to 86, the choir is renowned for its fun-filled, lively performances, and its wide-ranging, genre-spanning repertoire. Best known for its annual sell-out concerts in Kilkenny’s iconic St Canice’s Cathedral, The Lady Desart Choir has recently been invited to perform at Carnegie Hall, New York, in early 2027 — a significant milestone as the choir also prepares to celebrate its 10-year anniversary next year. The choir is delighted to return to St Canice’s Cathedral, supporting Iarla Ó Lionáird, Cormac McCarthy and Aoife Ní Bhriain as part of Kilkenny Tradfest 2026.
Iarla Ó Lionáird
Iarla Ó Lionáird has carved a long and unique career in music both internationally and in Ireland. From his iconic early recording of the vision song “Aisling Gheal” as a young boy to his ground breaking recordings with Dublin’s Crash Ensemble and New York’s Alarm Will Sound, he has shown a breadth of artistic ambition that sets him apart in the Irish Music fraternity.
He’s a child of traditional music, born and bred in Cúil Aodha, in the belly of the West Cork Gaeltacht, with Seán Ó Riada a neighbour and indisputable early influence. His great aunt, the traditional singer Elizabeth Cronin, had forged a reputation for rich interpretation before him, paving the way for the young Ó Lionáird to still audiences with his plaintive, textured voice at Mass, and later, in parlours, front rooms, snugs, town halls and concert halls. The truth is, it’s the individual sonic qualities of Iarla Ó Lionáird’s voice that define him. That voice, with all its midnight depth and soaring breadth, transcends anything that might box or classify him as one thing or another.
A twice Grammy nominated artist, Ó Lionáird has worked with a stellar cast of composers internationally including Donnacha Dennehy, Dan Trueman, Kate Moore, Nico Muhly, Linda Buckley, Gavin Bryars and David Lang and he has performed and recorded with such luminaries as Peter Gabriel, Nick Cave, Robert Plant and Sinead O’Connor. His unique singing style has carried him to stages and concert halls all over the world, from New York’s Carnegie Hall to the Sydney Opera House and beyond. He has performed as soloist with concert and symphony orchestras including the Ulster Orchestra, The National Symphony Orchestra at The Kennedy Centre, USA, The Irish National Symphony Orchestra and the RTE Concert Orchestra.Also an accomplished broadcaster, O’ Lionaird’s recent Radio Series “Vocal Chords” on the mysteries of the human voice, for Ireland’s National Classical Music Broadcaster, RTE Lyric FM, won both Gold and Silver Awards at the “New York Radio Festival” 2016/2018
His own voice has graced the silver screen also, with film credits extending from “The Gangs of New York” to “Hotel Rwanda” and most recently as featured singer in the film “Brooklyn” starring Saoirse Ronan. He is the vocalist with the critically acclaimed Irish /American band “The Gloaming.”
“Magnificently expressive” – The New York Times
“One of the most dramatic voices in contemporary music” – The Guardian
“O’Lionaird’s real triumph is his voice: as soft as a feather bed and as searingly sharp as a blade when the mood calls” – The Irish Times
“His voice will astound you. It soars – and it’s as profound, simple and beautiful as wild horses… Genius is the operative word here.” – Time Out New York
Aoife Mairead Ní Bhriain
Born in Dublin, to a family of musicians, Aoife Ní Bhriain has established herself as one of the most versatile musicians of her generation. Thanks to her musical heritage combined with her classical studies she has collaborated and performed with musicians such as pianist Eliso Virsaladze, fiddle player Martin Hayes,violinist Mariana Sirbu, Welsh harpist Catrin Finch, jazz guitarist Wolfgang Muthspiel and Oscar winning actor Tim Robbins. She has been guest co-leader of the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, Guest Leader of Crash Ensemble, Stargaze Ensemble, Concorde Ensemble and has also co-led the Scottish Chamber Orchestra.
She is a member of the avant garde string quintet Wooden Elephant as well as the Goodman Trio with whom she has explored the manuscripts of the music collected around Ireland in the1800’s by Canon James Goodman. Since 2021 Aoife has joined forces with Welsh harpist Catrin Finch and in October 2023 they released their debut album “Double You” to critical acclaim. Future projects include a debut album release “Cosán Casta” with pianist Cormac McCarthy in November 2025
Winner of the RTÉ Best Folk Instrumentalist of the Year, the Camerata Ireland Young Musician Award and the prestigious Bonn Óir Sean Uí Riada in 2010, Aoife has also won seven All Ireland titles as well as prizes in international violin and chamber music competitions. Most recently Aoife has qualified for the semi finals of the International Bach Competition 2022 in Leipzig and was awarded the Next Generation Award from the Arts Council of Ireland. In 2024 Aoife was shortlisted for Best Folk Album for her album with Catrin Finch in the RTÉ Radio 1 Folk Awards. Recent performances include Shostakovich Violin Concerto no.1 with the Sudwestdeutsche Philharmonie Konstanz and the Bach Double Concerto for Violin and Oboe with the Orlando Philharmonic alongside some of her own arrangements and compositions.
In 2025 Aoife is the Kaleidoscope Series Artist in Residence in Dublin as well as the commissioned composer in Stuideo Cuan and recipient of the Charlie Lennon Commision award.
Aoife has a particular interest in solo violin works and curated a performance on the solo violin works of J.S. Bach and the improvisations of acclaimed Dublin fiddle player Tommie Potts on whom she has co-written a book to be released by the Irish Traditional Music Archives in 2025.
She graduated with first class honours from the Hochschule fur Musik und Theater Leipzig in 2018 and plays on a violin by J.B. Vuillaume on generous loan as well as a Jurgen Manthey violin purchased through the Music Network Music Capital Scheme.
Cormac McCarthy
Cormac McCarthy is a pianist, composer, arranger and conductor from Cork, Ireland. Noted for a diverse stylistic palette, and equally at home in a variety of genres, his music is said to “defy categorisation” (Lyric FM).
His compositions and arrangements have been performed and recorded by artists including Phil Woods, Jeff Hamilton, The DePaul Jazz Ensemble, The RTÉ Concert Orchestra, The National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, The Irish Chamber Orchestra, The Cork Opera House Concert Orchestra, The Ulster Orchestra, The Carducci Quartet, The New Irish Jazz Orchestra.
As a pianist, Cormac has performed extensively at concert venues, clubs and festivals throughout Europe and the US, sharing the stage/recording studio with artists across a wide musical spectrum, including Iarla Ó’Lionáird, Peter Washington, Liz Carroll, Dana Masters, The National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, The Irish Chamber Orchestra, The RTÉ Concert Orchestra and is a member of Martin Hayes’ Common Ground Ensemble
His latest solo piano release, On The Other Hand “marks him out as one of the rising stars of European Jazz Piano’ (The Irish Times).. As a conductor, Cormac has led an eclectic mix of ensembles including the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, The Irish Chamber Orchestra and the Cork Opera House Concert Orchestra.
Cormac continues to be in demand as a composer, arranger and orchestrator in tandem with maintaining an active performance schedule. He lectures in piano, composition and arranging at the MTU Cork School of Music, and is director of the Cork School of Music Jazz Big Band. He is a first class honours graduate of the DePaul School of Music, Chicago and MTU Cork School of Music.