Tuesday 28th June, 5pm (Theatre 2)
Cormac de Barra
A native of Dublin, Cormac was raised in an Irish-speaking family of musicians and singers. He is a third generation harper, having first studied Irish harp with his grandmother, Róisín Ní Shé, before going on to study concert harp in the United States. He has performed across the globe both as a solo artist and with many of Ireland’s most respected and well-known artists including Clannad, Dervish, Altan, Moya Brennan and Brian Kennedy.
Cormac has made numerous recordings, including two CDs with members of the De Barra family and two under the title Voices & Harps, with Grammy Award-winning singer and the voice of Clannad, Moya Brennan. He has also recorded two harp duo CDs with harpist and composer, Anne-Marie O’Farrell. Cormac has also enjoyed a career in televison, having presented the traditional music series Flosc and three years as main host of the flagship arts series, Imeall, on the Irish language television station TG4.
Dr. Áine Hensey
Áine Hensey is one of Ireland’s best-known traditional music broadcasters. She began her career with RTÉ 2FM and Radio 1 and was involved in the setting up of Clare FM, where she had special responsibility for the central role of traditional music in the new station. She has worked as a presenter/producer with RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta since 1995.
Áine has more than 30 years’ experience of organising and administering arts events, having spent 20 years working in various roles with Slógadh, Gael-Linn’s national youth festival and, more recently, with Siansa Gael-Linn. From 1996 to 2001, she was musical director of Éigse Mrs Crotty, the Kilrush festival that celebrated the music of the concertina. She has been involved, in various capacities, with the organisation and production of TG4’s annual Gradaim Ceoil and wrote and produced a commemorative booklet for the 10th anniversary of the awards. From 2012 to 2013, she spent twelve months as Cultural Projects Animator with Oidhreacht an Chláir, considerably raising the profile, both locally and nationally, of the west Clare music and culture archive.
Áine is currently chairman of the board of directors of Gael-Linn and is a former board member of the Irish Traditional Music Archive. She was awarded a PhD in early modern history from NUI Maynooth in 2012.
