Marble City Sessions return to Kilkenny Arts Festival with terrific lineup

Music has always been at the forefront of the Kilkenny Arts Festival and this year is no exception.

The Marble City Sessions return with a an exciting lineup of live music performances taking places across Kilkenny city, including a duo performance by Martin Hayes and Kate Ellis in the Watergate, a solo show from the exciting young Scottish piper Brìghde Chaimbeul in Rothe House, to unique collaborations with Iarla O'Lionaird, Cormac McCarthy, and Matthew Berrill in the Set Theatre. 

The Marble City Sessions lineup in more detail:

Iarla Ó Lionáird, Cormac McCarthy & Matthew Berrill - August 13, Set Theatre

Since an iconic recording of ‘Aisling Gheal’ introduced his uniquely expressive voice to the world, Iarla Ó Lionáird has defied categorisation. Vocalist with the critically acclaimed Irish-American band The Gloaming, he is equally at home on the classical stage, or working with new music composers. For this concert exploring his rich and varied repertoire, Ó Lionáird is joined by two equally talented musicians whose music effortlessly straddles genres: renowned pianist/composer Cormac McCarthy and acclaimed clarinet maestro Matthew Berrill.

 Martin Hayes & Kate Ellis - August 14, Watergate Theatre

Martin Hayes and Kate Ellis hail from very different musical worlds. Ellis is a cellist and the Artistic Director of Crash Ensemble, perhaps Ireland’s most exciting contemporary classical ensemble, while Hayes has been one of the foremost exponents of the Irish fiddle tradition for many years. But they share a passion for bold collaborations that redraw the boundaries of music in thrilling new ways. This evening’s concert offers a rare chance to see them perform as a duo, with a programme that showcases the talents of these outstanding musicians and explores the fertile ground where traditional and contemporary meet.

Brìghde Chaimbeul - August 18, Tudor Kitchen, Rothe House

The Festival has hosted many wonderful uilleann pipers over the years, but Scottish pipers have been rarer, so we’re delighted to welcome Brìghde Chaimbeul: an exciting young talent who has devised a completely new way of arranging for the smallpipes (a bellows-blown form of bagpipe). She unveiled her unique sound on her debut album, The Reeling, earning five-star reviews and a BBC Radio 2 Folk Award, and since then she’s worked with everyone from Lankum’s Radie Peat to Canadian saxophonist Colin Stetson. With a new album, Carry Them with Us, released earlier this year, Chaimbeul showcases her mesmerizing sound in the haunting surroundings of Rothe House.

Martin Hayes & Friends - August 19, St Canice’s Cathedral

Martin Hayes rounds his performances at the Marble City Sessions in style with this typically eclectic gathering of leading Festival artists and musicians, including fiddle player Aoife Ní Bhriain, Scottish piper Brìghde Chaimbeul, dancer Colin Dunne, cellist Kate Ellis and pianist Cormac McCarthy, all celebrating 11 days of musical innovation, collaboration and connections.

Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh and Dan Trueman - August 20, Set Theatre

Whether performing solo, in a duo, or in bands like The Gloaming, Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh is celebrated for his restless innovation, taking traditional fiddle playing in new directions. His groundbreaking partnership with composer and fiddle player Dan Trueman made its debut at KAF 2014, where the duo launched their debut album Laghdú, and we’re excited to welcome them back with material from their new album The Fate of Bones. Both musicians play Hardanger d'Amoré fiddles, a new kind of instrument that sits somewhere between the Norwegian hardanger fiddle and the baroque viola d’amore. Together, they stretch the DNA of the fiddle tradition, creating something new, sparse and stunning.

Booking is open now online at kilkennyarts.ie