Fidil's line-up is composed of three Donegal fiddle player; Aidan O'Donnell the 2010 TG4 Young Musician of the Year; Ciarán Ó Maonaigh a former TG4 Young Musician and nephew of Altan's Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh; and Damien McGeehan whose unique ability to bring different sounds and technique's to the fiddle helps see Fidil go boldly where no Trad band has gone before. Fidil were formed in 2008 when Ciarán Ó Maonaigh & Aidan O'Donnell recorded a duet CD of the same name, they quickly morphed into a 3 piece and were awarded the Young Musicwide Award by Music Network in 2008.

They had an amazing year in 2009 in which they played for the President of Ireland Mary McAleese, the President of the Czech Republic as well as Irelands Ambassadors to Latvia and Iceland. While completing 2 tours of Ireland with Music Network they also travelled abroad with the help of Culture Ireland to New York, London, Canada, Iceland, Latvia and Macedonia. Fidil then finished of 2009 with a homecoming gig at annual Frankie Kennedy Winter School in Gaoth Dobhair.

Fidil created a bang in November 2009 with the release of Fidil '3'. Accolades flowed from critics such as RTÉ Radio's Philip King, Peter Browne and John Kelly as well as Tony McMahon. Of Fidil's groundbreaking CD the Irish Times' Siobhán Long said "3 is a masterclass in the marriage of tradition and musical exploration, and a milestone in traditional music." and Seán Laffey of Irish Music Magazine said "...this is a reminder of how magnificent the fiddle can be, especially when these instruments are in the hands of such young masters... another timeless album and a truly essential addition to your collection." Fidil are looking forward to 2010 and started of with a performance at Celtic Connections in Glasgow, they have Music Network gigs to look forward to, started pre-production on a new studio album and have a surprise or two up there sleeves which should keep Fidil at forefront of avant-garde traditional music well into the second decade of the 21st century. 

Evening of Sacred Music
Eimear Quinn Doors open @ 20:00
Concert @ 20.30

Proceeds to Monaghan Cancer Support.
Taille 15euro - Ticket only

Tickets on sale
Veritas, Park St., Monaghan
02 Store, Glaslough Street, Monaghan

Donations to Monaghan Cancer Support c/o M. Hackett, 10 , Main Street, Emyvale, Co. Monaghan 

Dublin born Eimear Quinn grew up in a family where singing (and choral music in particular) was hugely important. She joined her first choir at the age of four and at fifteen she started formal vocal training at the College of Music in Dublin under the tutelage of Jody Beggan.

She quickly developed a passion for early music and was a founder member of the ensemble Zefiro. Eimear holds an honors degree in music from National University of Ireland, Maynooth. In 1995, she joined the Celtic chamber choir ANÚNA. She sang as one of their principal soloists for a year-and-a-half in cities all over Europe and recorded two albums with the group. It was while singing with Anúna in St Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin that songwriter Brendan Graham invited her to sing his composition 'THE VOICE' as Ireland's entry to the 1996 Eurovision Song Contest. Eimear won the contest in Oslo later that year. Eimear then began touring, performing in Australia, America and all over Europe in venues including The Royal Albert Hall, The Sydney State Theatre and the Vorst National Brussels. She also made many television appearances and also presented Television and Radio programming for RTÉ and TV3. Eimear has collaborated with a number of international composers on a range of musical and television projects. These have included performing and co-writing the score to Belgian drama series STILLE WATERS with Steve Willaert. She has also worked with CARLOS NUNEZ, the Galician piper and performed with Sir George Martin in Dublin. Eimear continued to tour in Ireland both as a solo performer but also with other artists such as Liam Lawton. Eimear performed 'Voice Of An Angel' on Liam's platinum selling album 'Another World'. 2006 was the 10th anniversary of Eimear's Eurovision win. To celebrate this she released the album 'Gatherings', a collection of music she had recorded over the previous decade. This was Eimear’s third solo disc and followed ‘Winter Fire and Snow’ and ‘Through The Lens of a Tear’; a song cycle on the legend of Tristan and Iseult, co-composed with Pól Brennan. In December of 2006, Eimear was honored to appear at ‘Ireland’s Finest in Concert’ a gala celebration of the 25th anniversary of the National Concert Hall, along-side Irish artists such as Sharon Shannon, the Chieftains, Paul Brady, Sir James Galway and Brian Kennedy. This was broadcast on RTE television and has been released as a DVD. In 2007, Eimear was chosen as by National University of Ireland to promote the studying of Music at NUI Maynooth in a nation-wide campaign. Also in 2007 she worked with the award winning film-maker, Philip King to complete a critically acclaimed documentary on the subject of her music and collaboration with Belfast-born composer, Neil Martin for RTÉ ONE Television. The latest album release, in December 2007, is ‘O Holy Night’ a collection of carols, ancient chants and new compositions from Eimear, who has also produced and arranged the album. ‘O Holy Night’ was inspired by the overwhelming reaction to her performance of ‘O Holy Night’ live on Ryan Tubridy’s Radio 1 show the previous year. Eimear’s work as a composer is gaining both momentum and acclaim. Eimear is married and lives in Carrickmacross, County Monaghan. TICKET ONLY / TICKETS AVAILABLE FROM 02 STORE, VERITAS AND MARKET HOUSE 

Tony Linnane

DERMOT BYRNE and BRÍD HARPER are regarded as two of the finest traditional Irish musicians of this generation. Having both been regarded as child protégés on their respective instruments, Dermot Byrne (accordion) and Brid Harper (fiddle) had not played together for over 20 years until last summer when they re-united in what is considered one of the best traditional Irish music duets of all time.

Dermot Byrne is from Buncrana, Co. Donegal. He guested on two Altan recordings "The Red Crow" and "Island Angel" before joining the band in 1994. Dermot learned his music from his father Tomás Ó Beirn who comes from Teileann area of South West Donegal. Dermot had a rare opportunity to meet many of the old masters of Donegal fiddling while growing up. These included the legendary John Doherty, Con Cassidy, James Byrne, Tommy Peoples, Danny Meehan and many more. They made a great impact on the young Dermot who developed a unique style of button-accordion playing. Dermot has guested on collaborations with many great musicians including Seamus and Manus McGuire, Sharon Shannon, Frankie Gavin, Pierre Schryer, Tim O'Brien and the late jazz violinist, Stephane Grappelli. His eponymous solo recording,which he has reissued recently, received great critical acclaim. 

BrÍd Harper-Rafferty is one of Ireland’s most talented fiddle players and has a huge following although she rarely plays in public. A rare treat for us here at Feile Oriel. The two were recorded many years ago playing together in a session and this tape was the source of many tunes and inspiration.