Iarla Ó Lionáird, Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh, & Cormac McCarthy
About the trio
Availability: 17 and 19 September 2027; and on request
Entourage: 3 persons
Venues: Recital halls, arts centres, ecclesiastical venues with a grand piano.
International travel and accommodation may be eligible for support funding from Culture Ireland: book a call with us to discuss.
Twice Grammy-nominated sean-nós singer Iarla Ó Lionáird reunites with fellow member of The Gloaming, hardanger d’amore fiddle visionary Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh, alongside pianist-composer Cormac McCarthy. This new trio traces luminous paths between Irish song and folk instrumental tradition, contemporary classical music and jazz.
Iarla Ó Lionáird’s voice has long occupied a place between worlds: rooted in the unaccompanied sean-nós tradition of his native West Cork, yet equally at home within contemporary classical, electronic and orchestral settings. Here, it becomes the focal point for a newly formed trio of exceptional subtlety and range.
Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh’s ten-string Hardanger d’amore surrounds the voice with bowed lines, drones and shimmering sympathetic resonance. Cormac McCarthy’s piano brings a different dimension: spacious and lyrical, but informed by his deep experience of jazz, traditional music and large-scale orchestral arrangement. Together, the three musicians create a sound that can move from near silence to startling intensity.
The programme draws on Irish-language songs and poetry, Iarla’s solo repertoire and music associated with The Gloaming. Iarla and Caoimhín were central to that group’s transformation of Irish traditional music into a new form of chamber music, heard at the Royal Albert Hall, Lincoln Center, Sydney Opera House and across an extended series of residencies at Dublin’s National Concert Hall.
Together, the trio continue that spirit of exploration. Voice, fiddle and grand piano meet without excess or ornament, allowing ancient melodies, poetic texts and the spaces between notes to carry their full emotional weight.
Biographies
Iarla Ó Lionáird grew up in the Irish-speaking community of Cúil Aodha, West Cork, where sean-nós song formed part of family life. He first performed publicly aged five and recorded ‘Aisling Gheal’ for Gael Linn at twelve. A twice Grammy-nominated artist, Iarla has released solo albums through Real World Records and recorded with Afro Celt Sound System. His collaborators include Peter Gabriel, Sinéad O’Connor, Nick Cave and Robert Plant, while composers Donnacha Dennehy, Gavin Bryars, Nico Muhly and David Lang have written for or worked with his voice. His screen work also includes performances in the films Brooklyn and The Sinners.
Dublin-born Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh makes music on the ten-string hardanger d’amore, an instrument combining five bowed strings with five sympathetic strings that lend his playing its remarkable resonance. Rooted in Irish traditional music, his work moves freely into experimental and contemporary territory. Caoimhín performs as a soloist and with This Is How We Fly, and has made acclaimed duo recordings with Thomas Bartlett (Doveman) and Dan Trueman. Further collaborations include Mick O’Brien, Brendan Begley, Garth Knox and Laurie Anderson. His playing is distinguished by cross-tuned drones, finely judged texture and a searching approach that continually reveals new possibilities within inherited forms.
Cormac McCarthy is a pianist, composer, arranger and conductor from Cork whose work moves between jazz, classical and Irish traditional music. After completing a master’s degree in composition at Cork School of Music, he received the Bill Whelan International Music Bursary in 2010. His orchestral work includes commissions for Ireland’s National Symphony Orchestra, and he has conducted the Irish Chamber Orchestra, RTÉ Concert Orchestra and Cork Opera House Concert Orchestra. Cormac’s compositions and arrangements have also been performed by Mick Flannery, Gavin James, Niamh Regan, Aoife Ni Bhriain, and Jack O’Rourke. RTÉ Lyric FM has described his wide-ranging music as ‘defying categorisation’.
Recordings and Reviews
Iarla Ó Lionáird, Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh, and Cormac McCarthy have yet to record as a trio. Iarla earlier recorded the set with clarinetist Matthew Berrill alongside Cormac McCarthy. This unreleased recording, considered with The Gloaming's extensive catalogue, gives a flavour of this exciting new line up.
REVIEWS
‘One of the most dramatic voices in contemporary music.’ The Guardian
‘A merited, almost reverential air drew over the crowd as we were transported to that inexplicable liminal space that only truly great art can carry you to.’ The Goo, reviewing Iarla with Cormac McCarthy and Matthew Berrill
‘A 10-string instrument which resonates richly at frequencies unreachable by a traditional fiddle or a viola d’amore.’- The Irish Times, Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh and Thomas Bartlett review
UPCOMING DATES
2026
December 11 Newbridge, Co Kildare Riverbank Arts Centre
December 12 Dún Laoghaire, Dublin Pavilion Theatre
December 18 Cork Triskel Arts Centre
2027
June 11 Manchester Halle St Peters
June 12 London Kings Place Hall One
September 18 Durham Gala Theatre