www.itma.ie/inishowen

In 2015, the Inishowen Traditional Singers’ Circle (ITSC) is taking to the road to promote its flagship Inishowen Song Project (ISP), a collaborative digital venture with the Irish Traditional Music Archive. Freely available online are recordings of 250+ singers and 600+ songs from the Inishowen Peninsula, Co. Donegal and visitors to the annual Singing Weekend.

By logging on, users can listen to recordings, watch videos, read and download song words. There are short notes about each singer with photographs and details of where and when they were recorded. The ISP has captured a community who have kept singing as part of their lives and the 2015 tour wishes to share this with students and anyone with an interest in traditional singing.
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www.oaim.ie

Calling all Tin Whistle enthusiasts – we now have over 70 whistle tutorials online. This equals 20 hours worth of top quality whistle tunes, tips and techniques! Whether you are a beginner or an advanced player, OAIM has a course for you:

Expert Whistle Skills #3 – Mikie Smyth

Learn how to apply uilleann piping techniques to the whistle – by the end of the course you will be back–stitching, double rolling and cranning your way through the tunes.

Expert Whistle Skills #1 and #2 Thomas Johnston

Learn 26 tunes that sit just perfectly on the whistle! In each tune Thomas focuses on variation, ornamentation and phrasing. Increase your repertoire and hone in on your whistle tricks and flicks with this course.
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www.itma.ie

It was announced in January that the successor to Nicholas Carolan at the ITMA will be Grace Toland. Ms Toland is a native of Inishowen, Co Donegal, a well–known recorded traditional singer in English and Irish, and a familiar and respected figure on the traditional music scene. She has played a prominent role in sustaining and reviving traditional song in Inishowen. She holds honours qualifications in History, Archaeology, and Library & Information Studies, and her professional background includes the roles of Information Officer at Bord Iascaigh Mhara, Assistant Librarian of the School of Celtic Studies (Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), and cataloguer of various library collections. She has recently been elected an Associate of the Library Association of Ireland.

Since 2006 she has been Librarian of ITMA, where her responsibilities have included information management, collections care and user services, and international best practice. She is responsible for ITMA’s successful Inishowen Song Project microsite and her current projects include management of ITMA’s contribution to Europeana Sounds, an EU–funded project for improving public access to European audio materials.

For further information www.itma.ie

www.thewillisclan.com

The Willis Clan is starting 2015 building on the excitement and exposure of last year from America’s Got Talent and the 5.6 million views on their YouTube audition and is looking forward to many new adventures this year. Chapter 3 album is almost completed and promises to deliver Willis Clan music on a whole new level to a mainstream audience. Live performances at their own festival – Music City Irish Fest in Nashville and fairs and festivals all across America, to an entire month in Ireland and yes, even a TV show (that will air in Ireland – details coming shortly) will give The Clan opportunity to meet their fans in person on the road. Milwaukee Irish Fest just released their exciting line–up for this year’s 35th anniversary festival and The Willis Clan is delighted to playing alongside Irish music superstars such as Lúnasa, Cherish the Ladies, We Banjo 3, Liz Carroll and many more.
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New Album Now Is The Hour

www.kilfenoraceiliband.ie

The legendary Kilfenora Céilí Band are set to release their latest album Now Is The Hour on March 13th, 2015 along with lead single My Heart’s Tonight In Ireland. The launch coincides with their pulsating new tour which is set to showcase a musical gear–change with Lúnasa’s Kevin Crawford on production duties for the second time with the band. With tunes forged out of raw native dance riffs from the Burren hills, the century–long odyssey of the Kilfenora is picking up pace.
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