electronic press kit for
Chris Newman & Máire Ní Chathasaigh
The world's first and finest Celtic harp and guitar duo
”Brilliant, innovative harping and guitar-playing of astonishing virtuosity and versatility”
* * * * SONGLINES
About them (in brief)
* * * * THE IRISH TIMES * * * * SONGLINES * * * * SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY * * * * * RnRSince 1987, the celebrated and pioneering partnership of “one of the UK’s finest and most influential acoustic guitarists” (fROOTS) with “the doyenne of Irish harpers” (SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY) has presented its "joyful, gorgeous and uplifting music" (THE LIVING TRADITION) in twenty-four countries on five continents to venues ranging from the tiniest of village halls to palaces in Kyoto and Istanbul, London’s Barbican, Sydney Town Hall and the Philharmonie in Cologne.Chris has toured and recorded with many luminaries of the folk and jazz worlds, among them Boys of the Lough, Aly Bain, Diz Disley and Stéphane Grappelli. Máire, steeped in the traditions of her native Co. Cork, is a recipient of Irish music’s most prestigious award, Traditional Musician of the Year (Gradam Cheoil TG4 - Ceoltóir na Bliana) and a multiple All-Ireland winner; she developed profoundly influential techniques for harp performance of traditional Irish music, heard on her iconic 1985 solo album, The New Strung Harp - "a milestone in Irish harp music” - which was re-mastered and reissued in 2023.Expect a breathtaking blend of traditional Irish music, hot jazz, bluegrass and baroque, spiced with striking new compositions, pieces from Chris’ groundbreaking new solo album Breaking Bach (* * * * THE SCOTSMAN * * * * * FOLK WALES "Dazzling... utterly breathtaking... a triumph.” * * * * RnR MAGAZINE “A colossal achievement” THE LIVING TRADITION “A magnificent tour-de-force” - and what THE WEST AUSTRALIAN calls his "delightfully subversive wit”!“An eclecticism and spirit of adventure that is quite thrilling” THE TIMES “Dazzling virtuosity” THE DAILY TELEGRAPH “Chris is amazing... one of our greatest musicians” BBC RADIO 2 “In a class of their own” THE GUARDIAN “Music of fire and brilliance from the high-wire act in traditional music” * * * * THE IRISH TIMES “Blazing guitar and dancing harp” DIRTY LINEN (USA) ”Brilliant, innovative harping and guitar-playing of astonishing virtuosity and versatility” * * * * SONGLINES "Joyful, gorgeous and uplifting” THE LIVING TRADITION “Remarquables de virtuosité et de grâce” TRAD Magazine (France) „Erstaunlich“ ("Astonishing") GENERAL-ANZEIGER (Germany) "The mood is ever changing - sometimes haunting, sometimes boisterous but always magical. The pair's imaginations know no bounds" THE BRISBANE COURIER-MAIL (Australia) “Their stagecraft was masterly and their introductions informative and funny” THE CHRISTCHURCH PRESS (New Zealand) “Their blinding technique, sizzling Irish reels and hot jazz improvisation brought an extended standing ovation... Newman has the great gift of being informative and hilarious simultaneously” THE WEST AUSTRALIAN
News
They are currently recording two new album projects (one of them with Máire's sisters, The Casey Sisters), having had a great year's national and international touring in North America (four trips - most recently April - May this year in MA, NJ, PA, MO, NY, VT, ME, DE, CA, OR and WA), Kenya, the UK and Ireland.Chris’ groundbreaking new solo guitar album 'Breaking Bach' has received wonderful reviews (* * * * THE SCOTSMAN * * * * * FOLK WALES "Dazzling... utterly breathtaking... a triumph.” * * * * RnR MAGAZINE “A colossal achievement” THE LIVING TRADITION “A magnificent tour-de-force”, and Máire's 1985 album 'The New Strung Harp' ("a game-changer in the world of harp-music… truly ground-breaking… Máire is an absolute legend. The music here is as sublime now as it was when it was released… Essential listening” THE IRISH ECHO, USA) was digitally remastered and re-released in 2023.
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Listen to tracks from their albums
Their shop website, Old Bridge Music, has just been re-designed and re-written. Every album on the website now its own audio player, so it's possible to listen to snippets from every track.
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