Derek Hickey, Liz & Yvonne Kane and Macdara Ó Faoláin

Derek Hickey, Liz & Yvonne Kane and Macdara Ó Faoláin

Feb Tour Image
Music Network kicks off 2025 with a celebration of the very best of Irish traditional music.

Derek Hickey accordion
Liz Kane fiddle
Yvonne Kane fiddle
Macdara Ó Faoláin bouzouki

This exciting tour brings together four of Ireland’s most celebrated traditional musicians: Derek Hickey, TG4 Gradam Ceoil 2024 Musician of the Year, Liz and Yvonne Kane (The Kane Sisters), TG4 Gradam Ceoil 2024 Group of the Year, and Macdara Ó Faoláin, TG4 Gradam Ceoil 2024 Young Musician of the Year.

Prepare to be captivated by their exceptional artistry and musicianship, as each performer infuses their unique style, deeply rooted in their musical heritage, into this extraordinary collaboration.

Join us for an unforgettable evening with four of Ireland’s finest live in concert. Simply put, you won’t hear better exponents of our traditional music.

About the artists

TG4 Gradam Ceoil 2024 Musician of the Year Derek Hickey is widely acknowledged as one of Ireland’s most prominent and influential master accordion players. From Adare in County Limerick, both his grandfathers played fiddle and his own musical career began at the age of ten, when his uncle left an accordion in the family home. Derek progressed to dance tunes within weeks, though he didn’t begin lessons – under the tutelage of Dónal de Barra – until aged twelve. His professional career began three years later when he joined the Shannonside Céilí Band, founded by the Liddy family. The band toured extensively in England and throughout Europe.

In 1992, at just eighteen, Derek joined Johnny ‘Ringo’ McDonagh’s band Arcady, along with Frances Black, Brendan Larrisey and Patsy Broderick. Other guest members of this band included Sharon Shannon, Cathal Hayden and Gerry O’Connor. Three years later he was invited to join De Dannan, recording two albums and touring extensively with the super group until they disbanded in 2003.

In 2023, Derek performed at the National Concert Hall as part of the third series of the Irish Traditional Music Archive’s Drawing from the Well series. His eponymous 2022 album was deemed “a recording of pure genius” by fellow box player Dermot Byrne. Derek is the button accordion tutor on the BA Irish Music and Dance at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick.

TG4 Gradam Ceoil 2024 Group of the Year Liz and Yvonne Kane, known as The Kane Sisters, are highly respected fiddle players. Born in Letterfrack, they were taught music by the great Sligo musician Mary Finn and by their grandfather, local fiddle player Jimmy Mullen. From a young age they have been deeply influenced by the traditional music of Sligo and East Galway, particularly the music of master composer and fiddle player Paddy Fahey.

The Kane Sisters have performed in prestigious venues all over the world, from Carnegie Hall in New York to the Royal Albert Hall in London, and have recorded and collaborated with many well known artists including The Chieftains, Cherish the Ladies and Steve Earle. Following two years of extensive touring with Sharon Shannon in her band The Woodchoppers, they recorded their first duo album in 2002 entitled The Well Tempered Bow. The sisters subsequently toured Ireland and the U.S. and subsequent releases Under the Diamond (2004) and Side by Side (2010) also received widespread praise. In 2022, they released their fourth album In Memory of Paddy Fahey, which features fifteen of his compositions as well as newly written tunes from both Liz and Yvonne.

Based in Letterfrack, they have a busy teaching schedule, sharing their knowledge of the tradition with a large number of fiddle students both locally and virtually.

TG4 Gradam Ceoil 2024 Young Musician of the Year Macdara Ó Faoláin is a bouzouki player from An Rinn, Co. Waterford. Renowned for his innovative approach to traditional Irish music, he is fast becoming a significant figure in this field.

Macdara performs regularly with collaborators such as Victoria Adiiye and Cormac McCarthy, and is in regular demand as an accompanist, having developed a distinctive approach to the Irish bouzouki. He also performs in a trio with Páraic Mac Donnchadha (tenor banjo) and Pádraic Keane (uilleann pipes). Their debut album, Beo, a compilation of live recordings from performances across the country, was hailed by the Irish Echo as "one of the best albums of the past few years."

After years of building an impressive discography as an accompanist, Macdara recently released a solo EP entitled Do Shamhlaigh Mé Tír Nua… which serves as a prelude to his debut album due for release later in 2024. Both the EP and forthcoming album are produced by composer and pianist Cormac McCarthy. Nós praised the EP as "A beautiful emotive journey".

Macdara’s compositional work draws inspiration from a wide array of genres and he currently focuses on composing solo bouzouki pieces that seamlessly blend his deep knowledge of harmony with his traditional roots. As a native Irish speaker he is also writing new songs in Irish, contributing to both the preservation and evolution of the language through his music.