The Gloaming MartinHayes,IarlaO'Lionaird,CaoimhinO'Raghallaigh,DennisCahill,ThomasBartlett

It’stoolatetostopnow.Whatbeganasanexperimenthasturnedintosomethingtrulycompelling,enthrallingandthrilling.Somethingwhichneverfailstolifttheheartorliftaroof.Somethingwhichconnectsyoutooldsoulsandwildwaysandfiercetimes.Somethingwhichcertainlydidn’texistbefore,butwhichoftenfeelsasifithasbeenbeenpartandparcelofthefurnitureforever.Inmanyways,TheGloamingbeganwithaquestion:whatwouldhappenifyouamplifiedandenhancedtraditionalIrishmusic’srich,melancholic,soulfultoneswithmodernhuesofjazz,contemporaryclassicalandexperimentalmusic?Inmanyways,themusicianswhostartedoutonthisodysseyarestillansweringthatquestioneverynighttheygoonstagetoplayanothersold-outshowinsomeofthemostprestigiousconcerthallsaroundtheworld.It’sananswerwithoutafullstopinsight.TheGloamingbringstogetherfivemusicalmasters.SteepedintraditionalIrishmusicsincebirth,fiddlersMartinHayesandCaoimhinÓRaghallaighandsean-nóssingerIarlaÓLionáirdarejoinedbyNewYorkpianistThomasBartlett(Doveman),andChicago-bornguitaristDennisCahill.ThebackgroundsofTheGloaming’sthreeIrishmembersshowthestrength,diversity,historyandcolourofthetraditionalmusicecosystem.HayeshailsfromCountyClare,whereaslow,contemplative,andmelancholicsweepoffiddlemusicholdsswayamongstitsmusicians.AmovetoAmericaburnishedhissoundwithnewidioms,rangingfromArvoPärttoSigurRos.StillverymuchanEastClarefiddler,Hayeshasbroughtthisage-oldsoundintoamodernsettingwithoutlosinganyofitsessence.Hayes’sfellowfiddlerisDublin-bornÓRaghallaigh,whoseheadwasturnedbyminimal,experimentalsounds.Hisabilitytominethespaceandtexturebetweenthenoteswithhiscustomizedfiddle,partNorwegianHardangerandpartviolad’amore,hasproducedamesmerisingbodyofgroundbreakingsoloandcollaborativework.Asaplayer,ÓRaghallaighisfearlessandpeerlesswhenitcomestofollowingamusicalhunchornudgeacrossthefieldsandhills.

ÓLionáirdhailsfromWestCork,wheresean-nóssinging-solosingingunaccompaniedbyanyinstrument-isthelinguafranca.Passeddownthegenerationslikeafieldwithroadfootage,thesongscoveramultitudeofmaterial:historicalevents,lovepoemsorbittersweetaccountsoflossandemigration,and,ofcourse,songsaboutdrinkinganddevilment.Anexponentofthisdark,passionate,andancientart,ÓLionáirdhastakenaunique,indeliblyIrishvoiceandlyricsdrawnfromIrishliteratureintonewterrain.HehasrecordedanumberofalbumsforRealWorldRecordsandbecameachoicecollaboratorforcomposerslikeNicoMuhly,GavinBryars,andDonnachaDennehy.ThecastofTheGloaminghasfoundnewdepthandwidthwiththeadditionofguitaristCahill,anAmericanfromDingle,CountyKerrystock,andproducer/pianistBartlett,whohasworkedwithAntonyandtheJohnsons,SufjanStevens,TheNationalandmanymore.WithCahillandBartlett’smusicaldexterityandshaping,TheGloaming’sreelsandjigsattainnewandexhilaratingheights.It’saboldandbravecombinationthatcreatesthedistinctive,bracingsoundofmusicthenandnow,perfectlyintune.TheGloaming’sdebutalbumwaswidelyconsideredasoneofthefinestrecordingsof2014,featuringonmanyyear-endbestlistsincludingMojo,NPRMusicandtheIrishTimesandselectedbyTheGuardianasTheOneAlbumYouShouldHearThisWeek.ItwonaBBCRadio2FolkAwardintheU.K.andtheprestigiousChoiceMusicPrizeforAlbumoftheYearinIreland.Theband’ssecondalbum“2”wasreleasedinFebruary2016.RecordedoveroneinspiredweekatRealWorldStudios,“2”againreceivedaticker-tapeparadeofpositivereviews(“anexquisitealbumfromavirtuosoband”:TheGuardian).Atyear’send,thereweremoreaccoladesforthemantelpiecefromsuchsourcesasTheIrishTimes(BestTraditionalAlbum),TheDailyTelegraph(BestFolkMusic)andTheIrishIndependent(“thecoolestsupergroupsincetheMillionDollarQuartet”).Inthelastnumberofyears,thebandhavetrulybecomealiveforcetobereckonedwith.Theyhaveplayedanannualrunofsold-outshowsatDublin’sNationalConcertHall,eachseriessellingoutquickerthanthepreviousoneandfasterthannewshowscanbeadded.Awayfromhome,theirinternationaltouringschedulehasbeenequallyimpressive,includingsuchnotablenightsoutastheCeiliúradhatLondon’sRoyalAlbertHall(acelebrationoftheIrishpresident’sfirst-everstatevisittoBritain),Sydney’sOperaHouse,NewYork’sLincolnCenter,Hamburg’sElbphilharmonie,MexicoCity’sTeatrodelaCiudadandPhilharmoniedeParis.InMarch,thebandperformedsevensold-outshowsatDublin’sNationalConcertHall,theironlyliveappearancesof2018.Tomarkthisoccasion,theyrelease“LiveattheNCH”,alivealbumrecordedatthevenuewhichhasbecometheirhomefromhome.Toput“LiveatNCH”togetherBartlett,theband’sproducer,siftedthroughtwoyearsofperformancesandsettledonsixtracks:“TheBooleyHouse”,“Cucanandy”,“TheSailor’sBonnet”,“ThePilgrim’sSong”,“TheRollingWave”and“Fáinleog”.Usingthestudiorecordingsonlyaspointsofdeparture,theseperformancesstretchoutandroaminunexpectednewdirections,incorporatingnewtunesandrearrangingold

ones,filledwiththeexcitementanddelightoffivemastermusicianscomingtogetherasone.ThealbumwasreleasedtouniversalacclaimbyRealWorldon2March2018.JimCarroll,April2018

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