Now in its ninth year and well established as one of Ireland’s best Winter Festivals, The Ballincollig Winter Music Festival returns this January 2018, with another fantastic and eclectic mix of artists and events centered around the festival hub at The White Horse.

On Sunday, January 28 The Ballincollig Winter Music Festival are thrilled to bring to the intimate setting of Upstairs at the White Horse three members from one of Ireland’s leading traditional music outfits, De Dannan. This is going to be a special one, a rare chance to hear the two founding maestros of De Dannan, Alec Finn and Frankie Gavin, on bouzouki and fiddle with the superb Derek Hickey, a member of that famed band from later years. The performance starts at 3pm and tickets are €20.

Joining them for this afternoon concert as a special guest is Italian folk and world music star, Lavinia Mancusi. At the age of seven Mancusi began studying the violin at the Popular School of Music of Testaccio with Maestro Massimo Pastorello. In 1997 she won the Special Jury Prize for the violin of the "Arturo Toscanini" Competition. Over the years she studied the violin with masters such as: Carlo Cossu, Tiziana Mangione (first violin of the Rome Symphony Orchestra), Marco Fiorentini, and Antonio Fraioli. Since 2006 Mancusi has incorporated popular music into her repertoire and worked with Nando Citarella as part of Tamburi del Vesuvio. She is currently the voice and violin of Medfree Orkestra, with whom she recorded the album "Pensiero Mediterraneo" (2012) and "Background" (2014), and of the Takadum Orchestra by Simone Pulvano, with whom he recorded the album "Takadum .. .suoni at the border "(2013) and" Addije "(2015).

Join Alec Finn, Frankie Gavin, Derek Hickey and special guest Lavinia Mancusi Upstairs at The White Horse on Sunday January 28 at 3pm. Tickets €20.