Composer and guitarist Dave Flynn (pictured) has just announced receipt of funding from the Arts Council for his tour called The Tune Makers which is to take place in the autumn of this year. Based around composer-musicians Máirtín O’Connor, Liz Carroll and Flynn himself playing each other’s music as well as music by other composers, with the aim of ‘showcasing the artistry of Irish tune composers’, at each concert the trio will be joined by a special guest composer with links to the area they are visiting. 

Dave Flynn

HCMF and IMRO award-winning composer Dave Flynn’s music has been performed at festivals including Summergarden, New York; Prague Premieres; and HCMF, by artists including the Smith Quartet and the ConTempo Quartet, Prague and Irish Chamber Orchestras, New Juilliard Ensemble, Rolf Hind and Martin Hayes. He holds a composition PhD from the Conservatory of Music in Dublin and a Masters Degree in Composition from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London. He recently had his scores for Aontacht and Music for the Departed published by Frisbee Publications.

Máirtín O’Connor

Máirtín O’Connor was one of the main musical forces behind Riverdance, and is also known for his work with De Dannan, Midnight Well and Skylark and as a solo artist. For the past ten years his group has included multi-all Ireland winner Cathal Hayden and former Dervish member Séamie O’Dowd, with percussionist Jim Higgins joining them occasionally. A prolific writer of new material, his tunes can be heard on the recordings of many artists and at sessions throughout the world.

Liz Carroll

Liz Carroll was born in Chicago of Irish parents. She is a junior and senior All-Ireland Fiddle Champion, and has toured as a solo artist and with the Greenfields of America, Trian, String Sisters, and with John Doyle. In 2009 she became the first Irish-American musician nominated for a Grammy. She received the National Heritage Fellowship Award in 1994 which honored her as a ‘Master Traditional Artist who has contributed to the shaping of our artistic traditions and to preserving the cultural diversity of the United States’.
Interested venues/promoters should contact BallyO Promotions for further information ballyopromotions [at] gmail.com