Taking James O’Donovan’s wonderful re-arrangements of Mick Delahunty Big Band classics for a wonderfully talented jazz six-piece as a starting point, the team that brought you this summer’s Collins Hall are in the mood to improvise, enliven and generally jump-start Clonmel’s Culture Night 2021.

From the joyful romp of American Patrol to the swoony Moonlight Serenade, James O’Donovan on saxophone teams up with Brendan Hickey (guitar), Killian Browne (keys), Cathal Ryan (drums), Emmet Donlon (trumpet) and Sean Carey (bass).
Clonmel Junction Arts Festival (CJAF) was founded in 2001 to celebrate touring theatre and live music. 20 years later it is the pre-eminent arts organisation in Clonmel, providing a platform for regional and national artists, the infrastructure to develop a body of professional arts workers in the town, and a hub for national and international artists to share space and ideas with a large urban town at the heart of a rural hinterland.

A multi-disciplinary Arts Festival, CJAF celebrates the town of Clonmel and the talented artists who live and work here. The ‘junction’ of the title refers to bringing people together: audiences and artists, local and international companies, town and country.

James O'Donovan started his musical career at Banna Cluain Meala, playing the saxophone. Following his B.A. (Hons) in Music at WIT School of Music, James has worked as an instrumentalist since graduating, most notably with popular 10-piece swing/pop showband, The Pearly Whites. James currently works with Music Generation Tipperary as a music educator and was formerly the Manager of Clonmel music store Music Minds. He is studying Sound Design and post-Production at Pulse College Dublin (Windmill Lane).