Cairde Sligo Arts Festival

“A trio of musicians who’ve parked their egos outside the door and let the music tell its own tales.”
The Irish Times

The origins of the BFM Trio can be traced back to Tubercurry and Bunnanaden, the heartland of the famed South Sligo tradition where both Declan Folan and Shane McGowan grew up playing music together from their early teens. Leonard Barry, from North Kerry first met Declan in London in the early 1990’s where they played music together on the traditional music scene. All three musicians are now based in Sligo.

Between them the Trio have shared the stage and recorded with many of music greats including Zakeer Hussain, Lunasa, Dervish, Sean Keane, Luka Bloom, Lisa O’Neill amongst many others. They release their debut album in 2019 They have performed throughout the world at many festivals and concert halls.

They are joined for a very special festival concert with Irish folk / trad luminaries Cathy Jordan and Daoirí Farrell.

Cathy Jordan
Noted for her earthy yet ethereal vocalisations and deceptively powerful voice, Cathy Jordan’s irrepressible energy and powerful stage presence have captivated audiences worldwide. Lead singer of trad supergroup Dervish, Jordan has performed thousands of concerts in over 40 countries across the world.

She has also developed a substantial body of work outside of this, including with Appalachian folk trio Unwanted and as a solo artist. She was a key member of ‘Meascán – Music across Cultures’ for CSAF in 2019 and was in residency with Claudia Schwab and Irene Buckley on Pluirín na mBan, re-interpreting a selection of traditional songs and tunes for CSAF in 2020.

Daoirí Farrell
Singer and bouzouki player Daoirí (pronounced ‘Derry’) Farrell is described by some of the biggest names in Irish folk music as one of most important singers to come out of Ireland in recent years. Six months after releasing the album ‘True Born Irishman’ Daoirí won two prestigious BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards 2017 for Best Newcomer and Best Traditional Track, and performed live at the awards ceremony at London’s Royal Albert Hall. Since then he has toured the UK, and played at festivals in Australia, Canada, the UK, Belgium, Denmark and more. Daoirí released his new album ‘A Lifetime Of Happiness’, produced by Dónal Lunny, in February 2019. In autumn 2019 he was also nominated for three RTÉ Radio 1 Folk Awards 2019 for best singer, best traditional track and best album for ‘A Lifetime Of Happiness’.

‘Daoirí is one of the most important traditional singers to emerge in the last decade’ Dónal Lunny

‘His powerfully unadorned vocals might be from any era, variously recalling Paul Brady and Andy Irvine…it’s a powerful statement.’ **** Mojo