We Banjo 3 Win Young Musicwide

We Banjo 3 Win Young Musicwide

From Galway, the members of We Banjo 3 are Enda Scahill, Martin Howley and David Howley. Their music stems from the Irish banjo tradition but as Scahill explains, ‘the banjo sound cannot be isolated from the other traditions of bluegrass and American old time and we explore all its manifestations.'

The group We Banjo 3 has been chosen for the 2011 Young Musicwide professional development programme supporting musicians in the early stages of their performing career.

From Galway, the members of We Banjo 3 are Enda Scahill, Martin Howley and David Howley. With tenor banjos, mandolins, tenor guitars, guitars, banjolin and vocals, their music stems from the Irish banjo tradition but as Scahill explains, ‘the banjo sound cannot be isolated from the other traditions of bluegrass and American old time and we explore all its manifestations.’ In conversation with The Journal of Music, Scahill said that We Banjo 3 have been playing together for a few years but only now with the part-funding that this programme provides will they be recording their first album and touring.

Enda Scahill has been playing banjo for over ten years with the Brock McGuire band — recently voted Instrumental Band of the Decade by Irish American News. His album with Paul Brock in 2006, Humdinger, was awarded Traditional Album of the Year by the Irish Times.

Seven-time All-Ireland Banjo Champion, Martin Howley is apparently the first Irish banjo player to play at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. Martin has toured with The Brock McGuire Band and been a member of folk band Siamsa na Gaillimhe. David Howley is Martin’s younger brother, and plays banjo, guitar and mandolin as well as providing the group with its ‘rhythm section’ and lead vocals.

Developed in 2001 by Music Network, Young Musicwide was established to help talented young Irish musicians to pursue a professional career and give promoters nationwide access to the very best in young Irish talent. Auditions for this year were open to groups with a proven interest in trad performance, and the panel was composer Neil Martin, musician Emer Mayock and Sharon Rollston, Acting CEO, Music Network.

Previous recipients of the award include the Callino Quartet (2001); voice and piano duo Ailish Tynan and Deborah Kelleher (2002); clarinetist Carol McGonnell (2003); Organics jazz trio (2004); traditional Irish group Slide (2005), piano, cello and violin trio The Syrius Trio (2006) and harp, flute and viola trio, Triocca (2006), jazz quartet Trihornophone (2007), fiddle trio Fidil (2008), piano quartet Cappa Ensemble (2009) and jazz quintet Thought-Fox in 2010.

www.webanjo3.com

Published on 12 October 2011

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