Music Network has announced its programme of tours taking place this autumn. Four series of concerts with Irish and international traditional, classical and jazz musicians will be presented in venues across the country – and in London – from September until November this year. Music Network has also commissioned two new pieces by composers Judith Ring and John Buckley that will premiere during the season. 

Starting the season in September will be a trio comprising fiddle player and singer Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh, harper and singer Cormac De Barra, and uilleann piper and flute player Mark Redmond. Ní Mhaonaigh, a member of Altan and a previous recipient of the TG4 Gradam Ceoil award, is currently Artist in Residence at the tech hub Gteic in Gaoth Dobhair; De Barra is a well-known soloist on harp and regularly performs with the Moya Brennan Band and Anne-Marie O’Farrell; and Redmond has often performed with orchestras such as the NSO and the Irish Memory Orchestra, and shows including Riverdance, and is also taking part in the concert of works by Shaun Davey in the National Symphony Orchestra’s new season at the National Concert Hall. This is the first time the trio have performed together and they will perform nine dates, beginning in the Sugar Club in Dublin (14 September) and running until 2 October, visiting Wicklow, London, Clifden, and Newbridge and more. 

From 5 to 10 October, violin and piano duet Clara-Jumi Kang and Sunwook Kim will perform in Dublin, Waterford, Sligo, Kilkenny and Listowel. Kang won first prize at the Seoul International Music Competition while Kim is a former winner of the Leeds International Piano Competition. They released an acclaimed four-disc Beethoven album last year. For their Irish tour, they will perform a programme of violin sonatas by Beethoven, Respighi and Franck, along with a new Music Network commission by Irish composer John Buckley, Duo. 

Also in October, Music Network will present a series of concerts by jazz singer and double bass player Sélène Saint-Aimé, performing with Rafael Aguila on tenor saxophone and Boris Reine-Adélaïde on bèlè drum. Saint-Aimé will visit Dublin, Tinahely, Bray and Cork from 25 to 30 October. The trio’s performance will evoke the structure of the Martinican bèlè tradition – a dialogue of drumming and dancing that juxtaposes Afro-Caribbean musical elements with improvisation. 

Closing the programme in November is the cello and accordion duo of Christian-Pierre La Marca and Félicien Brut. The two French musicians lean into the unusual pairing of instruments with a programme spanning the genres of classical, jazz, folk and contemporary, including works by Bach, Chopin, Gershwin and Ariel Ramirez, along with the world premiere of a new Music Network commission by Judith Ring. 

Commenting on the tours, Sharon Rollston, CEO of Music Network, said:

We’re committed to bringing brilliant musicians from both here and around the globe to audiences throughout Ireland. We’re also expanding access to the tours via a range of workshops for schools, music groups and communities under our Learning and Participation Programme. Combined with concerts in 19 different venues across the country, this provides opportunities for people of all ages to engage with these incredible artists and their music on a number of levels.

Music Network also recently announced the results of its Music Capital Scheme – a programme that provides funding for the purchase of musical instruments – and in June, announced the six musicians taking part in its RESONATE programme, a project that partners established musicians with cultural spaces.

For further information and tickets, visit: www.musicnetwork.ie/