The Irish Airs Project

Various

5.0 (2)
Music Interviews
Updated Weekly

Interviews and recordings by Irish Airs Players. Hosted by Kell Chole.

Jun 14

Denis Liddy and Elvie Miller partner for an emotional telling of The Wild Geese

çWe found Denis and Elvie at home in Clare, where they shared the musical storytelling of The Wild Geese. As Denis plays on fiddle, Elvie answers on piano. Rather than a duet, it is more a musical conversation, creating beauty and contrast, bringing the story to life. Denis Liddy — Musician and Educator Denis Liddy is a traditional Irish fiddle player and primary school teacher from Newmarket-on-Fergus, County Clare, Ireland CDSS Camps and Online Programs. He has been playing the fiddle since the age of eight and has built a strong reputation in the Irish traditional music scene. Career and Achievements Music Career: Since 1999, Denis has led his students to numerous music competitions, winning multiple awards. He has recorded four CDs and toured extensively across Ireland, the UK, France, Spain, Canada, China, Bulgaria, the US, Australia, and Sweden CDSS Camps and Online Programs. Recordings: He has released albums, including Tradaree with his wife, Elvie Miller CDSS Camps and Online Programs. Performance and Teaching: Denis regularly teaches and performs at major Irish music festivals such as the Willie Clancy Summer School, Milwaukee Irish Festival, Ennis Traditional Music Festival, and Joseph Browne Traditional Music Festival CDSS Camps and Online Programs. Music School: He runs a large traditional music school in County Clare, where he mentors young musicians and fosters their skills CDSS Camps and Online Programs. Community and Cultural Impact Through his work, Denis supports the preservation and promotion of Irish traditional music and dance, contributing to vibrant community life in County Clare and beyond. His programs and performances help sustain and pass on these cultural traditions to new generations CDSS Camps and Online Programs. In summary, Denis Liddy is a respected figure in Irish traditional music, combining his passion for performance with a commitment to education and cultural preservation. Elvie Miller is an American folk musician, accordionist, and contra dance performer known for her work in traditional Irish and English country dance music. She grew up immersed in the New England music and dance community, attending Family Week at Pinewoods many times as a camper CDSS Camps and Online Programs. From an early age, she played music — starting with classical piano — before shifting to Irish/contra dance accordion and piano www.monadnockfolk.org. In 2005, Miller earned the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship, traveling through Ireland, England, Scotland, Finland, Sweden, France, and Cape Breton to study accordion and traditional music. She performed internationally alongside artists such as Karen Tweed, Timo Alakotila, and Maria Kalaniemi www.monadnockfolk.org. She now lives in County Clare, Ireland, with her husband, fiddler Denis Liddy, and their twin daughters CDSS Camps and Online Programs. Miller has been active in teaching and performing, touring with groups like Rodney Miller, Airdance, Night Watch, and Denis Liddy www.monadnockfolk.org. She has released several recordings, including Grapevine (2003) with Naomi Morse on fiddle, Spyglass (2007) with her father Rodney Miller on fiddle, and contributed to Night Watch’s upcoming debut album www.monadnockfolk.org. She is also known for her compositions and performances at events such as the Milwaukee Irish Fest www.monadnockfolk.org. Her career blends folk music, dance, and community engagement, and she continues to explore children’s literature alongside her musical pursuits
Feb 10

Paddy Callaghan Harnesses Power, Subtlety and Harmonics to Deliver Slane

Paddy Callaghan is a self-professed airs aficionado. His “party piece” air is an ancient air called Slane, but one that many know as a hymn, sung often in modern day churches. As part of our 2025 Wexford Fleadh series, we met up with Paddy to discover how he uses the full gamut of sound his instrument offers to develop an air with depth and emotion.
Jan 30

Attracta Brady's high notes move to resolutions in her father's Lament for Mother

Hailing from Killeigh in Co Offaly, Attracta is a flute, fiddle and whistle player. She learned her craft from her father, the composer and flute player John Brady. Attracta is very involved with Comhaltas and is active at all levels of the organization, from her local branch to international levels. She is currently Uachtaráin (President) of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann, one of few women to hold that title over the 75 years of the organization. Attracta has several All-Ireland titles to her name, both as a solo performer and member of duets, trios, and céilí bands.
Jan 25

Danny McKendry plays Aird Uí Chuain and muses on the passing of airs from generation to generation

Danny McKendry, a fiddle player, lives in the village of Eaglesham south of Glasgow in Scotland. Danny first learned his fiddle airs from his father, Danny, who had Antrim and Donegal roots. A member of the St James the Great Comhaltas Branch in Pollok for over 30 years, Danny enjoys attending fleadhanna with his musical family of Roslynn, Séamus and Brigid Rose as well as enjoying summers in Donegal, where his mother was from.
Jan 18

Jennie Nolan finds a connection to home in Sliabh Geal gCua

My Dad's family were from Carlow, in Ireland, and my Dad, throughout his life, played Irish Traditional music on banjo, button accordion, guitar and he even sang. He took me to join my local Comhaltas branch at around age 10, as I already started learning tunes at my local sessions. He really wanted me to be connected with other families and musicians in the Liverpool Irish community. It was great as we could learn and play Irish Traditional music together, and with other people. I have great memories of attending sessions and Fleadhanna with my Dad and making friendships with other children at the branch. I first started properly teaching when I was 20 years old as a way to expand my knowledge but also to pass on my heritage to new members and create memories like I had done with my Dad. Decades on, I’m still a member and teacher, as well as being a representative of the Northern Region. The instruments I teach are button accordion and whistle, but I also play the concertina, piano accordion and piano. Jennie's partner, Jon Turton, is also featured in The Airs Project.
Jan 18

Majella Bartley Leads with her Heart in The Wounded Hussar

All Ireland champion flute and whistle player, Majella Bartley, is from Corcaghan in Co. Monaghan. She is a respected flute and fiddle teacher, tutoring at various national and international summer schools and workshops such as Scoil Eigse (the summer school that precedes the All Ireland Fleadh) and many others. She achieved the TTCT (Teastas i dTeagasc Ceolta Tíre) traditional music teaching diploma awarded by Comhaltas and is now a tutor and lecturer on this course. She is also a qualified adjudicator and has adjudicated many competitions including the All Ireland Fleadh. She has toured with Comhaltas in Britain and Ireland and has played festivals and events around the world. Her Masters in Irish Traditional Music Performance is from the University of Limerick.
Jan 11

Maurice Lennon Balances Light and Shade in The Little Ones

Maurice Lennon is an Irish fiddle and viola player and a composer. Born in Limerick City, he grew up in a very musical family, the son of the late fiddle player Ben Lennon and nephew of composer, fiddle player and pianist Charlie Lennon. He won the senior All-Ireland fiddle title in 1977. He was a founding member of the band Stockton's Wing in the 1980s. His compositions include The Belltable Waltz (with Kieran Hanrahan), Visiting Kittens, If Ever You Were Mine, A Tribute to Larry Reynolds, and The Golden Stud. He was honored as 2011 iBAM Musician of the Year by the Irish American Heritage Center in Chicago USA. He arranged a grupa cheoil for Murphy Roche School of Irish Music. In 2012, at Fleadh Cheoil na hEireann in Cavan, that ensemble captured the Senior All Ireland title. In 2013 Maurice released his first solo fiddle album The Little Ones, which contains several of his compositions and includes the air he recorded for this series. He was musical director for the popular dance show Ragus and toured with singer/songwriter Finbar Furey for six years. In 2023 he received the TG4 Gradam Ceoil Award for composition.
Jan 11

Dr. Robert Harvey dynamically interprets The Lament for Father Newman

Dr. Robert Harvey is a fan of John Brady’s music and has recorded the Lament for Father Newman for The Airs project. Robert has just released a new album with his brother James that includes a Sean Ryan tune not previously in print, called Arderin Jig, along with Heywood Wake and a great version of The Jig of Clonmore in A. After you enjoy his lament and interview forThe Airs Project, be sure to watch their video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/vB-SlEv4pac?si=7E9FvFR9FJMFsYj4 Filmed by Naoise Kettle, it’s a musical and visual treat! Robert is a seven-time All-Ireland Champion and a flautist from Mountrath, Co. Laois. He is known for his work with the supergroup Ciorras and his role in the animated short film ‘The Lost Letter’. Harvey has also starred in the Universal Studios animated film ‘The Christmas Letter’ narrated by Kate Winslet. His solo flute album, Feochan, was released in 2017, and his recent album Beara features a duet with Tara Viscardi. Harvey is also the author of Feadail: The Whistling Tradition in Ireland, which explores the history and performance practice of whistling. He is the musical director of the DCU Irish Traditional Music Ensemble and has composed and arranged music for various ensembles, including the DCU Irish Traditional Music Ensemble and Ceoltoiri Óga Laighean. Harvey studied music at Trinity College Dublin and the Conservatory of Music and Drama DIT, graduating with first-class honours and receiving the President’s Gold Medal for his master's research. He has also been involved in various international projects, including touring with the Katerina Garcia Band and the Traditional Arts Collective.
Jan 7

Enchanted by the song, Éilís Needham plays Slán le Máigh as an air

Éilís Needham is a multi-instrumentalist from Hazelwood Co. Sligo. She is the current winner of the prestigious International Harp competition at the O’Carolan Harp Festival in Keadue Co. Roscommon. Éilís has numerous All-Ireland titles to her name on both the harp and button accordion and was the All-Ireland Senior Champion in the Harp Slow Airs competition at Fleadh Cheoil na hEireann 2022 in Mullingar. She released her debut album titled "Fuinniúil" in 2017 and makes regular appearances on TG4, RTÉ and Raidió a Gaeltachta. She performed solo on the TG4 “Fleadh Fest” series that aired summer of 2021. Éilís delved into the art of composition at the age of 15 and has won many competitions and scholarships with her newly composed tunes - one of which was published in the “Irish Music Magazine” in 2021. She was a finalist in the Bonn Óir Seán Ó Riada competition that took place in Co. Cork in 2021 and 2025. She performed in the National Concert Hall as a finalist in the Siansa Gael Linn competition and has performed in other notable venues around the country including the Guild Hall in Derry and the Cork City Hall for the premier of the Irish film “The Hegartys of the Laurels” that commemorated the Irish Civil war in 1922. Éilís is now based in Cork city where she really enjoys doing gigs at the weekends and teaching music on a weekly basis.
09/30/2025

Jon Turton plays Green Fields of Canada

Welcome to The Irish Airs Project! In our first episode, we sit down with Jon Turton in Liverpool. This interview was recorded in January 2025. Video of the interview can be found here: https://youtu.be/bJIikv2WZxg Thanks for listening! Enjoy! Jon's Bio: “My family is originally from the County of Roscommon, it was inevitable that Irish Traditional music would be a big part of my life. I started playing the whistle when I was probably 10 years old. I eventually settled on the Uilleann Pipes as my preferred instrument. Other than the pipes, you might often see me with a banjo or bouzouki. Whilst growing up, I was lucky that there was a practice set in the house as my dad played a bit. They say it takes 21 years to learn to play the pipes, well I’ve been playing twice that time. Even today, I’m still learning something new every time I play, that’s what I love about music, you’re always listening and learning. I first became aware of Comhaltas when I was 16. Living in the North East of Wales meant there were infrequent long journeys to the Liverpool Irish Centre on Mount Pleasant, a building that was the beating heart of the Irish Community at the time. I remember going to the Echoes of Erin concerts and being envious of the players, who would have been not much older than myself then. I became more involved with the Liverpool branch when I was an adult. The love and knowledge of Irish Traditional music was passed down to me through my family. I wanted others, who didn’t have this, to be able to learn to play and enjoy the friendships that I’ve made over the years. I believe that Comhaltas and the branches provide the first step to a lifelong love of traditional music and bonds with other members in their community. In 2024, I decided to run for the Northern UK Region Chairman of Comhaltas. It was the perfect time, I had recently taken early retirement and I wanted to give back to my community. I had plenty of time on my hands, but now I’ve never been busier! My hope for the future is to improve the lines of communications between the region and the branches. I want to see more co-operation and inter-branch visits to foster a sense of connection between us. All the hard work behind the scenes, I wouldn’t be able to do without my fantastic and enthusiastic committee and the equally dedicated branches. Another area that I’m personally interested in, is promoting more active numbers of pipers in Comhaltas in Britain. One of the aims of Comhaltas is the promotion of national instruments like the harp and the pipes. Uilleann pipes are on the Unesco list of Intangible heritage, to see an instrument so dear to me being protected is amazing. We can only preserve unique instruments through participation and continue evolving its use in our lives. I can’t wait to see what 2025 has to offer for the Northern region and for my own branch. I’ll continue playing and improving my piping skills in-between sessions. If anybody wants to reach out to me or the committee to support promotion of the pipes or plan an inter-branch visit. You can talk to me in person or email me at northernregion@comhaltas.co.uk

10 Episodes

5

out of 5

2 Ratings

Love the music!

Jan 12

Yhtbybyn

This podcast has great people come on and play beautiful music then a deep thought out analyzation of the music, love what you guys are doing, keep up with the great work. Highly recommend!

Interviews and recordings by Irish Airs Players. Hosted by Kell Chole.

Creator

Various
Years Active

2025 - 2026
Episodes

10