Last year, the Macroom Cork cultural venue and space relaunched with a lovely new refit and a great opening programme.
The venue’s renovation has meant a fully seated auditorium and balcony with a combined capacity of 200.
Coming up in the next few months are some interesting shows of note.
Nomos | O’Riada Reimagined by Ordnance Survey
Thursday September 18th
Sean O’Riada (1931-71) built the foundations of Irish art music by extending traditional music via both classical and folk music. Ordnance Survey’s Nomos: O’Riada Reimagined (2022) uses technology to achieve such aims within electronic music. Using compositional processes within the field of Spectral Music, where musical decisions are informed by the mathematical analysis of sounds, a piece of software called a spectrogram was used and this allowed for sounds to be viewed as individual samples. Information from these samples were then used as the basis in forming the material for the album. Pedal Steel guitarist David Murphy was invited into the studio to collaborate and add to the recordings.
Nomos: O’Riada Reimagined used such approaches, as O’Riada quotes in ‘Our Musical Heritage’, as ‘a creative contributor to the tradition’. Much the same way O’Riada attempted to add and extend toward the canon of traditional music, it is hoped that this variation adds to the language of electronic music in Ireland now and into the future.
Aoife Dunne | Good Grief
Friday September 26th
Aoife Dunne is one of Ireland’s most exciting new voices in comedy and storytelling. Coming after a fully sold out Edinburgh Fringe run of Good Grief, her debut solo show is a blend of stand-up, spoken word, and razor-sharp storytelling—sold out at Brighton Fringe, a sold out run in Whelan’s, and the Galway Arts festival. It’s a raw and darkly funny journey through grief, resilience, and rebuilding, told with biting wit and emotional honesty.
Niamh Regan
Saturday October 25th
Galway singer-songwriter who we love around these parts is coming to Briery Gap in October with support from Julian Boland. 2024’s Come As You Are album was one of last year’s best Irish albums which I said “features assured songwriting on family and strife, that feels like it’s moving Regan towards her own patch in coming years.”
The Breath
Thursday November 6th
The Breath is Manchester-based guitarist Stuart McCallum and singer/flautist Ríoghnach Connolly. They met on the city’s gig circuit in the late noughties. An unlikely pairing though it was, he an acclaimed guitar whiz, ex long-time member of The Cinematic Orchestra and a softly spoken Manchester urbanite, she a folk singer with a larger-than-life personality and a powerful voice to match.
Breen | Rynne | Murray
Saturday November 15th
A trio comprising of musicians at the fore of our tradition, expect a performance from the gentle to the rhythmical and all the in-betweens.
Tara Breen has numerous All Ireland titles on the fiddle and tours regularly with The Chieftains, Stockton’s wing and as a solo performer. Pádraig Rynne is considered a leading figure in Irish music and is founding member of well-known bands such as NOTIFY and Guidewires.
Jim has been one of the most sought after and busiest musicians of his generation over the past two decades recording and touring with some of the best known folk musicians in the world. Their 2021 release “Nasc” is regarded as one of the finest albums in recent years from an Irish Traditional outfit and was winner of the best traditional album in the 2022 American Celtic listener supported radio awards.
With special guest Nell Ní Chróinín
See more of what’s on in the venue.
Niall Byrne is the founder of the most-influential Irish music site Nialler9, where he has been writing about music since 2005. He is the co-host of the Nialler9 Podcast and has written for the Irish Times, Irish Independent, Sunday Times, Totally Dublin, Cara Magazine, Red Bull and more. Niall is a DJ, co-founder of Lumo Club, event curator, Indie Sleaze club promoter, and producer of gigs and monthly listening parties & events in Dublin.
