Woodbine for Stormont concert, 14 Mar. 2009

Woodbine at Omagh 2008

Athy-based band Woodbine will be taking part in a unique concert in Northern Ireland during St Patrick's weekend this year.

Last year at the Foyle Ulster Scots Festival launch in Derry at which Woodbine performed, William Hay MLA, Speaker at Stormont, expressed a desire to bluegrass organiser Frank Galligan that he would be interested in a St Patrick's Day concert which celebrated the rich cultural diversity in music, song, and the bardic tradition in Ulster and the rest of Ireland. The good news is that the concert will be taking place on Saturday 14 March, but will only be open to invited guests: it will be indoors in Stormont.

As well as Woodbine, other guests include the sensational group Kintra, born out of a cross-community project between traditional musicians in Donegal; a brass band in Strabane; and the Ulster-Scots Highland dancing traditoon in Tyrone. Also featuring will be the very funny Declan Forde (photo right), who performs 'poems with chords' and qualifies as a latter-day Bard of Tyrone.