Noriana Kennedy: pre-Australia tour, Feb. 2012

Thanks to Noriana Kennedy of Galway for this news and press release:

Folk singer Noriana Kennedy, together with Nicola Joyce and Noelie McDonnell, will be touring Australia this spring and summer through an exciting record deal offered by ABC Australia. As a farewell and warmup, their pre-Australia Irish tour brings their great music to the Crane, Galway (9 Feb.), the Linen Hall Theatre, Castlebar (14 Feb.), Campbell's Tavern, Headford (25 Feb.), and Whelan's, Dublin (29 Feb.).

From a Filipino and Irish background, Noriana Kennedy was born in Dublin. She worked in Castlebar for a year with the EPA but moved to Galway in 2005 to become part of its thriving Irish music scene. After six years of gigging and honing her craft, last year she released Ebb n flow, an album that revels in both the Irish and American folk tradition. The Irish Times lauded Ebb n flow for its 'exquisite phrasing and a songbook as wide as a southern porch'.

Noriana now finds herself at the fore of the Irish roots music scene, singing with esteemed players like Sharon Shannon and the Waterboys' Trevor Hutchinson. The singer was awarded the Irish Music Network Performance and Touring Award in February 2011, and consistently wins audiences over with her nuanced, joyful performances and her fluid playing of the quirky hybrid banjo-ukulele. Her performance at the Galway Arts Festival last year was reviewed by the Connacht Tribune as one of Galway's most memorable folk concerts in 2011.

For her Irish farewell tour , Noriana will be joined by Galway native Nicola Joyce, who Earl Hitchner of the Wall Street Journal praised as ‘a magnificient vocalist who sings with sheer beauty and poignancy’. Nicola is a seasoned and gifted performer who has played in over 500 cities across the globe with Americana/Irish group Gráda. Nicola plays percussion and mandolin and is a harmony singer of both precision and grace.

Also hailing from Galway, Noelie McDonnell plays with an ease and magnetism that is all too rare in modern performers. A singer-songwriter of genuine class, Noelie received extensive airplay in Ireland with 'Nearly four', a song inspired by his nephew. He has been hailed by the New York Post as 'a startlingly good new Irish talent’ and his album Beyond hard places spent two months in the iTunes Top 10 folk album charts. The live arena is where Noelie thrives, and he has been invited to share the stage with such luminaries as John Martyn, Greg Brown, Luka Bloom, and Eddie Reader.

Noriana is overwhelmed by the reaction the Australian market seems to be having on her music, saying: 'It's a really exciting time for us, as great friends and musicians, to all head off to Australia. We are blessed that ABC Australia have taken us on so confidently. There's talk of us playing Sydney Opera House... but all to be confirmed soon!'. Together, Noriana Kennedy, Noelie McDonnell and Nicola Joyce spark splendidly off each other, bringing added magic to the already impressive Ebb N Flow. Their Irish concerts will be well worth the visit and their splendid vocals combine with guitar, percussion, and the banjo-ukulele to weave a beguiling tapestry of Irish and American folk. Listen out for their live performance on the Pat Kenny radio show on 8 February. See Noriana's website for further details.

Thurs. 9th: Crane Bar, Sea Rd, Galway, 9.00 p.m. €10
Tues. 14th: Linen Hall, Castlebar, Co. Mayo, 8.00 p.m. €16
Sat. 25th: Campbell's Tavern, Headford, Co. Galway, 9.30 p.m. €10
Wed. 29th: Whelans Live (upstairs), Dublin 2, 9.00 p.m. €10

Noriana Kennedy
30 Crescent Court
Fr Griffin Road
Galway, Ireland
Tel. +353 0861003342
e-mail