Scottish Chamber Orchestra with Julie Fowlis, Éamon Doorley, Zoë Conway & John Mc Intyre and Máirtín O'Connor

The long wait is finally over! A highly anticipated Scottish-Irish musical partnership takes the stage as Gaelic folk star Julie Fowlis leads a spectacular collaboration with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, conducted by David Brophy.

Joined by Irish traditional talents Éamon Doorley, Zoë Conway, and John Mc Intyre, this special Celtic Connections performance offers a captivating and deeply personal response to a diverse collection of poetry. The five musicians combine their unique voices and backgrounds—from Julie's Outer Hebridean roots and Éamon’s experience with the influential band Danú, to Zoë’s work with artists like Lou Reed, and John's rock background with The Revs.

This collaboration brilliantly fuses the elegance of a world-class orchestra with the heart and depth of traditional music, creating an intimate yet powerful sound that transcends genre. Don't miss this truly special co-commissioned event, an evening of songs and stories finally coming to fruition.

Máirtín O’Connor’s name has been synonymous with the accordion for decades both as a player and as a composer/arranger. He started playing at a young age after a captivating visit to his grandparents, who both played. In 1976 he was invited by the great singer/songwriter Thom Moore to join his band Midnight Well, and since then he’s worked as a professional musician touring and recording with many bands including Reel Union, De Danann, Skylark, as well as playing as a soloist in the first Riverdance orchestra. His first solo album, The Connachtman’s Rambles received great critical acclaim and had a long run in the British folk charts. His second solo album Perpetual Motion explored music outside the Irish tradition and was nominated for a Bank of Ireland Arts award. This was followed by three albums of his own compositions, Chatterbox, The Road West and Rain of Light. These albums are considered innovative, groundbreaking and captivating.

He has composed music for TV and theatrical productions. In 2013 he was commissioned to compose a suite of music for the European Conference on Dolphins and Whales held in Galway. This resulted in “The Mighty Ocean”, a musical dialogue between mankind and the sea that he will perform in full tonight with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, and featuring his band of Cathal Hayden (fiddle & banjo), Seamie O'Dowd (guitar), Matthew Berrill (clarinet), Jimmy Higgins (percussion), Ciara O'Connor (cello) and Sinead O'Connor (fiddle).

As a studio session musician he’s contributed to many recordings for artists including The Chieftains, The Dubliners, Liam Clancy, Christy Moore, Luka Bloom, Moya Brennan, Mark Knopfler, Elvis Costello, Rod Stewart, Tim & Neil Finn, Tanita Tikaram and many more.

🎫 This show has been rescheduled from Friday 24th January 2025. All tickets remain valid.