Irish festival still on in Manchester

04 March 2011 - 20 March 2011

This years Manchester Irish Festival are once again staging a special opening night concert dedicated to Ireland's Blues legends such as Van Morrison, Rory Gallagher, Thin Lizzy and Bob Dylan. The event is part of two week Tradfest being sponsored by Guinness and the Levenshulme Pub Company which is celebrating its 21st Anniversary. It takes place on Friday 4 March in the first floor acoustic room of M19 Bar & venue in Levenshulme village. The Tradfest will take place in South Manchester, it will feature close to one hundred musicians, singers and dancers performing numerous gigs until Sunday 20 March.

Headlining the opening night is the London based Blues singer songwriter Sean Taylor whose Irish roots stem from Navan in County Meath and has just appeared at Celtic Connections. The talented artist who is also an accomplished multi instrumentalist will be showcasing songs from his album called 'Walk with Me' which was recorded in Dublin in Trevor Hutchinson's studio(producer of Lúnasa and The Waterboys). When asked about how he felt about opening up the two week tradfest in Levenshulme Sean replied "I'm really looking forward to my visit to Levenshulme and the m19 bar again for the opening night. It was a great gig last year and the line up this year looks even better."

Flying over from Dublin to perform in the festival are 'Preachers Son' and Mairead Farrell. The two piece Preachers Son are Dubliners Brian Hogan (Kíla) and Emmaline Duffy-Fallon (previously of Engine Alley). The band have already gathered a celebrity packed fan base and are often joined on stage by the likes of Tabby Callaghan (X-Factor), Kieran Kennedy (Black Velvet Band, Hothouse Flowers) and Shane Fitzsimons (Lisa Hannigan, Damien Rice, Paddy Casey). The Irish Media are already citing them as he next act to watch with interviews in Ireland's Hot Press magazine and Ireland's premier Music Channel - IMTV. The other acts appearing in the festival include Levenshulme's legendary Blues guitarist - Zacc Rogers who has been likened to Thin Lizzy's - Phil Lynott and was a massive hit during the recent Levenshulme Festival. Plus Ged Wilson, Midnight Mafia and New Leaves.

http://www.manchesteririshfestival.com/