Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh is a native of the Donegal Gaeltacht of Gaoth Dobhair. Her first language is Gaelic and she has learnt many of her songs from family and neighbours as well as sourcing older material from archive facilities.

She is renowned as one of the leading exponents of Donegal fiddle music and likes to promote the music which she has inherited from her late father Francie, whenever possible. She is a founding member of Cairdeas na bhFidléirí, which was set up 25 years ago to preserve and facilitate the development of the Donegal fiddling tradition for future generations.

Mairéad’s musical inspiration initially came from her family and neighbours, her father being a great fiddle teacher with a wealth of unusual local tunes, many learnt from his mother, Róise. She also received tuition and inspiration from Buncrana fiddle player, Dinny McLaughlin, who was a frequent visitor to her home when she was growing up. Mairéad founded Altan along with her late husband, Frankie Kennedy; from humble beginnings they brought their music to the world arena without compromising the deep musical tradition they loved.

Along with her work with Altan, Mairéad is always in demand for solo work or presenting traditional music programmes on radio or television; past projects include the classic radio show The Long Note and the television series The Pure Drop and The Full Set on RTÉ1.

Mairéad has recorded with other musicians such as Enya, the Chieftains, Dolly Parton, The String Sisters, T With the Maggies, and many more.

Mairéad’s first solo project, Imeall, was released in 2009.

Visit Mairéad’s website

Ciarán Curran is a native of Kinawley, Co.Fermanagh, an area rich in music, song and folklore and brings his strong family musical tradition to bear on an instrument relatively new to Irish traditional music – the bouzouki.

Ciarán’s late uncle, Ned Curran, was a great fiddle player and has given the band many tunes from his unusual repertoire. Ciarán was introduced to a lot of traditional music and musicians by his friend Cathal McConnell (Boys of the Lough) from whom he learned many tunes.

Ciarán has also played with Co. Leitrim fiddler, Ben Lennon, to whom he attributes his strong backing rhythm and bounce. Ciarán has worked with Co. Antrim singer, Len Graham, Enniskillen singer, Gabriel McArdle, Derrygonnelly fiddler, Seamus Quinn and Belfast flute player, Gary Hastings. With Ben Lennon, Seamus Quinn and Gabriel McArdle, he recorded the classic “Dog Big Dog Little” album, named after two mountains on the borders of County Fermanagh and Co Leitrim.

Ciarán has also produced the critically acclaimed Slán le Loch Éirne, a duet album from Gary Hastings and Seamus Quinn. Ciarán Curran has developed a unique, personal and subtle style on the bouzouki using counter harmonies and melodies that let the music breathe and show its most melodic strengths without conflicting with the essence of the melody.

Ciaran Tourish hails from Buncrana in East Co. Donegal. Although Ciaran started playing the tin whistle at an early age, he soon took up the fiddle under the guidance of local legendary fiddler and teacher, Dinny McLaughlin.

In addition to his mastery of the dance music tradition, Ciaran’s quick ear, love of harmony and counterpoint have led to his talent being in demand as a valued collaborator on non-Altan and even non-Irish music projects with a wide range of musicians and singers including Paul Brady, Matt Molloy, Mary Black, Maura O’Connell, Máirtín O’Connor, Dolores Keane, Dé Danann and American musicians, Jerry Douglas and Tim O’Brien.

He released his first solo recording “Down the Line” in 2005 featuring guest musicians Arty McGlynn, Paul Brady, Maura O’Connell, Tim O’Brien, Alison Krauss and Jerry Douglas among others.

Dáithí Sproule -photo by David Aronow

Dáithí Sproule of Derry, whose first group was legendary Skara Brae, has lived for many years in Minnesota.

Dáithí was one of the first guitarists to develop DADGAD guitar tuning for Irish music. As well as playing and singing with Altan, he has performed and recorded with two highly influential traditional music trios; Bowhand (with James Kelly and Paddy O’Brien) and Trian (with Liz Carroll and Billy McComiskey) and has played on recordings of Tommy Peoples, Seamus and Manus McGuire, Peter Ostroushko, and many others.

In recent years he has been playing with another great trio, Fingal, with Randal Bays and James Keane, and performing locally in Minnesota with friends such as Laura MacKenzie and Jode and Kate Dowling. Dáithí’s original compositions have been recorded by Skara Brae, the Bothy Band, Altan, Trian, Liz Carroll, Aoife Clancy and others.

In 1995 he released his first solo album “A Heart Made of Glass” with songs in English and Irish. In 2008 he released an instrumental guitar album “The Crow in the Sun”, featuring 13 original compositions.

In addition to performing and recording Dáithí is a teacher and lecturer in subjects ranging from guitar styles and traditional songs to Irish language and myth.

Visit Dáithí’s website

Mark Kelly’s earliest musical inspirations were rock and jazz. Born and raised in Dublin, his mother was a jazz singer.

Like all the other members of the band, Mark listens to a wide range of music especially Steely Dan, rhythm and blues and country.

Mark brings more of those subtle and sometimes adventurous influences from other traditions to his work on guitar arrangements for Altan. Not a man to rest on his laurels he has turned his attention to studying classical guitar in recent years.

It was the O’Briens of Coolock, whom Mark met on holidays in 1975 in the Connemara Gaeltacht of Tír an Fhia, who first sparked Mark’s interest in Irish traditional music and in the challenges of bringing what he already knew to creating new arrangements for the old music.

Máirtín Tourish is an accordionist, composer, producer and musicologist from Co. Donegal and now based in Dublin. His ancestors were collectors of dance music whose manuscripts date from 1896.

Martin’s debut album Clan Ranald with bouzouki player Luke Ward was released in 2005 and listed by music critic Earle Hitchner of the Irish Echo and Wall Street Journal, as being in the top 20 albums of 2005. From the success of the Clan Ranald album, Martin is listed in The Rough Guide to Ireland as a piano accordionist of note while a track from the album appears in The Rough Guide to Irish Folk Vol. 2. In 2008, he became the first piano accordionist to win TG4′s prestigious ‘Young Musician of the Year’ award which a subsequent article in The Irish Times regarded as “the Irish Music equivalent of an Oscar”.

In 2008, Martin was commissioned by TG4 to compose, produce and perform the music for their brand television advertisement ‘The More You Look, The More You See’ which won many national and international awards and earned the piece of music national recognition. In 2010 he composed the theme tune to a national marathon festival Rith2010 to promote the Irish language and in 2011 composed the trad style variation on a theme for the nationwide Love Live Music festival.

A song he composed entitled ‘An Gealóg’ appears on Altan’s latest album The Poison Glen whilst a virtuosic piece entitled ‘The Seventh Degree’ is being performed by Triona Marshal on harp during The Chieftain’s 50th anniversary tour.