Aisling Urwin & Niamh Ní Bhriain, Méabh McKenna at The Sugar Club Harp Sessions

Experience a new ‘take’ on Irish harping from some of our foremost young harpers.  Cruit Éireann|Harp Ireland’s Sugar Club Harp Sessions run throughout 2024 and feature innovative, cutting-edge Irish harp performances from a variety of players, pushing the boundaries of the tradition in new and exciting ways.

Our fifth concert on Thursday 17th October 2024 features harping duo Aisling Urwin and Niamh O’Brien and solo artist Méabh McKenna. 

Niamh O’ Brien and Aisling Urwin are a duo of harpers from the Southwest of Ireland. Their music is rooted in the Irish tradition but has expanded throughout their careers to include world, contemporary, original, folk and electronic influences.

 In 2021, after doing some performances together for Harp Ireland’s Lá na Cruite, they decided to embark upon a duo project. 

Aisling and Niamh believe there is something unique and wonderful in the sound of two harps playing together. Harpers so often play solo, so it has been so exciting for them to play and arrange together. They combine their own individual styles of playing, the particular complexities of their harps which come from different makers, and their voices as they are both singers. They are deeply passionate about the harp, its community and its rich history.They are currently working on an EP of innovative arrangements of old harping tunes and new compositions.

Utilising the harp, voice, electronics and percussion, Méabh McKenna is a multi-instrumental sound artist based in Dublin city. Drawing on years of experimentation and collaboration, her live performances have evolved from traversing the eclectic worlds of traditional, classical, and early music, intuitively weaving them with contemporary and electronic elements. Méabh’s solo project forges a soundworld of mycelial improvisation and memory, connecting the ancient with the futuristic to make a music of resonance and reflection that’s entirely her own.