Houston's Weekend Planning Guide

 
     Celtic Women make their way to Sugarland's Smart Financial Center this weekend. Celtic Woman an all-female Irish musical ensemble conceived and created by David Kavanagh, Sharon Browne and David Downes. Jones is a former musical director of the Irish stage show Riverdance. In 2004, Downes recruited five Irish female musicians who had not previously performed together: vocalists Chloë Agnew, Órla Fallon, Lisa Kelly and Méav Ní Mhaolchatha, and fiddler Máiréad Nesbitt, and shaped them into the first lineup of the group that he named "Celtic Woman", a specialty group. Downes chose a repertoire that ranged from traditional Celtic tunes to modern songs.

     Celtic Woman to is comprised of four young Irish women—dynamic vocalists Mairéad Carlin, Éabha McMahon and Megan Walsh, alongside gifted violinist Tara McNeill—whose performing skills bring centuries of musical and cultural tradition to life. In concert, their angelic voices and instrumental virtuosity are accompanied by a robust ensemble that includes Irish dancers, bagpipers and a full band playing an array of traditional Celtic instruments, including bodhran, tin whistle, bouzouki and Uileann pipes.

    
     Since its debut, global musical sensation Celtic Woman’s concerts continue to capture the hearts of an audience that spans the globe. Both an accomplished recording ensemble and a world-class performing collective, Celtic Woman celebrates Ireland's rich musical and cultural heritage, while continuing its remarkable legacy of introducing some of Ireland's most talented singers and musicians onto the world stage.