Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill
Saturday, April 10 2010, 8:00 pm at
The Lyceum
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Tickets $26 advance, $30 at the door. Children under 14 half price.

A native of County Clare, to which he returns for extended periods several times a year, Martin Hayes has been based in the United States for the past twenty-three years. He has drawn musical inspiration from sources as diverse as the Estonian composer Arvo Pärt, the Spanish viola da gamba master Jordi Savall and the jazz genius John Coltrane. Still, he remains grounded in the music he grew up with in his own locality, Maghera, Feakle, East County Clare. The music he learned from his late father, P. Joe Hayes, the legendary leader of the long-lived Tulla Ceili Band, profoundly influenced his musical accent and ideas forever after.
In his younger days he played in an experimental electric band in Chicago. Recently he has composed scores for film, theatre, and modern dance, and has collaborated with like-minded musicians from other genres, such as jazz guitarist, Bill Frisell and eclectic violinist Darol Anger. He views these explorations as a means of shedding light on his ongoing artistic journey, as well as a challenge to any rigidity of thought. The fundamental artistic quest is to go deeper and deeper within traditional Irish music and himself.
Dennis Cahill is a master guitarist, a native of Chicago born to parents from the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry, Ireland. He studied at the city’s prestigious Music College before becoming an active member of the local music scene. Cahill’s spare, essential accompaniment to Martin Hayes’ fiddle is acknowledged as a major breakthrough for guitar in the Irish tradition. In addition to his work with Martin, Dennis has performed with such renowned fiddlers as Liz Carroll, Eileen Ivers and Kevin Burke, as well as many Irish musicians on both sides of the Atlantic.
Dennis is a sought-after producer for musical artists whom he records in his own Chicago studio. He is also an accomplished photographer. Taking full advantage of the Hayes and Cahill international travel opportunities, Dennis shoots photos that document both the backstage world as well as otherwise overlooked whimsical visual moments in rural villages, towns and cities, far and wide. His photos can be viewed on his website.
Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill met in Chicago in the 1980s. They formed the jazz/rock/fusion band, Midnight Court, which allowed them to experiment with a variety of new music styles. When Martin reclaimed his traditional roots, reinvigorated, and after recording two solo albums, he began a new musical relationship with Cahill, beginning with the lyrical music of East Clare. They played long, sometimes thirty-minute, multi-tune sets in their concerts, starting from the simplest of melodies, building in intensity, but never abandoning musicality and ideas.
Visit Martin's web site.
Tickets $26 advance, $30 at the door. Children under 14 half price.