Shandrum Ceili Band all set to launch their debut album, ‘The Dawn’
SHANDRUM Céilí Band members will launch their debut album, ‘ The Dawn’, in Buttevant Church on May 6 at 8.30pm. This is a free event and open to everyone.
The eagerly awaited CD takes its name from one of the reels which features on the album.
Between them, the musicians have almost 200 years of experience in playing traditional Irish music and have won dozens of medals at all levels in Fleadh, Scór, and Siansa Gael Linn. Indeed, many of them are set dancers themselves, some even winning titles at All-Ireland level, thereby understanding the dancers’ need for lively rhythmic music. The band has a dedicated following across the country and beyond.
The initial Shandrum Céilí Band was in existence from the 1950s to the 1970s and, with their blessing, the current band was established in December 2014.
The band is based in North Cork but can regularly appear in almost any county playing for set dancers.
They entered the history books in 2015 for being one of the only bands ever to win an All-Ireland Senior Céilí Band title in their first year competing. They went on the following year to do it again, making them the only band from Cork to win it twice.
Band leader Alan Finn said: “People were asking us at céilís where they could buy our music. We had nothing to offer them. We also had requests on Social Media from the Irish Diaspora. Finally, we decided to answer the challenge and record the CD. Once we started it felt like exactly the right decision”.
The CD will be available to buy at the launch and from the band themselves at various events in the future. It’s now available to pre-order from their website, TheShandrum.com, and can be shipped anywhere in the world.