Double Bill! Seán Gavin & Colm Gannon, Tommy & Saundra O'Sullivan

Double Bill! Seán Gavin & Colm Gannon, Tommy & Saundra O'Sullivan

Friday, February 16th

7:00 p.m.

Potter's Craft Cider, 1350 Arrowhead Valley Rd, Charlottesville, VA

$25/Advance, $30/At the door

Seán Gavin, is one of the most highly regarded Irish musicians of his generation. Master uilleann piper and flute player, he is the first and only musician born outside Ireland to win the prestigious Seán Ó Riada Gold Medal.  His recording, Music from the Lost Continent, with fiddler Jesse Smith, accompanist John Blake, and bodhran player Johnny “Ringo” McDonagh, was hailed by The Irish Echo as “traditional music at its best!”

Accordion wizard Colm Gannon’s playing is as vibrant and beautiful as the Connemara hills. Born in Boston of Connemara parents, he learned his music from his father and brother Sean. As a youth he played regularly with Seamus Connolly, Tina Lech and Jesse Smith. Colm won the All Ireland on the button accordion in 1994, has toured widely with Riverdance, Dervish, and DeDannan and even performed with Dolly Parton.

Tommy and Saundra O’Sullivan’s paths crossed when she attended an annual traditional Irish music retreat in Midlothian, Texas, where Tommy was an Irish guest instructor on guitar and vocals. As they explored singing together, they discovered her alto harmonies to be a perfect match to his tenor vocals. The two married in Houston, Texas, in March 2010 and now live in Dingle, Ireland. In 2011, they opened O’Sullivan’s Courthouse Pub in Dingle which has gained a reputation for world class traditional Irish music.  Prior to opening O’Sullivan’s Courthouse Pub, Tommy was a full-time touring musician. As a member of Sliabh Notes he recorded 3 albums. He also toured for years with Irish piper Paddy Keenan with whom he recorded a duet album, The Long Grazing Acre.