Broadcasting on Tuesday March 31st at 2pm
Near FM is pleased to present The Hugh Lane Concert series – Episode 39. A concert of traditional, Spanish and original music from Cormac Breathnach on whistles; Martin Dunlea on guitar and Brian Fleming on percussion. Recorded in the Abbey Presbyterian Church, 15th February 2026.
Cormac Breatnach’s playing can be heard on more than 50 albums including Riverdance and his own solo albums, Musical Journey, Music for Whistle & Guitar and Éalú and on Film soundtracks The Secret of Roan Inish, The War of the Buttons, Horse + Moondance as well as Award-Winning TV programmes: Bringing It All Back Home, A River of Sound, Súlt and The Session. Cormac also featured on and presented TV programmes with Geanntraí in Greystones Co. Wicklow and with Ceolchuairt in the Basque Country. Apart from co-founding and recording an album with with the Irish-Baroque group Sonamus (Music of Ireland: where Irish and Baroque Music Meet, 2016) he also collaborated with and recorded with Bray-based guitarist Martin Dunlea (Music for Whistle & Guitar, 2000) and performs occasionally with Steve Cooney, Seán Whelan as well as Martin himself. Between 2016-2019 with Daire Bracken and Martin Tourish he projected managed he The Whistleblower Project (involving a short-film, show, and album which in part features in RTE radio 1’s DocOnOne series) and between 2017-2019 he projected managed the Irish-Spanish, Loco por Lorca poetry-music show. In February 2024, he was part of the music ensemble ‘An Craiceann Agus A Luach’ show with narrator Eithne Ní Ghallachóir and music by Steve Cooney, and then toured with Music Network with Niamh Dunne, Seán Óg Graham and Bróna McVittie performing in 10 Arts Venues.
Cork-born Guitarist, Martin Dunlea is a self-taught musician and now lives in Co.Wicklow. He played in folk rock and blues bands in Ireland, U.K. and the U.S.A. from his early teens to late twenties.He moved to Dublin in 1992 to play and record with the innovative band ”Soon” and simultaneously developed an interest in traditional Irish music. He began teaching for the Professional Musician Training Course at the Newpark Music Centre in 1997. Martin is also a composer and has appeared on many notable TV and radio programmes. He features on Mick Kinsella’s recent album ”Harmonica” contributing one original composition and guitar on seven tracks. His guitar playing can also be heard on the Gavin Friday’s and Maurice Seezer’s original soundtrack to the film ”Disco Pigs ” (Berlin Film Festival, February, 2001). On his 2000 album with Cormac Breatnach he contributes six original compositions, with one from Cormac himself and a re-working of another from musician/producer, Máire Breatnach. https://martindunlea.bandcamp.com
Brian Fleming is a traditional drummer and occasional theatre maker, originally from the Noggin, in Dun Laoghaire, currently living the Wild Atlantic dream in Co Clare. He has played in over 30 countries, recorded on over 50 albums and performed with musicians such as Davy Spillane, Mamady Keita and The Chieftains and for many dance and theatre companies, such as The Abbey Theatre, Macnas, Catherine Young Dance, Els Comedians (Barcelona) and Sareyyet Ramallah Dance Company, (Palestine). He is the director, since 2007 of Dublin’s Big Bang Festival of Rhythm. His trilogy of one-man shows, directed by Raymond Keane has won accolades on both sides of the Atlantic. He is credited in the Guinness Book of World Records 2001 as one of the creators of the Millennium Drum, the world’s largest drum. He loves working and playing with people from around the world with a particular grá for the music and people of West Africa, India, Palestine and Sallynoggin.
Credits – Concert recorded by Iain Faulkner. Radio series produced and mixed by Paul Loughran. Additional mixing by Emmet White. Interview and presentation by Cliodhna Ryan. Production team of Paul Loughran and Jaye Palmer.
Made with the support of Coimisiún Na Mean with the Television License fee.
Thanks to Mary Barnecutt and the Sunday at Noon concert series. Thanks to all in the Abbey Presbyterian Church, Parnell Square, and all in The Hugh Lane gallery.
