RUNA brings their high energy mix of Irish, Scottish, Canadian and American Celtic music for a Valentine’s Day show at the Mainstay in Rock Hall, Maryland on Saturday February 14 at 8:00 pm. Admission is $20.
RUNA’s band members hail from Ireland, the US and Canada and draw on their diverse musical backgrounds in world music, rock and traditional Celtic music to offer a modern approach to traditional and recently composed Celtic material that is at once lyrical, mystical and exhilarating.
With highly energetic tunes, graceful acoustic melodies and gorgeous vocals, they fuse music from Ireland, Scotland, Canada, and the United States and give their arrangements a fresh contemporary sound.
Vocalist and step-dancer Shannon Lambert-Ryan, from Philadelphia, has a broad musical background including Celtic, world music, folk, classical, and musical theatre and fronts RUNA with rich, vibrant vocals.
She co-founded RUNA with her husband, Dublin-born guitarist and composer Fionán de Barra who started playing guitar professionally with “Riverdance” and has worked as musical director for Moya Brennan (of Clannad) and her band. He tours regularly with the internationally renowned Fiddlers Bid and Clannad.
Percussionist Cheryl Prashker studied classical percussion at McGill University in her native Montreal, Canada. She now lives in Philadelphia and has a well-deserved reputation as a “go-to” percussionist for folk recordings. She spent many years in NY City where she honed her skills playing everything from Rock and Roll and Klezmer, to Celtic and Middle Eastern music.
They are joined by Galway’s Dave Curley, a singer, dancer and sensational multi-instrumentalist (guitar, banjo, mandolin, and bodhrán) and the brilliant Kentucky fiddler, Maggie Estes.
RUNA’s most recent recording “Current Affairs” has boosted their reputation as one of the most eclectic and exciting Celtic bands working today. It has received lavish praise on both sides of the Atlantic and made several lists of the best and most played folk and Celtic recordings of 2014.
The band has also been recognized on an international level in the Irish Music Awards for 2013, winning Top Group (US, IRE, EU, UK) and Top Traditional Group in a Pub, Festival, Concert, and a nomination for Best Female Vocalist (2013, 2012) and in the 12th Annual Independent Music Awards winning both the fan ballot and judges’ votes for Best Song in the World Traditional category. They were also featured on the cover of the October 2014 issue of Irish Music Magazine.
The Mainstay (Home of Musical Magic) is the friendly informal storefront performing arts center on Rock Hall’s old time Main Street. It is a 501(c)(3), nonprofit dedicated to the arts, serving Rock Hall, MD and the surrounding region. It is committed to presenting local, regional and national level talent, at a reasonable price, in an almost perfect acoustic setting. Wine, beer, sodas and snacks are available at the bar.
The Mainstay is supported by ticket sales, fundraising including donations from friends and audience members and an operating grant from the Maryland State Arts Council.
For information and reservations call the Mainstay at 410-639-9133. More information is also available at the Mainstay’s website https://www.mainstayrockhall.org.
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