- Celtic Thunder
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Celtic Thunder Genres Folk, Adult contemporary, world music, Soft rock, Broadway, classical crossover Years active 2007–present Labels Decca Records Website Official website, Members Neil Byrne
George Donaldson
Keith Harkin
Emmet Cahill
Ryan Kelly
Daniel FurlongPast members Paul Byrom
Damian McGintyCeltic Thunder is a singing group composed of male soloists who perform both solo and ensemble numbers. Celtic Thunder debuted in August 2007 at The Helix in Dublin, Ireland.[1] They are accompanied by the Celtic Concert Orchestra under the direction of Phil Coulter, the musical director of the group.
Since the group's formation, Celtic Thunder has released seven albums: Celtic Thunder, Act Two, Take Me Home, It's Entertainment, Christmas, Heritage, Storm as well as six live performances on DVD entitled Celtic Thunder: The Show, Take Me Home, It's Entertainment!, Christmas, Heritage and Storm.
In December 2009, Billboard magazine named Celtic Thunder Top World Album Artist. Their first three albums also placed in the Top 10 for World Albums.
Celtic Thunder is known for its eclectic style with songs ranging from a soloist to an ensemble focus. The group is backed by the Celtic Thunder Band on their concert tours, and their live shows are known for the use of dramatic effects via lighting and choreography as well as a stage set resembling an ancient stone pathway suggestive of those referenced in Celtic lore.[2]
In March 2009, Celtic Thunder opened the Saint Patrick's Day Parade in New York City, and later that day performed for President Obama, Mrs. Obama and then Taoiseach, Brian Cowen at the White House.[3]
On November 28, 2010, Celtic Thunder member Paul Byrom announced his resignation from the group as to begin a solo career. He will leave the group when the 2010 concert tour is over. Byrom will begin his solo career in the United States, where he has the strongest fan base. Byrom hopes his fan base from Celtic Thunder would carry on into his solo career.
On May 12, 2011, Celtic Thunder member Ryan Kelly announced that he "decided to take a step back from Celtic Thunder and the public life that goes along with being part of it." On August 22, 2011, Sharon Brown announced that Ryan Kelly will be rejoining Celtic Thunder on tour.[4]
On August 21, 2011, Damian McGinty announced on The Glee Project's Live Viewing Party, that he would be stepping down due to his new role on Glee.[5]
Contents
Members
Current members
The current members of Celtic Thunder are (in alphabetical order of family name):
- Neil Byrne, (Born November 16, 1977) after playing guitar and singing backup on the previous albums, sang in ensemble pieces and had a solo performance of Noreen on Heritage.[6]
- Emmet Cahill (born October 18, 1990) auditioned for Celtic Thunder in June 2010 and was asked to join after Paul Byrom announced his resignation.
- George Donaldson (born February 1, 1969), is the oldest member of the group and is a well-known balladeer, guitarist and flautist from Glasgow, Scotland. At Scotland's Celtic Park, Donaldson played to 65,000 fans at the opening match of the 2000-2001 season. Now he is 42.[6]
- Keith Harkin (born June 10, 1986), is from Derry, Northern Ireland. He plays the guitar and has written one of the songs for Celtic Thunder: "Lauren and I". Keith has now recorded more original songs apart from Celtic Thunder, some titles include: "September Sessions" and All Day Long Now he is 25 and recording a solo album in November 2011.[6]
- Ryan Kelly (born November 6, 1978), is from The Moy, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. He holds two degrees from the Queen's University Belfast, having earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and also a Graduate Diploma in Advanced Accounting, qualifying Ryan to be a chartered accountant. In the fall of 2010 Ryan released his solo album "In Time". Now he is 32.[6] ref name="Celtic Thunder Biographies">Celtic Thunder (2011-05-12). "Ryan Kelly's blog". Celtic Thunder. http://cms.celticthunder.ie/blog/6943. Retrieved 2011-05-26.</ref> [4]
Past members
The past members of Celtic Thunder are (in alphabetical order of family name):
- Paul Byrom (born April 11, 1979) is from Dublin, Ireland.[7] In addition to Celtic Thunder, he has also performed at major sporting events in Ireland and abroad, including singing at the All Ireland Finals in Dublin's Croke Park and at Heinz Field for a Pittsburgh Steelers game in the USA. He has also performed for Ireland's President, Mary McAleese, and for Emperor Akihito of Japan. Paul has released two albums: Velvet and I'll Be Home For Christmas. Paul resigned to pursue a solo career in the US and left the group after the 2010 Celtic Thunder tour was over. He was replaced by Emmet Cahill. [6]
- Damian McGinty (born September 9, 1992), is the youngest member of the group and is from Derry, Northern Ireland.[8] He won his first singing contest at the age of five. He recorded the first Celtic Thunder album when he was fourteen years old. McGinty lists Michael Buble, Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra among his inspirations.[6] On April 29, 2011 it was announced that Damian was chosen as one of 12 contenders for The Glee Project, a reality series on the Oxygen Network. He tied for first and will have a 7 episode arc in the third season of the Fox hit TV show Glee.He debuted on glee season 3 episode 4 Pot o' Gold. He was replaced by Daniel Furlong.[citation needed]
Concerts, tours, and discography
On December 17, 2008, Celtic Thunder completed their 2008 US tour of fifty cities. They also toured the United States extensively in the fall of 2009, and plan to perform across the US in the fall of 2010. For spring 2009 they focused on touring Canada, while also playing some concerts in the north-eastern US.[9]
During their 2008 fall tour, Celtic Thunder sold over 125,000 tickets in forty-nine shows and placed twentieth in the poll Star Tour Poll.
Celtic Thunder's first studio album and first concert special DVD were released on March 18, 2008. The album was titled Celtic Thunder and the concert special was titled The Show. It was filmed at The Helix in Dublin, Ireland, on August 2007.
The second studio album was released on September 16, 2008, titled Act Two. It included the rest of the songs from The Show.
The third studio album and second concert special DVD, both titled Take Me Home, were released July 14, 2009. Take Me Home was filmed at Casino Rama, Orillia (north of Toronto) while the group was on tour in 2009. It is considered a live concert DVD rather than a studio production.
The fourth studio album and third concert special DVD, both titled It's Entertainment!, were released on February 9, 2010. It was filmed alongside Storm at the Toronto International Centre Hall 5 (aka Arrow Hall), Toronto, Ontario, on October 1, 2009, and October 2, 2009.
After It's Entertainment!, Celtic Thunder fans sent many requests to Sharon Browne for a Christmas-themed album and an album containing more Irish music. Through these efforts, Christmas and Heritage came to be, postponing the release of Storm.
The fifth studio album, titled Christmas, was released on October 12, 2010, and the concert special DVD, also titled Christmas, was released on November 22, 2010. Christmas was filmed alongside Heritage at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center in Poughkeepsie, New York, on September 17, 2010.
The sixth studio album and fifth concert special DVD titled Heritage was released on February 22, 2011. Heritage was filmed alongside Christmas at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center in Poughkeepsie, New York, on September 17, 2010.
The seventh studio album and sixth DVD, titled Storm, was released on September 20, 2011. Storm, unlike Celtic Thunder's other DVDs, is not just a filmed concert but has a storyline, an elaborate set establishing a location, and costumes which help to define the singers' and dancers' characters within the story. It makes use of the It's Entertainment cast which is Celtic Thunder's largest to date (25) and adds singer Dierdre Shannon.
The eight studio album and seventh concert special DVD are currently titled Voyage, and will be released in the spring of 2012. It was originally set to be filmed on September 27, 2011, but due to changes, this filming was cancelled. Searching for a new venue on October 3, 2011 has begun for the Celtic Thunder crew.
Other bands by the same name
Before the appearance of the current commercial production called "Celtic Thunder" a traditional New World Irish band called Celtic Thunder first performed in 1977.
The original Celtic Thunder was able to retain rights to the name after submitting to a non-competition agreement with the Celtic Thunder Production.[citation needed]
Discography
- Celtic Thunder, the first album, was released on March 18, 2008.
- Act Two, the second album, was released on September 16, 2008.
- Take Me Home, the third album, was released on July 14, 2009.
- It's Entertainment!, the fourth album, was released on February 9, 2010.
- Christmas, the fifth album, was released on October 12, 2010.
- Heritage, the sixth album, was released on February 22, 2011.
- Storm, the seventh album, was released September 20, 2011.
- Voyage, the eighth album, will be released in the spring of 2012.
Notes
- ^ 21, WLIW (2008-06-30). "Celtic Thunder in Dublin". WLIW21. http://www.wliw.org/productions/celtic_thunder.html. Retrieved 2008-06-30.
- ^ Celtic Thunder (2008-06-30). "The Show in". Celtic Thunder. http://cms.celticthunder.ie/?frameset=on. Retrieved 2008-06-30.
- ^ "Celtic Thunder Storms America". reuters.com. March 18, 2009. http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS196582+18-Mar-2009+BW20090318. Retrieved 2009-06-10.
- ^ a b Celtic Thunder (2011-08-22). "Wow, What A Night - August 22, 2011 in". Celtic Thunder. http://cms.celticthunder.ie/node/846267. Retrieved 2011-08-22.
- ^ , http://www.ustream.tv/thegleeproject
- ^ a b c d e f Celtic Thunder (2011-03-24). "Biographies". Celtic Thunder. http://cms.celticthunder.ie/artists. Retrieved 2011-03-24.
- ^ Celtic Thunder. "Celtic Thunder - Artists". Celtic Thunder. http://cms.celticthunder.ie/artists. Retrieved 2008-09-05.
- ^ "Individuality". The Glee Project. Oxygen. June 12, 2011. No. 1, season 1. 12:07 minutes in.
- ^ Celtic Thunder (2010-03-17). "Celtic Thunder Tour Dates in". Tour Dates. http://cms.celticthunder.ie/tour. Retrieved 2010-03-17.
External links
Categories:- Celtic music groups
- Irish folk musical groups
- Scottish folk music groups
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