Author: Press Officer

Glen Hansard cut the ribbon on a new music studio at the Computer Clubhouse in Dublin 8 yesterday, as part of their Christmas Showcase. Inspiring local youths, The Frames frontman spent time with Clubhouse members, learning about the projects they have created.

Charity Christmas radio station, Christmas FM, today announced that ‘Christmas Time’ by Snow Business (the staff and music students of St. Michael’s College, Dublin) has been crowned the winner of the 2010 Irish Christmas Song Contest following a public vote.
 
The winning entry was penned and produced by the staff and students at St. Michael’s College, Dublin, who got in the festive spirit and crafted a cracker of a Christmas single. David Sheridan, music teacher at the school, wrote the music for the song. He was then helped by fellow teacher, David Wilson, and the school’s music students, aged 12-16, who wrote the lyrics, performed, produced and recorded the winning entry in its entirety.
 
‘Christmas Time’ will now be playlisted on Christmas FM, receiving regular airplay alongside the many well known Christmas classics. The school has also won €500 in vouchers and the opportunity to professionally record their song. 
 
Commenting on the winning song, Walter Hegarty, Christmas FM’s Joint Program Director said, “We would like to congratulate the staff and students of St. Michael’s College, Dublin on winning this year’s song contest with a true Christmas classic in the making. The response to the song contest this year has been incredible, with almost 100 bands and songwriters from around the country crafting original Christmas songs in aid of Barnardos. We would like to thank every act for taking the time to enter, and of course the thousands of Christmas FM listeners who helped chose the winner.”
 
‘Christmas Time’ will be released as a charity Christmas single next year. Last year’s winners of the song contest, Funzo, have recently released their winning entry, ‘This Christmas’, in aid of Barnardos. ‘This Christmas’ can be purchased on iTunes and all good record stores nationwide. 
 
Broadcasting 24 hours a day throughout December, Christmas FM aims to raise €100,000 for its charity partner Barnardos this year through a combination of online donations, texts and corporate sponsorship. Christmas FM is broadcasting throughout Dublin (89.9FM), Cork (106.7FM), Galway (89.5FM), Limerick (105.5FM), the South East (103.8FM) and online at www.christmasfm.ie. 

Donations, Christmas song requests and dedications, can be made by texting ‘xmas’ to 57000 or by calling 1850 217217.  Online donations can be made at www.christmasfm.ie.  All proceeds go to Barnardos.

IMRO member Tony Floyd Kenna has just released a solo EP of five original songs. ‘The Kiss Of Life’ special edition features The Kiss Of Life, Done My Time, New Train, Sky and The Sisters of Fate. The response has been very encouraging with Dublin City FM already playing ‘Done My Time’. Tony will be interviewed live on Dublin City FM’s Good Morning Dublin programme on Friday December 17th.

Donegal Divas Trad a New Path

Ireland promoting new music presents:
New Sound Worlds 2010
Kevin Barry Room at The National Concert Hall

Ronsan, made up of Dublin brothers Damien and Gerry Browning, have released their debut album “Before All This”. 

One-man electro-pop artist, Neosupervital, aka Tim O’Donovan, has just released his new album, "Battery Power".

After the release of his eponymously titled debut album in 2006, Neosupervital went on to be playlisted on MTV2 and was invited to open for The Human League on a tour of the UK and Europe. Neosupervital has since supported such acts as The Divine Comedy, Tom Vek and Peter Hook.

"Battery Power" is available now from iTunes.
http://www.itunes.com/neosupervital

www.neosupervital.com
 

Hit songwriter Brendan Graham has been presented with an Award by Hal Leonard Inc, Milwaukee, USA, the largest publisher of sheet music in the world in recognition of his phenomenal hit You Raise Me Up (co-written with Rolf Lovland) surpassing the half-a-million unit sales of sheet music in the USA.   The actual sales through Hal Leonard are at 640,000 units and this combined with sales through Alfred Music, Hal Leonard's main competition, brings the total to over a staggering 1 million units.  You Raise Me Up has retained the prime position on the popular Sheetmusic Plus website, (continuously now for 7 years) making it the No. 1 best-selling sheet music in the USA. (http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/genres/Pop/124?sort=top_selling

The shortlist for this year's Choice Music Prize, Irish Album Of The Year 2010 will be announced on Wednesday, January 12th 2011.
 
The winning album will be selected at the Choice Music Prize live event, held in Vicar Street, Dublin on Thursday 3rd March 2011. The event will be broadcast live on Today FM.
 
The 6th annual Choice Music Prize will once again celebrate and acknowledge the best in Irish recorded music. The prize has become one of the highlights of the Irish musical calendar since its inception in 2005 and is awarded to the Irish Album of the Year, as chosen from a shortlist of ten releases by a panel of eleven Irish media professionals.
 
The winning act will receive a cheque for €10,000 courtesy of the Irish Music Rights Organisation (IMRO) and Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA), as well as a specially commissioned award.
 
For the first time, the Choice Music Prize website has published a comprehensive list of Irish albums released in 2010. The list currently numbers 240, the largest series of releases since the award was created. This list can be viewed and updated by logging onto www.choicemusicprize.com

When Eleanor McEvoy began write her new album, I'd Rather Go Blonde, Ireland was in the grips of severe winter weather and a devastating economic crisis. The 6th song on the album, Shibboleth, is especially relevant in light of the news of the recent bailout of the Irish government.

Eleanor described Shibboleth recently: “What I did with that was a trick on what the old traditional Irish songs used to do where you weren't allowed to talk about the conflict, or England, so they used to talk about Ireland as woman. I'm doing the same in Shibboleth. I'm singing as if it's a person: 'Mo ghra, mo chraoi, mo cuisle/How hard it is to see/ A mhuirin, they have brought you to your knees.' But I'm actually singing about Ireland”.

A rather beguiling song, only too fitting for the time that is in it. With the current state of Ireland's economic unsettlement, 'Shibboleth' attempts to transpire across the routes which took the small country from boom to bust.
McEvoy Concludes: “I wrote the track this year in loving sadness of what they’ve done to my beautiful country…….It seems to have grown in relevancy in the intervening months".

Link to exclusive live stream here: http://bit.ly/f5PsAY

Taken from the new album: I’d rather go blonde (out now)

Website: www.eleanormcevoy.com