cathymcevoy

Summer 2026 – Current goings on …

Love this time of the year. Wedding season kicks off around Valentine’s Day, so that’s been keeping me busy both as a violinist + vocalist on the ceremony side of things, and with covers outfits including the Matt Lennon band for the evening shenanigans, as well as regular trad sessions around the city – the Fourth Corner on Mondays and Hynes’s on Thursdays being 2 of my favourites.

Some creative, fun stuff:

So the big news in my creative world is that I’m going back into the studio in July & August to record a new album!! It’ll be recorded live in studio, at Arad Studios in Dublin. And I don’t want to jinx it by telling you about the amazing line-up of musicians I’ve got….but suffice to say they’re very, very good and I am beyond excited about recording with them. Here’s a sneak preview of one of the tracks, recorded live at the Cat & Cage Folk Club on June 17th

Still on a bit of a high from that gig actually!

It’s one of my favourite arts nights in Dublin – a fortnightly series of gigs, showcasing the finest musical talent from Dublin & beyond. It’s curated by my trad colleague Graham Watson, audio-engineer, producer & founder of FloodPlain Studios, in conjunction with the lovely Bernie McGrattan & her amazing staff at the Cat & Cage, Drumcondra.

Before that, I co-curated a Songwriter Salon – along with Ben Prevo + Marion McEvoy – as part of the Northside’s coolest arts festival, Phizzfest in May

We’ve also just had our first Back Room Dispatch of 2026, coincidentally at the Cat & Cage:

The Back Room Dispatch is Ireland’s premier songwriter salon, where emerging solo songwriters get to reimagine their songs with the backing of a house band comprised of professional session musicians, usually in the Back Room – hence the name! – at Dublin’s top grassroots venue, The Cobblestone. Confusingly, we relocated to the Cat & Cage, Drumcondra, for our February gig – but our faithful followers didn’t get lost on the way, thankfully. I’ve been curating the event since 2023 and I take pride in how it continues to go from strength to strength; this gig was no exception, with a full house held spellbound by songwriters Ann Harrington & Eoghan Burke, and our special guest The Bumbles. I’m taking a little break from Back Room duties this Summer while I record the aforementioned album……but be assured, we’ll be back in the winter!

Also really looking forward to teaching at Dublin’s first traditional music Summer school, in Waltons New School of Music from July 13th – 18th. Whether you’ve always wanted to try a new a style of music, or you’re a trad summer school ‘veteran’ who’s interested in a Dublin-based alternative, this is the trad school for you! I’ll be doing a few of my speciality workshops including Trad Music for Classical Violinists and Cross-fertilisation – the link between Irish trad & Americana/bluegrass. Especially thrilled to be teaching alongside our guest artist Eoghan Ó Ceannabháin, one of Ireland’s top flautists and a brilliant sean nós singer as well. Contact the School of Music office for further info

Next