Martin Hayes & Dennis Cahill set the standard for Irish fiddle and guitar. If you’ve been lucky enough to see them at the Freight, you know that they play with exquisite sensitivity, deep feeling, and an abiding love for traditional Irish music. They take every note so seriously and yet so playfully – the result is sublime, immense, profound and yet light as air.
Martin, who hails from County Clare, has been an All-Ireland fiddle champion six times over, and has taken home a National Entertainment Award, the Irish equivalent of the Grammy, for Traditional Musician of the Year. Dennis grew up in Chicago to parents from the Dingle Peninsula in County Kerry. His spare, essential accompaniment to Hayes’ fiddle is acknowledged as a major breakthrough for guitar in the Irish tradition.
The duo has recorded three albums, including their most recent, Welcome Here Again, and also play with the acclaimed new Irish supergroup The Gloaming, who packed the Freight last year and recently won Ireland's highly-coveted Meteor Choice award. “The remarkable duo has honed a ravishing repertoire by distilling the melodic essence of traditional Irish tunes,” says the Seattle Times. They “have distinguished themselves by bringing chamber music’s intensity and dynamic control to folk tunes.” Says Q Magazine, “Sparsely accompanied fiddle music has rarely sounded so complete and so essential.” When they played NPR's Tiny Desk Concert a few years ago, host Bob Boilen said by way of introduction, "You're about to watch one of the best fiddlers on the planet and a subtle guitar master work their magic. For a moment, stop, put aside your notion of jigs and reels, and just listen.” If you love Irish music, this show is a must.
Martin Hayes & Dennis Cahill set the standard for Irish fiddle and guitar. If you’ve been lucky enough to see them at the Freight, you know that they play with exquisite sensitivity, deep feeling, and an abiding love for traditional Irish music. They take every note so seriously and yet so playfully – the result is sublime, immense, profound and yet light as air. 
