I am fiddle player from Glenties, Co. Donegal and while I've lived in many areas around Ireland and enjoy playing the repertoire from all over Ireland, I love discovering old tunes from Donegal that have been unearthed... nothing quite makes the hairs on the back of my head stand up like that! I love playing music with older musicians too as there is so much to learn from them.

I love listening to all types of traditional musics from various countries, with a very keen slant towards Scandinavian music, having lived and studied in Finland for almost a year in 1998 - 1999. 

From 2004 - 2009, I worked in the Clare Arts Office as Traditional Arts Specialist and I moved from there to take up the position of Festival Director at the Éigse Carlow Arts Festival from 2009 - 2011.

I am now learning to make uilleann pipes at the Na Piobairí Uilleann Pipecraft training course.... so I'm also learning to play the uilleann pipes (badly!) I love the course and at least I'm trying to put my woodworking skills from secondary school to good use (where I made a harp!)

I was appointed as one of the Deis Advisor consultants for the Arts Council (Ireland) in 2005 and continued to help traditional artists make applications for funding to the Arts Council until 2013.

Together with fellow Donegal fiddler, Derek McGinley, I released a CD in November 2011 entitled 'The Far Side of the Glen' focusing solely on the fiddle music style and repertoire of the south west Donegal area. This recording features two fiddles only and was recorded in the kitchen of a cottage in Carrick, Co. Donegal.

www.farsideoftheglen.ie

I recently became a part-time member of the Clare Memory Orchestra alongside Martin Hayes, Mick O'Brien, Aoife O'Brien, Cormac O'Brien, Dave Flynn, Jack Talty, Neil O'Loghlen, Neil Yates and a list of really great musicians. 

A selection of videos from my solo performance at Na Píobairí Uilleann's Session with the Pipers concert in May 2013 are available to watch at: http://source.pipers.ie/Search/searchResults.aspx?searchTerm=tara+connaghan