This ensemble of musicians from Boston’s North Shore presents a program that includes many of O’Carolan’s most exquisite melodies — Captain O’Kane, Blind Mary, Sheebeg & Sheemore, O’Carolan’s Draught, and more. Many of these favorites are paired with pieces written by the old harper’s baroque contemporaries, with early English dance tunes such as Hole in the Wall and Newcastle, and with rousing instrumental pieces from Scotland, Canada, and New England — old and new.

Several music samples are available. Click on the ‘Listen’ tab at the bottom of the page.

Would you like some lively singing or foot-pounding reels and jigs at your event?  Waltzes to get people dancing?  The O’Carolans can create a program that suits your needs.

Meet the Musicians

Who Was O’Carolan?

Turlough O’Carolan was born near Nobber, County Meath in 1670, a blacksmith’s son. He began studying the harp at about age eighteen after losing his sight, probably the result of smallpox. Having started his instrumental studies so late, he was not destined to be a virtuoso, but his talent for composition was soon discovered and encouraged. Following a three-year apprenticeship, O’Carolan spent the rest of his life traveling the Irish countryside, where he was welcomed at the homes of the landed gentry. He entertained his patrons, taught music to their children, and often composed pieces in their honor (planxties). His death in 1738 was widely observed with a four-day wake.

Portrait of Turlough O’Carolan painted from life by an unknown artist. The original is in the National Gallery of Ireland.