Traditional and classical on menu from West Ocean String Quartet

The West Ocean String Quartet, made up of Seamus McGuire and Niamh Crowley on violin, Ken Rice on viola and Neil Martin on cello, will perform in the Aula Maxima at NUI Galway on Thursday, April 18 at 8pm. The concert, which is in partnership with NUI Galway College of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, marks the launch of their new album, An Indigo Sky. Proceeds on the night will go toward Voluntary Services Abroad (VSA).

An Indigo Sky takes its title from Neil Martin’s four-movement suite which forms the core of the album. This was commissioned in memory of Joseph Browne, a former medical student of NUI Galway from Knockmeal on the Clare/Galway border who died tragically in 2006.

In addition to this newly-composed piece and traditional music the album – which received a five-star review from the Irish Times – also features work by Turlough O’Carolan and Thomas Moore.

The West Ocean String Quartet first came into being in 1999 and since then their talent and extensive repertoire which spans the gamut from traditional to classical, has won them global praise. They have collaborated with many leading artists, both on stage and in studio, including Christy Moore, Matt Molloy, Maighréad Ní Dhomhnaill, Mary Black, Liam O’Flynn and Brian Kennedy.

Their debut CD, Unwrapping Dreams was launched in 2004 to acclaim in Ireland and abroad, winning the award for Best Newcomers Album in Chicago’s American Live Ireland Awards that year. A BBC television documentary on the quartet followed.

Since then they have released The Guiding Moon (2006) featuring the Chieftains’ flute player Matt Molloy, and Ae Fond Kiss (2009) with special guest Maighréad Ní Dhomhnaill.

The West Ocean String Quartet have enjoyed sell-out performances in Dublin’s National Concert Hall, Belfast’s Waterfront Hall and Glasgow’s Royal Concert Hall. Their music has taken them to USA and France and they can claim that their appeal is truly universal as their three CDs were played aboard the International Space Station in 2011.

Tickets for their Aula show, which will contain material from all four of their albums, are €20, students €15. These are available from the Galway Arts Centre on Dominic Street, from the School of Medicine at NUIG, from Socs Box at NUIG, or at the door.