BRIGIDS AND PATRICIAS ALBUM
out now
“Most courageous Irish album of the year”
THE IRISH TIMES
“A fearless delivery that celebrates womanhood”
SUNDAY BUSINESS POST
“Astounding, riveting, brilliant”
THE BLUE OF THE NIGHT, RTÉ LYRIC FM
BRIGIDS AND PATRICIAS
"What she's done here is extraordinary"
IRISH ECHO
Song For Bridget Cleary -
Edel Meade
EDEL MEADE
A unique artist working at the intersection of jazz, folk and contemporary music; her voice has been described as mesmerising while her music is haunting and very powerful. For Edel Meade, music-making is less about playing within the confines of genre and more about stretching her abilities as a creative artist with a lot to say.
"Distinctive and highly original"
THE IRISH TIMES
"A voice so clear it could cut crystal"
IRISH DAILY MAIL
"One of the most powerful vocal performances of late"
CIAN Ó CÍOBHÁIN, AN TAOBH TUATHAIL
“There have been some uniquely creative singer-songwriters over the years - Bjork, Laurie Anderson and Patti Smith to name but a few and Ireland's Edel Meade is a welcome addition to that troupe.”
CELTIC LIFE INTERNATIONAL
HER STORY:
After spending over a decade as a professional jazz vocalist in Dublin, Edel Meade was longing for a deeper connection with the music she was performing and wanted to explore what it means to be an Irish woman today.
The result is Brigids and Patricias, an extraordinary and courageous collection of original songs celebrating the strength and fragility of women- drawing from Irish history, Irish folklore & mythology and current affairs. Meade wrote, arranged, performed and produced all elements of this striking body of work following on from the success of her debut album, Blue Fantasia in 2017.
Standout tracks include Song For Bridget Cleary (burnt alive by her husband in 1895, not far from where Meade grew up in Co. Tipperary), Song of the Seal inspired by the selkie legends in Irish and Scottish folklore, and Long Way To Go, a scintillating spoken word piece challenging misogyny and the CervicalCheck scandal in Ireland.
Meade is noted for her mesmerising live performances and her powerful songs. She is passionate about the Irish language as well as social justice. In recent years, her artistic practice has evolved to include sean-nós songs from Ireland as well as her own original poetry and spoken word alongside her original music.
She is currently writing her first book bringing together her passion for Irish folklore, mythology and women’s spirituality based around Slievenamon (Sliabh na mBan, Mountain of the Women) in her native Co. Tipperary. Her journalistic writing has been featured in The Irish Times.
She holds First Class Honours Masters Degrees in Songwriting, and in Irish Traditional Music Performance as well as Honours Degrees in Jazz Performance, and in Journalism with Irish.
In 2022-2023, she was selected for the prestigious Fulbright-Creative Ireland Professional Fellowship Award and Mary McPartlan Bursary and travelled to Berkeley, California to undertake artistic research, perform and teach in the San Francisco Bay Area for a six-month period. During this time, she presented guest lectures in association with the Irish Studies and Celtic Studies programs at U.C. Berkeley and for students on the Women’s Spirituality program at the pioneering California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) in San Francisco, and at the Women and Mythology Conference in Syracuse, New York.
During this time, she facilitated a 10-week course, ‘Traditional Irish Singing: A Journey of Ireland Through Song’ at the California Jazz Conservatory and delivered her workshop-presentation, ‘The Otherworld in the Irish and Scottish Song Tradition’ for students at Berkeley City College, as well as engaging in a range of performances at Morrison Hall, Berkeley, the United Irish Cultural Center, San Francisco, Great Star Theater, the San Francisco Public Library and more.
In 2022, Meade was a recipient of an Agility Award from the Arts Council of Ireland to research the African roots of jazz and blues at the Smithsonian Institute’s National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington DC. Also in 2022, she was the recipient of an Arts Council Project Award to record an experimental collection of Otherworld songs.
“Meade’s voice oozes sensuality”
HOT PRESS
Brigids and Patricias
by Edel Meade
“I wanted to explore what it means to be an Irish woman. I felt I needed to look at historic events as well as contemporary social issues and of course I believe it’s an artist’s duty to reflect the times.”
- Edel Meade
Released 8th March 2021: International Women’s Day
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Edel Meade
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Edel Meade
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Edel Meade
Upcoming performances and appearances:
Wednesday 6th March 2024 - Guest lecturer presenting on ‘Folk and Popular Music in Ireland’ at Berkeley City College, California, USA
Monday 22nd April 2024 - Centre Culturel Irlandais, Paris
Singing workshop with Edel Meade 7.30pm www.centreculturelirlandais.com
Tuesday 23rd April 2024 - Centre Culturel Irlandais, Paris
Gaulin Traditional Singers’ Club with special guest, Edel Meade 7.30pm
Sunday 5th May 2024 7pm Irish time / 2pm Eastern / 11am Pacific
‘The Otherworld in the Irish & Scottish Song Tradition’ online workshop with Edel Meade. For booking & further info contact edelmeade@gmail.com
Wednesday 22nd May 2024 - Riverbank Arts Centre, Newbridge, Co. Kildare 8pm
‘Brigid, Gobnait and Sheela-na-gig’ - a special solo concert performance-presentation weaving together traditional Irish folk songs, sean-nós songs, Edel’s original songs and spoken word poetry in Irish and English as part of the Brigid 1500 series of events supported by the Kildare County Council. www.riverbank.ie
Thursday 30th May 2024 - Nenagh Arts Centre, Co. Tipperary
Lunchtime Jazz with Edel Meade and Scott Flanigan (keys) as part of the Bealtaine programme presented by the Tipperary Arts Office. Starts 1.15pm. Admission free. All welcome to attend. www.nenagharts.com
Past performances:
Wednesday 5th July 2023 - Clonmel Junction Arts Festival
Edel Meade & Eamonn Flynn: Dreamy, meditative soundscapes reimagining sean-nós singing with echoes of blues, jazz and contemporary grooves… Venue: STAC Chapel at Kickham Barracks, Clonmel.
www.junctionfestival.com
Thursday 6th July 2023 - Arthurs Blues and Jazz Club, Dublin. Doors 8PM. Starts 8.30PM
Edel Meade & Eamonn Flynn: Dreamy, meditative soundscapes reimagining sean-nós singing with echoes of blues, jazz and contemporary grooves…
Friday 22nd September 2023 - CULTURE NIGHT at The Chester Beatty, Dublin Castle.
Edel Meade Solo concert performance featuring some of her favourite sean-nós and traditional Irish songs and original music inspired by Irish folklore & mythology. Starts 7.30pm. Free admission.
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Fulbright-Creative Ireland Professional Fellowship Awardee - Spring 2023 -
Berkeley, California, USA
11th January 2023 - Traditional Irish Singing: A Journey of Ireland Through Song - 10-week course at The JazzSchool at the California Jazz Conservatory, Berkeley - Wednesdays 6.30pm. For booking and further info, visit www.cjc.edu
1st February 2023 - St. Brigid’s Day. ‘Brigid: Pre-Christian Goddess, Saint and Muse’. Performance and discussion in honour of Brigid. Edel will perform songs from her critically-acclaimed album, Brigids and Patricias as well as some of her favourite women’s songs from the Irish song tradition. Presented by the Irish Studies and the Celtic Studies program at Morrison Hall, UC Berkeley 5pm.
4th February 2023 - Singing at the St. Brigid’s Day Festival at the United Irish Cultural Center, San Francisco 4pm.
7th, 9th, 14th March 2023 - Sean-nós Singing Workshop Series (online) in association with the South Tipperary Arts Centre for Seachtain na Gaeilge.
13th March 2023 - Guest lecture and workshop on ‘Art-making, imagination and improvisation’ at Berkeley City College.
17th March 2023 - Special guest at violinist and composer Colm Ó Riain’s St. Patrick’s Day Extravaganza concert at Great Star Theater, Chinatown, San Francisco.
28th March 2023 - Public lecture and workshop on ‘Brigid and the Otherworld in the Irish Song Tradition: Learning Songs and Stories of the Fairy Folk and the Pre-Christian Goddess’ presented by the Women’s Spirituality program at the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS), San Francisco. Starts 6pm. All welcome.
29th March & 5th April 2023 - Sean-nós Singing Workshop Series (online) in association with Clonmel Applefest for Seachtain na Gaeilge.
8th April 2023 - Irish-American Crossroads Festival 2023 - Breaking Sound Barriers: Edel Meade in conversation with violinist/composer Colm Ó Riain re. their work at the intersections of Irish and other musical genres, and connections between creativity and artificial intelligence. Conversation + music. Venue: Koret Center, San Francisco Public Library. Starts 1pm. www.irishamericancrossroads.org
26th April 2023 - Guest lecture on ‘Irish Folklore and Mythology in the Irish Song Tradition’ presented by the Celtic Studies Department at UC Berkeley.
Sunday 30th April 2023 - ‘The Otherworld in the Irish and Scottish Song Traditions’ - 3-hour workshop at The Jazzschool at the California Jazz Conservatory, Berkeley. Starts 11am. For booking, go to www.cjc.edu
Friday 5th & 6th May 2023 - Women & Myth Conference, Syracuse, New York. Presenting ‘Brigid and the Otherworld in the Irish Song Tradition: Learning Songs and Stories of the Fairy Folk and the Pre-Christian Goddess’ and featured performer in the closing celebration. www.womenandmyth.org
Sunday 4th June 2023 - ‘Traditional Irish Singing: A Journey of Ireland Through Song’ 3-hour workshop at The Jazzschool at the California Jazz Conservatory, Berkeley. Starts 11am. For booking & further info, visit www.cjc.edu
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Autumn 2022
Friday 16th September: Opening for Pauline Scanlon at The Pepper Canister, Dublin.
Friday 23rd September Culture Night: Edel Meade Jazz Trio at the Chester Beatty at Dublin Castle.
Thursday 6th October: Edel Meade solo - intimate acoustic performance at the South Tipperary Arts Centre, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary. SOLD OUT.
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Brigids and Patricias Tour - Spring 2022
1st February - St. Brigid’s Day - Centre Culturel Irlandais, Paris
www.centreculturelirlandais.com
10th February - Belltable, Limerick
www.limetreetheatre.ie
12th February - Riverbank Arts Centre, Newbridge. Concert performance followed by a panel discussion on Brigid as pre-Christian goddess, saint and muse with Edel Meade, poet Annemarie Ní Churreáin and author Dolores Whelan, chaired by journalist Aoife Barry.
www.riverbank.ie
8th March - Double-bill with Eleanor McEvoy at Mermaid Arts Centre, Bray for International Women’s Day. www.mermaidartscentre.ie
9th March - Magy’s Farm, Co. Down
www.magysfarm.co.uk
19th March - Source Arts Centre, Thurles. Concert performance followed by a panel discussion on the story of Bridget Cleary today with Edel Meade, folklorist Dr. Jenny Butler and playwright Eve O’Mahony.
www.thesourceartscentre.ie
28th April - Glór, Ennis. Concert performance followed by a discussion on Biddy Early: Wise Woman or Witch? Chaired by Orla Flanagan.
www.glor.ie
tEACHING
Edel has been teaching for over 15 years and is regarded as one of Ireland’s leading vocal instructors specialising in the instruction of Jazz Voice and related styles, and in Traditional Irish Singing.
She has been working as guest lecturer at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance at University of Limerick since 2018, where she has facilitated jazz singing and performance workshops, vocal improvisation classes, worked intensively with students on the MA Songwriting program, and provided one-to-one vocal instruction for students at undergraduate and postgraduate level.
Her online workshop ‘The Otherworld in the Irish and Scottish Song Traditions’ has been offered at the California Jazz Conservatory since 2021, and she regularly offers an 8-week online course: ‘Traditional Irish Singing: A Journey of Ireland Through Song’ to participants all over the world. The next course starts in February 2025. Email edelmeade@gmail.com for further details.
Edel holds a First Class Honours Masters Degree in Irish Traditional Music Performance, an additional First Class Honours Masters Degree in Songwriting, an Honours Degree in Jazz Performance (where she specialised in Jazz Voice and Composition) and an Honours Degree in Journalism with Irish. She has studied with internationally-acclaimed vocalists including Theo Bleckmann, Laurie Antonioli, Kate McGarry and Rev. Nóirín Ní Riain with support from the Arts Council of Ireland, and has undertaken further training at the School for Improvisational Music (New York), the Banff International Workshop in Jazz and Creative Music (Canada), Berklee College of Music (online) and Silkroad’s Global Musician Workshop (online), while she represented Ireland at the International Jazz Voice Conference at The Sibelius Academy (Finland) in 2017 and 2015. She teaches using the principles of Somatic Voicework™.
Testimonials:
'Edel has a knack for bringing out the best of whatever your voice has to offer and her passion for jazz and blues is infectious.' Rachel Walshe
'I simply love Edel's workshops. Edel is a highly talented musician and imparts her knowledge and wisdom very generously and with great clarity. I would recommend to anyone!' Lainey Ennis
'Absolutely invigorated by my experience with Edel. She is a fantastic, empowering and attentive teacher!'
Ria Flom
'Edel is an amazing teacher. I would highly recommend her classes. Improvement is guaranteed together with a lot of fun.' Marta Lovisari
'I highly recommend Edel's courses. She's so helpful and encouraging not to mention she's a beautiful musical artist.' Monica Healy