More than 30 local female singers have added their voices to a special charity CD in memory of a much-loved Letterkenny woman.
The Wild Atlantic Women ‘Live, Laugh, Love’ CD project is a collection of songs donated in aid of Donegal Hospice.
The compilation pays tribute to Fiona Carr from Letterkenny, who passed away in August at the age of 30.
Fiona was a singer, dancer, Blue Ribbon member and a great fan of country music. The new album is dedicated to Fiona and remembers all families who pass through the doors of the Donegal Hospice.
The double CD contains one special feature at the end, which could never have happened without the help of Irish band Bagatelle.
CD creator Brighdin Carr, founder of Blue Ribbon Performing Arts, hoped to include a song by Fiona on the record. This dream was soon made a reality thanks to Bagatelle.
Brighdin told DonegalWoman.ie: “Fiona recorded ‘Second Violin’ by Bagatelle when she was 15 for a Blue Ribbon CD. Nothing was ever done with it. But we talked to her family and it was decided she would be the last voice on the CD.
“It normally takes 6 weeks or more to get copyrights for a pre-recorded song, but Bagatelle and the label gave us permission within five minutes of getting the call,” she said.
The late Fiona Carr
The rest of the CD is a vibrant mix of folk, country,traditional and modern voices from all over Donegal. Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh, Moya Brennan, Margo O’Donnell and The Henry Girls have donated tracks, listed alongside a rich selection of local artists.
Hear a snippet from every song on the album here:
Getting so many voices together may sound like a mammoth task, but CD creator Brighdin Carr said it was a lot easier than she ever expected.
Brighdin said: “I had the idea during the Halloween holidays. I started to call women asking if they had any tracks that were sitting unused and would they like to donate them to the Hospice. I had 27 songs in my inbox within 24 hours. It was unbelievable.”
Wild Atlantic Women ‘Live, Laugh, Love’ CD Tracklist
The CD will be officially launched on 6th January 2019 – Nollaig na mBan. A Wild Atlantic Women concert is taking place in An Grianan Theatre Letterkenny with many of the artists taking to the stage, alongside special guests.
Tickets are on sale now at www.angrianan.com/event/nollaig
This event was inspired by Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh, who was an integral and valued part of the project.
The CD is currently on sale in Donegal Hospice and a small number of stores: McAteer’s of Shannagh in Fanad, Whoriskeys Ramelton and McFaddens Pharmacies in Letterkenny. Any local shop that wishes to stock the CD is invited to contact Brighdin via bricarrmusic@yahoo.com.
“Because the artists come from Ballyshannon to Malin Head, what we’d love is to get local outlets to stock them all over. The more the merrier,” Brighdin said.
All proceeds are in aid of Donegal Hospice.
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