Transatlantic Sessions to Launch Debut U.S. Tour at MerleFest

By: Apr. 14, 2017
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TRANSATLANTIC SESSIONS--the accomplished ensemble composed of the finest Celtic and American musicians led by musical directors Jerry Douglas and Shetland fiddler legend Aly Bain--will launch their debut U.S. tour on Friday, April 28 at MerleFest in Wilkesboro, NC. The tour will disembark at four additional stops on the east coast including, May 1 at The Birchmere in Alexandria, VA (Washington, DC), May 2 at Keswick Theatre in Glenside, PA (Philadelphia, PA), May 3 at Orpheum Theater in Boston, MA, and May 4 in New York, NY at The Town Hall. The TRANSATLANTIC SESSIONS will host special guest performers such as Alison Krauss, James Taylor, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Rodney Crowell and Rosanne Cash, among others in each city (see full list of special guests below).

For more information and to purchase tickets, click here. Watch a performance video of "Route Irish" from TRANSATLANTIC SESSIONS here.
Led by 14-time Grammy Award-winning Dobro/lap steel player Jerry Douglas and acclaimEd Scottish fiddle player Aly Bain, the talented group of musicians on this TRANSATLANTIC SESSIONS tour consists of Phil Cunningham, James Mackintosh, John McCusker and Donald Shawrepresenting Scotland, Michael McGoldrick (England), John Doyle(Ireland), in addition to Americans Russ Barenberg, and Daniel Kimbro.
"I know that there is a massive audience for good music here in the United States," says Jerry Douglas. "I also knew that if we had the opportunity to play shows here it would be a success. As a music director, especially one with so many built-in talented people as I have in this endeavor, I am trying to bring forward a show that is fresh and appealing to a very broad audience. One thing we have for certain is the ability to bob and weave our way through so many genres of music, always trying to bring out the best in each of them. When the Celtic boys are turned loose with a set of tunes that make the ancient blood boil within our friends in the audience, that might be my favorite moments of the night. It certainly lights a fire under me, and I think the audience with take away a feeling that they have witnessed something they may never see again. But I want them to be given this opportunity again and again."
Originating as a Pelicula/BBC Scotland television series and having enjoyed several celebrated tours through the British Isles and Ireland,TRANSATLANTIC SESSIONS continues to forge new ground while revisiting shared roots between today's finest Celtic and American musicians. The first (Original) TRANSATLANTIC SESSIONS episode was produced in 1995, a project conceived by Douglas Eadie, Mike Alexander, and Aly Bain. Subsequent seasons were produced in 1998, 2007, 2009, 2011 and2013. For each season of the sessions, the producer and director scout a distinct setting, typically a country manor, lodge, or estate, in the Highlands of Scotland where the musicians perform and reside for the duration of the recording. Each season was set in a different location, with the exception of Series Four and Five which were both recorded in the hunting lodge on the Glenlyon Estate near Aberfeldy in Perthshire. Series Six was filmed and recorded at the Lodge on Loch Lomond.
Catch TRANSATLANTIC SESSIONS on tour:
Friday, April 28, Wilkesboro, NC
MerleFest
Special Guests:
Sarah Jarosz
Karen Matheson
Joe Newberry
Maura O'Connell
Declan O'Rourke
Monday, May 1, Alexandria, VA (Washington, DC)
The Birchmere
Special Guests:
Milk Carton Kids
Maura O'Connell
Declan O'Rourke
Karen Matheson
Tuesday, May 2, Glenside, PA (Philadelphia, PA)
Keswick Theatre
Special Guests:
Mary Chapin Carpenter
Karen Matheson
Milk Carton Kids
Declan O'Rourke
Wednesday, May 3, Boston, MA
Orpheum Theater
Special Guests:
Mary Chapin Carpenter
Aoife O'Donovan
Declan O'Rourke
Karen Matheson
Milk Carton Kids
Thursday, May 4, New York, NY
The Town Hall
Special Guests:
Mary Chapin Carpenter
Sarah Jarosz
Karen Matheson
Aoife O'Donovan
Declan O'Rourke
For more information on TRANSATLANTIC SESSIONS USA, visit:


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