Doireann Ní Ghlacáin to Release Debut Album AN TAIRSEACH: THE THRESHOLD

Traditional musician, sean-nós singer, broadcaster and podcaster Doireann Ní Ghlacáin has announced her debut solo album, An Tairseach: The Threshold, due for release 15th January 2027, and has shared its first single, the traditional song Madam I'm a Darlin', alongside a new music video directed by Dónal Glackin.

The album will be followed by a tour of Ireland and the UK in 2027, with tickets going on sale at 10am on Friday 11 September.

Following the sold-out all-Ireland run of her acclaimed debut solo show Studies on The Cailleach in 2025, Ní Ghlacáin returns with a body of work rooted in folklore, traditional music and the idea of the liminal - the threshold between this world and the other.

Doireann comes from the renowned Donegal fiddle dynasty, the Glackins. She learnt the fiddle at home from her father, Kevin Glackin, who in turn learnt from his father, Tom Glackin. The tradition has been passed down aurally through generations. In Donegal folklore, fiddle players could become lost in the lios (fairy fort), enthralled by the music of the fairies. In the lios, a day can be 100 years, and 100 years can be a day. At the heart of An Tairseach is the idea that music can act as a key into an saol eile, the other world, where time is suspended.

An Tairseach also features songs from the sean-nós tradition. A native Irish speaker, Doireann developed her love of sean-nós singing through her mother's family, the Ríadas of the Cúil Aodha Gaeltacht. This eventually led her to pursue a PhD researching sean-nós singing at NUI Galway.

The album has a strong female influence, featuring songs she learnt from her aunts. The first single, Madam I'm a Darlin' is a song she learnt from her aunt, Liadh Ní Riada. A raucous account of a woman mad for love. The other world is an alternative reality that runs parallel to this very patriarchal society we live in. Where the man reigns supreme in this world, the lios is run by the bean sídh.

The video for Madam I'm a Darlin', directed by Dónal Glackin, follows an old Dublin woman as she travels around the city. Starring Bríd Neachtain and featuring cameos from John Francis Flynn, Hajime Takahashi, Tomás Mulligan (Ispíní na hEireann) and Jimmy Clarke, the video is a commentary on the rapid decline of community space and culture in Dublin city.

Recorded live with no edits, it is a raw portrayal of traditional music at its most primitive and pure. Featured on the track with Ní Ghlacáin are Libby McCrohan, Peadar Tom Mercier (Trá Pháidin) and Pádraig Óg Mac Aodgháin (Ispíní na hEireann). The track was recorded by Ben Rawlins.

2027 'An Tairseach: The Threshold' Tour Dates:

12 Feb - Galway, Róisín Dubh

14 Feb - Cork, Cyprus Avenue

19 Feb - Limerick, Dolans

12 March - Belfast, Ulster Sport Club

13 March - Dublin, Academy

Tickets on sale at 10am on Friday 11 September.

Doireann Ní Ghlacáin Instagram

Photo Credit: Bríd O’Donovan

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