Muireann Bradley

Muireann Bradley

The Black Box

Thursday 9 May, 8.00pm

Doors 7.30pm | Unreserved seating

£14.00

Sold Out

Tickets for Festival Marquee, Tuesday 7th May available here

Muireann Bradley is a 17 year old finger picking guitarist & singer who grew up in the hills overlooking the Finn Valley outside the town of Ballybofey in County Donegal. Muireann performs primarily Country, Ragtime & Piedmont style blues from the 1920s & 1930s.

Her influences include Rev Gary Davis, Blind Blake, Mississippi John Hurt, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Robert Johnson, Elizabeth Cotten, and Memphis Minnie to name just a few. She delights in interpreting & performing the music of these early blues masters, always putting her own unique stamp on the tunes.

Muireann grew up surrounded by guitars & old blues & began playing at the age of nine when she convinced her father to buy her first guitar and teach her. She worked hard and learned to finger pick in various old blues styles. However as she got older she began to invest more time in the sports of boxing and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu which she trained and competed in successfully from a young age. This led to the guitar and music beginning to take something of a back seat.

Then in March 2020 when the first COVID lock downs happened all contact sports were shut down. Muireann felt lost for a while but she soon rediscovered her love for the guitar and the old Blues that she had grown up with. She was now listening and practicing with a new intensity and focus.

She decided to start posting videos on You Tube, the first of which was her rendition of Blind Blake’s “Police Dog Blues”. It received a lot of attention, and has now had 80,000+ views. She was then contacted by Josh Rosenthal of Tompkins Square Records in San Francisco who suggested she record an album.

The songs and instrumentals were all recorded live in the studio in one or two takes in an attempt to make the process as similar as possible to that of the original classic country blues artists of the 1920s and 30s. These recordings would become the album “I kept these old blues” which has just been released.

Tickets also available from:
Visit Belfast | 028 90 246 609
9 Donegall Square North - Open 7 days a Week

All Music

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Joel Harkin – Artist in Residence

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The Breeze: ‘Thin Ground’ Album Launch

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Ulster Sport Club

Friday 3 May, 8.00pm

Peter Case, Sid Griffin and Dan Stuart

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The Oh Yeah Music Centre

Friday 3 May, 8.00pm

PP Arnold with Special Guest Bronagh Gallagher

PP Arnold with Special Guest Bronagh Gallagher

Festival Marquee

Saturday 4 May, 7.00pm

Willy Mason

In association with Open House Festival

Willy Mason

Ulster Sports Club

Sunday 5 May, 8.00pm

Chasing Amy: A Celebration of the Life and Songs of Amy Winehouse

Victoria Geelan presents

Chasing Amy: A Celebration of the Life and Songs of Amy Winehouse

The Black Box

Tuesday 7 May, 1.00pm & 8.00pm

DJ Format

CQAF and Superfly Funk and Soul Belfast present

DJ Format

Ulster Sports Club

Friday 10 May, 10.30pm-3.00am

The Bonnevilles

CQAF and Belfast City Blues present

The Bonnevilles

The Deer’s Head

Saturday 11 May, 2.00pm

Blue Whale (‘Last Immediate Images’ Album Launch)

Moving On Music in association with CQAF Presents

Blue Whale (‘Last Immediate Images’ Album Launch)

The Black Box

Saturday 11 May, 8.30pm

Jane Weaver

Strange Victory in association with CQAF Presents

Jane Weaver

Ulster Sports Club

Sunday 12 May, 8.00pm

Supported By

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embrace
FHM
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The Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival and Out To Lunch are annual festivals of music, comedy, theatre, art and literature which take place in January and May in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

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Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival / Out To Lunch Arts Festival
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Northern Whig House
Bridge Street
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BT1 1LU