Thursday 10th September - 7:30pm
David Brown Murray with support from Andrew Toman,
Sam McConkey & Christopher Farrington, & John Dowey
David Brown Murray
Fingerstyle guitarist and composer David Browne Murray has been actively involved in the music scene in Belfast since his return from Berklee College of Music in 2010.
He has since received the praise of Lee Ritenour, toured Ireland with jazz legends Frank Vignola and Vinnie Raniolo, Andy McKee, Gareth Pearson, Jan Akkerman and had the privilege of opening for Tommy Emmanuel in a sold-out Ulster Hall.
Alongside his solo career David is a sought after studio engineer and producer. He has a remarkable flair for composition, musical arrangements and has a deep knowledge of the recording process.
Sam McConkey & Christopher Farrington
Farrington began his musical career at a very young age, and has charted a colourful, ever-changing, and ever-innovative path since.
Widely regarded as one of the most exciting and talented Guitarists in Northern Ireland Sam has been delighting audiences, with his insightful performances and effortless presentation
Charlie Hanlon
A singer-songwriter from Downpatrick whose songwriting depth belies his age — he wrote breakout track "I Lost Myself" on his fifteenth birthday, uploading a solo demo that got picked up by ATL Introducing the very next day.
Andrew Toman
Toman has been an established session musician for over a decade - and recently has been embracing a different approach to the guitar, based around self-composed music and performance.
Drawing from influences such as Marc Ribot, Paul Brady, Martyn Heyne and Roland Dyens, Andrew's compositions reflect not only his interest in the instrument, but in the very nature of compositional fluidity - and the challenge to the performer/composer that this presents.
Fringe Events
Ossia Music School Rockschool
Saturday 12th September - 2pm
FREE EVENT
Cresent Arts Centre
2-4 University Rd, Belfast BT7 1NH
Every year, the Belfast Guitar Festival opens its stage to the students from Ossia Music School, who never fail to make everything worthwhile. This is that moment.
The Rockschool performances puts the next generation of Belfast guitarists in the spotlight. Young musicians who’ve spent the year building their chops, finding their voice, and learning what it means to play with other people. No backing tracks. No safety net. Just guitars, amplifiers, and the kind of nervous energy that turns into something electric the moment the first chord lands.
Workshop: Modes & Scales with Paul McMordie
FREE EVENT
5a Sandown Road, BT5 6RT
Saturday 12th September - 2pm
Modes and scales have a reputation for being the dry, theoretical end of guitar learning. Paul McMordie's workshop will change that.
Drawing on four decades of teaching experience at Ossia Music School, Paul cuts through the confusion and gets straight to what matters not just what modes and scales are, but where they live in real music and how to actually use them when you're playing.
Whether you've been avoiding this territory for years or just want to finally make sense of it, this is a workshop built around the way guitarists actually think and learn. Expect clarity, practicality, and more than a few moments where things that seemed complicated suddenly aren't.
Ossia Music School presents Sunday Service
Saturday 13th September - 2pm
FREE EVENT
Cresent Arts Centre
2-4 University Rd, Belfast BT7 1NH
Some congregations meet on Sunday mornings. This one meets on Sunday afternoons and it's louder.
Sunday Service is the adult student ensemble from Ossia Music School and they bring the kind of energy that reminds you why you picked up a guitar in the first place. Classic rock, played live, played loud, played with everything they've got.