Cillian Vallely

Cillian Vallely
Cillian playing the Uilleann Pipes during a Lúnasa concert
Background information
Genres	Irish traditional
Instrument(s)	Uilleann pipes, flutes, tin whistles
Website	http://www.cillianvallely.com

Cillian Vallely is an Irish musician, born in Armagh, Northern Ireland. He plays traditional Irish music on the uilleann pipes and low whistle, and studied at the Armagh Pipers Club with his mother and father, Brian and Eithne, and then with the late Armagh piper Mark Donnelly. His brothers, Niall and Caoimhín, also play traditional music.

Since 1999, he has been a member of the band Lúnasa, with whom he has recorded 7 albums. He has also performed and toured with Riverdance, Natalie Merchant, Tim O'Brien & Mary Chapin-Carpenter in The Crossing, New York-based Whirligig, and the Celtic Jazz Collective with Lewis Nash and Peter Washington. In the past couple of years, he has worked on various collaborations between traditional and classical music, along with his brother Niall and the composer Micheal O’Suilleabhain

He has recorded on over 40 albums including Callan Bridge with his brother Niall, On Common Ground with Kevin Crawford and various guest spots with Natalie Merchant, Alan Simon’s Excalibur project with Fairport Convention and Moody Blues, GAIA with the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, and singer Karan Casey. He has recently recorded on two movie soundtracks, Irish Jam and The Golden Boys and played uilleann pipes on the BBC’s Flight of the Earls soundtrack. In January 2014, he played uilleann pipes, low whistle and tin whistle on the Bruce Springsteen album High Hopes, an album topped the charts in 14 different countries.

Discography

With Lúnasa:

• The Merry Sisters of Fate (2001)
• Redwood (2003)
• The Kinnitty Sessions (2004)
• Sé (2006)
• The Story So Far... (2008)
• Lá Nua (2010)
• Lúnasa with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra (2013)

Other

• Bruce Springsteen: High Hopes (Columbia Records)
• Cillian Vallely & Kevin Crawford: On Common Ground (BallyO Records)
• Niall & Cillian Vallely: Callan Bridge (Crow Valley Music)
• Natalie Merchant: Leave Your Sleep (Nonesuch Records)
• Karan Casey: Ships in the Forest (Compass Records)
• Karan Casey: Distant Shore (Shanachie Records)
• Niall Vallely: Beyond Words (Crow Valley Music)
• Buille: Buille 2 (Crow Valley Music)
• Caoimhin Vallely: Strayaway
• Alan Simon: GAIA (BMI)
• Alan Simon: Excalibur II (BMI)
• John Whelan: Come to Dance (Narada)
• Whirligig: The Spin
• Susan McKeown: Lowlands (Green Linnet)
• Susan McKeown, Robin Spielberg & Aine Minogue: Mother (North Star)
• Aine Minogue: To Warm the Winter's Night (Evergreen)
• Druidstone: The Vow (North Star)
• Dale-Anne Bradley: (Compass)
• Lunasa & Tim O'Brien: Hands Across the Water (Compass)
• Live at the Katherine Cornell Theatre
• Live at Mona's
• Armagh Pipers Club 40th Anniversary Album
• William Kennedy Piping Festival Live Album

Various artists including Lúnasa

• Untamed - Next Generation Celtic (2001)
• New Day (2004)
• The Leitrim Equation (2009)
• "Irish Jam" (film soundtrack, 2005, various artists)
• "The Golden Boys" (film soundtrack, 2008, various artists)

External links

• Official Lúnasa profile
• Vallely Music homepage