Without Willow | Sarah E Cullen

A special Donegal Bay & Bluestacks Festival Ghostlight Sessions showcases some of Donegal’s finest musciians in a mouth-watering double bill.

WITHOUT WILLOW are Karen Kelly and Simon McCafferty, an exceptional acoustic folk/singer-songwriting duo from Letterkenny and Drumkeen respectively.

Earlier this year, they released their splendid debut album, Left Behind, to great critical acclaim as well as extensive local and national radio airplay. Guest musicians on the album included the late, great Ted Ponsonby, Laura McFadden, Orri McBrearty and Mark McGirr.

Karen Kelly contributes haunting, heartfelt vocals that intertwine seamlessly with Simon McCafferty’s intricate guitar playing, creating a sound as diverse as their backgrounds.

For this special Ghostlight Session as part of the Donegal Bay and Blue Stacks Festival, Without Willow will play songs from their debut album as well as some new material. Joining them will be Laura McFadden on Cello and Rhys McBride on Bass Guitar.

SARAH E. CULLEN is a multi-intrumentalist, singer and songwriter from Carrigart.

Hailing from a well-known musical family and equally at home performing traditional or contemporary music, Sarah released her debut CD under the name The Reflection Box in 2020.

A much sought after session musician, she has performed and recorded with Rosie Carney and In Their Thousands among others.

Sarah is also a founder member of the Irish – Rajasthani Citadels of the Sun ensemble, who have performed their wonderful Earagail Arts Festival commissioned work in Donegal, Derry, Rajasthan, Glasgow (Celtic Connections) and Belfast in recent years.

Joining Sarah for this Donegal Bay & Bluestacks Ghostlight Session is Rúairí Friel on guitar.