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Behan 100: Jack O’Rourke
Chapel Sessions

  • Saturday 18 November 2023
  • 7.30pm
  • €15 (€12 for students and unemployed)

Reservation recommended

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One of Ireland's most gifted singer-songwriters continues to expand his musical palette. Wild Place (2021), Jack O'Rourke's third and most recent album, has received triumphant critical acclaim; it depicts an eclectic musicality with, as ever, strong emphasis on the piano and his captivating voice which oscillates between the maturity of a baritone and the lightness of a falsetto. The artist pushes the boundaries of dark blues with introspective ballads that are both heartbreaking and ardent, sprinkled with baroque pop, folk, soul and jazz tones - like the sumptuous tracks 'Silence' and 'Sea Swimming'. The Cork-born songwriter devoted his recent residency at the CCI to setting Behan's poetry to music, drawing on traditional sounds and sean-nós, with melodic touches of Ravel, Debussy, Kate Bush and Radiohead. These new open-hearted compositions combine with the artist's standards - both modern and timeless, personal and universal - to bring our Brendan Behan festival to an end in resonating style.

"A captivating performer, Jack O'Rourke shows great skill when it comes to dissecting the details of relationships and examining the human condition in the image of his worthy lyrical predecessors, Leonard Cohen and Tom Waits." (Irish Examiner)