Traditional Irish music to come to Kildare's Castletown House

A brilliant young duo will present a selection of traditional Irish repertoire at Castletown House in Kildare this September, spanning music from the early tradition, including works by Turlough O’Carolan, through to newly composed pieces.

The programme, by Aoibhe Kettle (harp and fiddle) and Brendan O'Connell (concertina and guitar) explores the enduring connection between Ireland’s musical heritage and its contemporary tradition, and is to be held on Friday, September 25 2026.

Aoibhe Kettle is an accomplished harper and fiddle player from Wolfhill in County Laois, who has just graduated with 1st Class Honours from The Irish World Academy of Music & Dance at the University Limerick. She has a number of All-Ireland accolades to her name, including 1st prize in Senior Harp Slow Airs 2024 at The All Ireland Fleadh Cheoil Na hÉireann. Her musical passion lies in composing for harp and she is hugely inspired by older traditional Irish music composers up to newer composers such as Bill Whelan and the late Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin.

Last autumn, Aoibhe was invited by fiddle player Martin Hayes to perform in Bantry House at his Masters of Tradition festival, and in January of this year she performed at her own Sold Out concert at the TradFest in Dublin. She recently finished her composition 'The Famine Suite' for harp, and will be recording this work and others on her up-coming EP, releasing later this year.

Brendan O’Connell is a multi-instrumentalist from Dublin, whose long history of music dates back to when he was two years old, playing the bodhrán in the Craobh Chualann bodhrán class on Friday nights. This was the foundation for his love of music and engendered an ear for music and how it can be accompanied. In 2005, when he was at the age of two, Helen McGloughlin had the faith to take him and her bodhran class on stage to perform at the National Concert Hall. Since then, he has gone on to perform in the National Concert Hall three more times in the finals of Siansa Gael Linn, culminating in a second place with the group Léargas.

In the meantime, Brendan played on tour with his Comhaltas branch in San Sebastian, Sitges, and Glasgow, and has played with his brother Tiarnán at the Kilfenora Tradfest, Féile Na Tána (nine times) and at the ufaFabrik Internationales Kulturzentrum in Berlin, as well as making a number of appearances on TG4 and RnAG.

He is a twice All-Ireland Champion in the bodhrán and a highly accomplished concertina and banjo player, with numerous medals in both, and has performed solo twice at the Consairtín festival. Brendan is currently working on an album, which he plans to have finished later on this year.

This concert is presented by the OPW as part of the 2026 Cultural Programme at Castletown House. Held on Friday, September 25 2026, doors open at 7.30pm and the performance runs from 8pm to 9.30pm.

Tickets are €20, including booking fee, and are available from www.eventbrite.ie