Transatlantic Women is a night of music and dance, curated by Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh of Altan, and includes a lineup of the remarkable women in trad and folk music from both sides of the Atlantic. A remarkable ensemble of women is set to take over Dublin’s National Stadium. For TradFest 2027, Mairéad will be joined on stage by Karine Polwart, Scottish Fish, and more with this captivating event at Dublin’s historic National Stadium, promising to be an exceptional evening which celebrates the women of the trad and folk music scene.
Karine Polwart is a writer, musician, and storyteller whose work evokes a richness of place, hidden histories, scientific enquiry and folklore. Across multi-artist collaborations and intimate solo performances, poetic essays and picture books, theatre projects and radio documentaries, she conjures the beauty and magic, the sorrow and darkness of the world out of the corner of her eye, with lyricism and tenderness. Trees and rocks speak. Birds flit in and out of vision. And the intimate particularities of the people and landscapes she knows and loves reflect the complexities of the wider world, and our contested times.
Scottish Fish present a fiddle-forward infusion of original and traditional Scottish and Cape Breton music. After growing up steeped in the Boston Celtic music scene, these five young women began touring at an early age, quickly enchanting domestic and international audiences with their youthful enthusiasm, creative arrangements, and sensitive performances. As described by a concertgoer, “this powerhouse quintet wows listeners with a luscious and exciting sound, at times five instruments sharing one voice, and others a dynamic orchestra of harmony. Their years of friendship cultivate a truly unique musical bond. Their love for each other and the music they create is a gift they offer to anyone willing to listen.”