What does a typical Irish solo performer consist of? Our Irish solo artiste's consist of a guitar-vocalist with a versatile selection of Irish songs of all kinds, eras and genres. That often includes many of the classics such as 'The Fields of Athenry, 'Leaving of Liverpool', 'Dirty old Town', etc. He'll usually include a selection of songs recorded by acts such as, The Dubliners, Christy Moore, Pogues, Wolfe Tones, etc. As well as that some acts can also perform a selection of country and contemporary numbers where needed. >Top What does a typical Irish duo consist of? Usually a guitar-vocalist along with a melody instrumentalist such as an Irish fiddler, Banjo player or Accordian player. They'll play be able to provide good and lively Irish songs of all types new and old to suit all tastes similar to the songlists of our solo acts. Some bookers prefer an act that performs mainly ballads and traditional tunes where others prefer a mixture of Irish with some pop covers and country. Whatever your preference we'll discuss that with you when you make your enquiry and ensure that we supply you with something to match your needs. >Top What are the main differences and advantages of booking an Irish music duo instead of a solo Irish entertainer? A solo act is ideal for smaller venues and crowds of up to around 100 people and can often provide all that you'll need. The main benefit of booking a duo is that it's a 'fuller sound' and features an extra instrument that can play Irish jigs and reels. >Top Can your Irish acts play traditional Irish music and songs AND disco type songs and rock music, Abba, U2, etc? Irish music is played with different instruments compared to pop cover and function bands. Electric guitars, keyboards and rock drummers don't generally really work with Irish songs. It's quite a tall order expecting an Irish band to switch from 'The Fields of Athenry' to 'Dancing Queen' just as it would be to get a pop cover band to do likewise. If you want to have live Irish music and rock and pop covers why not consider booking a live Irish act to be followed by one of our excellent discos? >Top How long does the act play for? A typical booking is for 2 hours including one fifteen minute break. This can vary and be longer depending on the needs of the booker. Weddings are often for 2.5-3 hours. On St Patrick's day and New years eve it's usually for 3 x 45 minute sets during a 3 hour period. >Top
Which areas does your agency cover and do your acts travel? We cover almost anywhere. Many of our acts are based in the London and home counties but we have others based in various regions of the country. We can send acts literally anywhere to venues and functions in both the UK and abroad. We work on the principle of 'distance is no object'. We've recently assisted with the supply of Irish entertainment for a venue in Chengdu in China! >Top Do they supply their own PA system? Yes. All acts are self contained and provide all of their own equipment. In some cases where a venue already has an in house sound system they will use this provided it's all arranged and agreed beforehand. In some bookings the musicians perform acoustically without any PA. This is typical with Irish traditional 'Sessions'. >Top Can I go and hear them perform before I book them? If there's time enough before the date of your booking we can probably arrange that for you. If not we'll see if we can get a demo MP3 file sent off to you asap. The simplest and quickest way to hear some of our acts playing is via our samplers page. You may also rest assured that our reputation is very important to us and we have a vested interest in supplying only the best Irish music acts available. >Top Do your acts play their instruments live or do they use backing tracks? Because Irish music is essentially an acoustic based type of sound, the use of 'Karaoke' type backing tracks is almost unheard of. With pop orientated Irish bands for some functions such as weddings they are sometimes used but only sparingly and more to augment the act rather than substitute real live music. >Top My party is a happy event and I don’t want a lot of sad and dreary songs played nor too many traditional jigs and reels, can you make sure they keep it lively and happy? >Top Yes, of course. Although many popular and classic Irish songs are sad and slow, (Fields of Athenry, Grace, Four Green Fields, etc,)they need to be played sparingly along with all the lively stuff for parties such as 'Whisky in the Jar', 'The Irish Rover', etc. Traditional music such as Jigs and Reels is also something that works better with a crowd when played sparingly. Our acts are all used to playing to a crowd so they are aware of this issue and arrange their sets accordingly. Most good acts watch the crowds reaction and keep it all lively and flowing. >Top I will have lots of English guests at my party so I don’t want to offend anyone with any Rebel songs, can you make sure this isn’t an issue? Rebel songs are not played at any functions or gigs by our acts unless the booker has specifically asked for them, so rest assured that won’t be a problem! >Top Do you take bookings at short notice? Yes, we can often arrange to get an act for you within 24 hours of a booking or even on the same day! We do of course prefer more notice but if your booking is urgent call us right away on 0845 226 5324. >Top I run an Irish venue abroad can you supply me with an Irish act? We can supply Irish performers to travel anywhere provided the terms and conditions are suitable. The most feasible set up is where an Irish music bar can provide accommodation and an in house PA system with a realistic fee. If you have an enquiry for an Irish entertainment act to play abroad just fill out our enquiry form and we promise to get back you promptly. >Top We're having an 'Irish theme night' can you organise that for us? Indeed we can. We specialise in coordinating and organising Irish theme nights. We can arrange live Irish music, Irish dancers. an Irish Piper or anything you require for an Irish night to remember! We can also supply a compere and songsheets for 'Irish singalongs' and where required, find you a venue via our many function room and venue contacts across the UK. If you're thinking of organising such an event, get in touch and we'll be delighted to discuss it with you. >Top Do the acts play requested songs on the night? Certainly. However, if it's essential to you that a specific song is played on the night it's best to let us know at the time of booking ands we'll organise (where possible) for the act to perform it for you. We can't of course guarantee that all of our acts will have every Irish song available on their songlist! >Top Would I have any say in the general list of songs played on the night? Yes, it’s a good idea and normal procedure for the act to consult the booker on an appropriate playlist for the night. For example, it wouldn't be advisable to play Irish rebel songs at a wedding! Neither is it a good idea to play too many slow and sombre ballads, although the night probably wouldn't feel the same without the odd tearjerker classic such as; ‘Danny Boy’ or ‘The Fields Of Athenry’.
>Top I need someone to sing at a funeral, can you help? Yes, we can supply a singer with or without an instrument to sing any song of your choice at the service and or the graveside. If you need to book someone soon please call us on 0845 226 5324. To see how much it will cost please go to our fees page. >Top Is an Irish solo or duo suitable for Irish wedding music entertainment? A solo is probably not quite sufficient for a wedding simply because a wedding crowd is usually very diverse and varied, needing a wide range of musical material that would be better suited to a duo or a band. To find out more information on what we can do to help you with your wedding visit out Irish weddings page. >Top How do acts dress when performing? Depends on the event. Smart dress or casual is the norm. If it's a 'dressy' occasion the act will dress aptly. >Top How is my booking confirmed and paid for?
Once your booking is made and the details of your needs clarified, we will put all of the details on a simply understood agreement which is normally ratified by a deposit and signed copy of the agreement. This constitutes a legal contract between you and the act that will give you the peace of mind that everything is confirmed in writing. We normally accept deposit payments via cheque or bank transfer. We can also accept deposit payments via credit cards, switch, solo or maestro. The balance of the contracted fee is normally paid in cash on the day to the act. Where requested you can also pay for the balance by credit or debit card.
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Are your fees all inclusive? Are there any 'extras'? The fees quoted are what you will pay in total unless there is an extra travel cost involved, in which case you will be advised of this at the time of booking and it will be included clearly in your booking agreement. Travel costs are kept to a minimum. If the booking is long distance and an overnight stay is required for the act then this will also be negotiated separately with the booker and included in the agreement. We have no hidden costs and we do NOT charge any booking or arrangement fees. VAT is NOT applicable unless the act is VAT registered, which is rare and if they were we'd advise you of that at the time of booking.
>Top How far ahead do I need to make a booking? There's no set time but it's always best to book up as far ahead as possible. We do however, often arrange bookings at short notice.
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How do I make a booking? Just call us on 0845 226 5324, fill out our online enquiry form or email us. Either way we promise to respond to your enquiry very promptly! When you make the booking we provide you with a 'plainspeak' agreement that will include all of the terms and conditions applicable to your booking. You simply check it through, assuming it's all correct then sign and return it to us either by scanning and emailing it or via post. We'll normally ask for a deposit that's deductible from the agreed fee of which the balance is normally payable on the night.
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I may also need Irish dancers and or an Irish disco, can you arrange it all for me? Absolutely. We can coordinate the event for you and take the hassle and headache out of it all by arranging everything. We can also provide a PA for hire at the function if required.
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Do you charge me an extra fee for arranging the booking? No. As an agency (in the vast majority of cases) we make our cut via commission paid to us by the act from their overall fee. If there were any booking or management fee involved this would be negotiated by separate arrangement with you and included clearly within the terms and conditions of any such agreement.
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I need to discuss this with you, can you call me? Yes, we'd be glad to. If you wish to make a booking enquiry please either fill out our enquiry form which asks you for your telephone number or call our office on 0845 226 5324 (Local call rate). You can also email us directly with any specific question you may have.
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