Áine Minogue (born 27 May 1977, Borrisokane, County Tipperary) is an Irish harpist, singer, arranger, and composer, now living in the Boston area.[2] She has recorded thirteen solo albums[3] in styles generally categorized as Celtic, world, folk, spiritual, and new age.[1]
Early life
Áine Minogue was born in Ireland to a family of ten, which often played and sang at traditional Irish events such as fleadhs and Hunting the Wren.[4] She was 12 when she started playing the Irish harp at a boarding school in Galway. Minogue became a harpist at Bunratty Castle in County Clare.[5] She obtained a Master's Degree in Traditional Irish Harp Performance from the University of Limerick.[6] She moved to Boston in 1990.[7]
Music career
Minogue's debut album, Were You at the Rock, consisted of traditional dance and concert pieces.[5]
Mysts of Time (1996) was a mix of traditional tunes and original songs, with mostly Gaelic lyrics. It was seen as belonging to the Irish wave of New Age/Celtic fusion and associated with the sound of Enya. Her voice was described as "fragile, lilting... like a gently windblown satin sheet."[8]To Warm the Winter's Night (1996) was a popular collection of Celtic and English midwinter and Christmas music.[9]
Circle of the Sun (1998) was a musical journey through the seasons with a focus on the four Celtic calendar festivals of Lughnasadh, Samhain, Imbolc, and Beltane.[10] She mixed her own Celtic harp with guitars, cellos, fiddles, flutes, and bodhráns, but also folk instruments from other traditions such as didgeridoo and djembe.[11]Celtic Lamentations (2005) explored how ancient people used music to mourn.[12] It won Zone Music Reporter's Best Celtic Album award.[13]