The Winding Stair (band)

The Winding Stair is a musical group from Belfast, Northern Ireland which first played publicly in 2005. The band describe their music as folk noir. Their name is associated with the poetry of W.B. Yeats.[1]

The Winding Stair
OriginUnited Kingdom
GenresIrish folk, folk noir
Instrument(s)violin, cello, guitar, vocals, bodhrán
Years active2005–2008
Labelsunsigned
MembersClare Galway, Tom Hughes, CT
Past membersMary O'Halloran

Clare Galway on violin and vocals, Tom Hughes on cello and bodhrán and CT on guitar. Former vocalist Mary O'Halloran left the band amicably in 2008.

Performances

The band have played extensively in Ireland since 2005. This has included prestigious support slots such as Martha Wainwright in Lisburn on 13 August 2007. They were also invited to play the Glastonbury Festival,[1] appearing third on the bill at the acoustic stage on 23 June 2007. That night they shared the stage with KT Tunstall among others.[2]

TV and radio

The band were invited to perform for the Today programme on BBC Radio 4. They were asked to perform The Mountains of Mourne, originally written by Percy French, for a feature on discussions surrounding the Mourne Mountains' proposed status as a national park. This was broadcast on 29 August 2007.

On 18 October 2007, BBC Radio 1 broadcast a live session from the band.[3] The Winding Stair also made a live appearance on the Irish language arts programme Imeall Geal on BBC Two in 2008.[4]

Album

The band self-released an album called Finistère on 5 August 2007.[5] It was produced at Doghouse Studios in Belfast by Eamonn P Keyes,[6] previously manager and producer of the rock band The Answer.

Video

In 2007 Brian Philip Davis made a film for their song "The Meadow". It was broadcast on the third series of BBC Northern Ireland show ATL TV.[7]

The video adopts Davis' usual magical realist approach, and it starred Lara McIvor, notable for starring in the science fiction movie City of Ember.[8]

References
  1. Carberry, Colin (30 March 2007). "Seek and ye shall wind". Hot Press. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  2. "Glastonbury 2007: Sunday's Line-up". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  3. "BBC Radio 1 – Rory McConnell – Tracklisting". BBC Radio 1. Archived from the original on 30 July 2012. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  4. "The Winding Stair – "Finistère"". Imeall Geal (in Irish). Belfast. 2008. BBC. BBC Two. Archived from the original on 30 January 2009. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  5. Jones, Francis (18 September 2007). "The Winding Stair – Finistère". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 3 June 2008. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  6. "The Winding Stair Albums". IrishMusicdb.com. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  7. "The Winding Stair". ATL TV. Series 3. Episode 3. Belfast. 8 March 2007. BBC. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  8. "Lara McIvor". IMDb. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
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