Celtic Thunder
Celtic Thunder is an Irish singing group and stage show known for its eclectic, theatrical style show. The group is backed by the Celtic Thunder Band on their concert tours, and their live shows are known for the use of dramatic set pieces, visual effects, and highly choreographed staging.
Since the original group's formation in 2007, Celtic Thunder has released twelve albums as well as ten live performances on DVD, three of which were split into two releases.
History
Celtic Thunder was conceived in the mind of producer Sharon Browne who started the group in 2007.Celtic Thunder debuted in August 2007 at The Helix in Dublin, Ireland. They are accompanied by the Celtic Concert Orchestra under the direction of Phil Coulter, the musical director of the group.
In December 2008, 2009 and 2011, Billboard magazine named Celtic Thunder Top World Album Artist. Their first three albums also placed in the top 10 for World Albums.
In March 2009, Celtic Thunder opened the Saint Patrick's Day Parade in New York City.
On 28 November 2010, Celtic Thunder member Paul Byrom announced his resignation from the group to begin a solo career. He left the group when the 2010 concert tour was over.
In 2011, Damian McGinty entered and won the Oxygen reality show The Glee Project. On 21 August 2011, McGinty announced on The Glee Projects Live Viewing Party, that he would be stepping down from Celtic Thunder due to his new role on Glee. McGinty returned to the group in 2015, and has been on their subsequent albums.
George Donaldson died of a heart attack on 12 March 2014 in his home in Glasgow.
Members
Current members
- Neil Byrne
- Emmet Cahill
- Damian McGinty
- Ronan Scolard
Past members
- Paul Byrom
- George Donaldson
- Daniel Furlong
- Keith Harkin
- Colm Keegan
- Ryan Kelly
- Michael O'Dwyer
- Emmett O'Hanlon
Band
- Seamus Brett – keyboards, piano, assistant musical director
- Daniel Thompson – keyboards
- Kate Knudsvig – violin
- Meabh O’Donnell - pipes, whistles
- AJ Fullerton – guitars
- Tim Philpott - bass
- Forrest Raup – drums
- Muireann Ní She – pipes, whistles
- Alex Goldberg – bass
- Peter Sheridan – keyboards
- Conal Early – guitars
- Seána Davey – harp, concertina
- Charlie Foley – bass
- Nicole Hudson – violin
- Laura Durrant – cello
- Ruth O'Leary – violin
- Joyce O'Leary – violin
- David Munro – piano, musical director
- Barry Kerr – pipes, whistles, bodhran, mandolin
- Declan O'Donoghue – percussion
Creative team
- Mark Jones – production director
- David Munro – music director
- Stuart McInnes – front-of-house audio engineer
- Cameron Triplett - monitor engineer
- Jean Clancy – marketing manager
- Declan Browne – online merchandise manager
- Matthew Browne – tour merchandise manager
Discography and videography
Studio albums
| Title | Date of release | Media format | Featured soloists | Notes | Sales | Certifications |
| Celtic Thunder: The Show | 18 March 2008 | CD & DVD | Byrom, Donaldson, Harkin, Kelly, McGinty |
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| Celtic Thunder: Act Two | 16 September 2008 | CD | Byrom, Donaldson, Harkin, Kelly, McGinty | |||
| Celtic Thunder: Take Me Home | 14 July 2009 | CD & DVD | Byrom, Donaldson, Harkin, Kelly, McGinty | |||
| Celtic Thunder: It's Entertainment! | 9 February 2010 | CD & DVD | Byrne, Byrom, Donaldson, Harkin, Kelly, McGinty | |||
| Celtic Thunder: Christmas | 12 October 2010 | CD & DVD | Byrne, Byrom, Donaldson, Harkin, Kelly, McGinty | |||
| Celtic Thunder: Heritage | 22 February 2011 | CD & DVD | Byrne, Byrom, Donaldson, Harkin, Kelly, McGinty | |||
| Celtic Thunder: Storm | 20 September 2011 | CD & DVD | Byrne, Byrom, Donaldson, Harkin, Kelly, McGinty | Recorded in 2009 | ||
| Celtic Thunder: Voyage | 28 February 2012 | CD & DVD | Byrne, Cahill, Furlong, Donaldson, Harkin, Kelly | |||
| Celtic Thunder: Voyage II | 25 June 2012 | CD & DVD | Byrne, Cahill, Furlong, Donaldson, Harkin, Kelly, | For online purchase only, re-released 2015 as New Voyage | ||
| Celtic Thunder: Mythology | 19 February 2013 | CD & DVD | Byrne, Cahill, Donaldson, Harkin, Keegan, Kelly | Also available as 2 CD deluxe edition | ||
| Celtic Thunder: Christmas Voices | 11 October 2013 | CD | Byrne, Cahill, Donaldson, Harkin, Keegan, Kelly | Re-released 2014 as Holiday Symphony, 2015 as The Classic Christmas Album | ||
| The Very Best of Celtic Thunder | 13 March 2015 | CD | Byrne, Byrom, Cahill, Donaldson, Harkin, Keegan, Kelly, McGinty, O'Hanlon | Also features re-recorded tracks to include Keegan and O'Hanlon | ||
| Celtic Thunder: Inspirational | 29 September 2017 | CD | Byrne, Byrom, Cahill, Donaldson, Furlong, Harkin, Kelly, McGinty, O'Dwyer | Features new tracks recorded May 2017 and a few old tracks | ||
| Celtic Thunder X | 2 March 2018 | CD & DVD | Byrne, Cahill, Kelly, McGinty, O’Dwyer | A new show for 2018 to celebrate 10 Years of Celtic Thunder | ||
| Celtic Thunder: Homeland | 12 March 2021 | CD & DVD | Byrne, Cahill, Donaldson, Harkin, Keegan, Kelly, McGinty, O'Dwyer, O'Hanlon | A new album and show celebrating the Irish music from the past 10 years of Celtic Thunder | ||
| Celtic Thunder: Odyssey | 24 November 2023 & 30 April 2024 | CD & DVD | Byrne, Cahill, Kelly, McGinty, Scolard | A new show for 2023 | ||
| Celtic Thunder: The Live Experience | 22 November 2024 | CD | Byrne, Cahill, McGinty, Scolard | A live recording of Celtic Thunder: Odyssey |
Compilations
| Title | Date of release | Media format | Notes |
| Celtic Thunder: Ireland's Call | 2010 | CD | QVC bonus CD released along with It's Entertainment!; includes 5 tracks |
| Celtic Thunder: The Irish Collection | 2011 | CD | 11-track compilation released along with Storm; includes 1 new recording |
| Celtic Thunder: Heartland | 2012 | CD plus DVD | 15-track compilation |
| Celtic Thunder: Islands | 2013 | CD | 12-track compilation released for Celtic Thunder Cruise 2013; includes 2 new recordings |
| Celtic Thunder: Home | 2013 | DVD | includes fan favourites from previous DVDs |
| Celtic Thunder: Myths & Legends | 25 October 2013 | CD plus DVD | Australian exclusive package; behind the scenes DVD plus 14-track CD Mythology leftovers |
| Celtic Thunder: My Land | 18 April 2014 | CD plus DVD | Australian exclusive package; documentary DVD plus 8-track CD including Mythology leftovers |
| George | 2014 | CD & DVD | 16-track George Donaldson tribute album |
| Celtic Horizons | 2014 | CD | 16-track compilation released for Celtic Thunder Cruise 2014 |
| Celtic Thunder: Celtic Roots Myths & Legends | 30 October 2015 | 3 CDs plus 3 DVDs | amazon.com exclusive set including the complete Mythology recording session |
| Celtic Thunder: Emmet Cahill's Ireland | 2017 | CD | 13 track album featuring Emmet Cahill |
| Celtic Thunder: Ireland | 2020 | CD | 15 track album |
Live albums
| Title | Date of release | Media format | Featured soloists | Notes | Certifications |
| Celtic Thunder: Live & Unplugged at Sullivan Hall New York | 2013 | CD & DVD | Byrne, Cahill, Donaldson, Harkin, Keegan, Kelly | filmed in December 2012 | |
| Celtic Thunder: Legacy, Vol. 1 | 26 February 2016 | CD, DVD, Blu-ray, Vinyl | Byrne, Harkin, Keegan, Kelly, McGinty, O'Hanlon | McGinty is credited as "special guest" |
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| Celtic Thunder: Legacy, Vol. 2 | 12 August 2016 | CD, DVD | Byrne, Harkin, Keegan, Kelly, McGinty, O'Hanlon | only available through PBS pledge drive until officially released in fall 2016 |