Deirdre Shannon
Encyclopedia
Deirdre Gilsenan is an Irish
singer who has toured with a variety of Celtic music
groups, such as Anúna
, the Celtic Tenors
and Celtic Woman
. She is better known by the stage name Deirdre Shannon.
Shannon's exposure to music came very early on from her parents and older siblings. Her formal introduction came at the age of nine when she was enrolled for piano lessons. She and her siblings participated in the church choir and in local events, including weddings, funerals and local concerts.
In 1992, Shannon entered Dublin's College of Music and studied under the guidance of vocal trainer Mary Brennan. She participated in many musical activities, including traveling with the Dublin Institute of Technology
Choir.
Shannon began her professional career in 1996 when she was selected to be a member of the Irish choir Anúna
.
In 1997, Shannon was selected by Michael Flatley
to join his world wide tour with the show Lord of the Dance
. She was cast into the role of Erin the Goddess and performed in over 800 shows over a four-year period covering most of North and South America.
Since her professional debut, Shannon has performed with artists including Eily O'Grady, Dionne Warwick
, The Celtic Tenors
, Air Supply
, and Celtic Woman
. Shannon's accomplishments have also included participating in the sound track of RTÉ's historical documentary television series called The Island. She has also made appearances on CBS Morning News
, Fox Morning TV, and The Late Late Show
.
On 1 October 2006 Shannon released her solo album, simply entitled Deirdre Shannon. She is also featured in the Celtic Woman: The Greatest Journey Essential Collection
DVD. Shannon also sings "Harry's Game" as well as a couple more songs in Celtic Thunder
: Storm
which was released on CD and DVD on 20 September, 2011.
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
singer who has toured with a variety of Celtic music
Celtic music
Celtic music is a term utilised by artists, record companies, music stores and music magazines to describe a broad grouping of musical genres that evolved out of the folk musical traditions of the Celtic people of Western Europe...
groups, such as Anúna
Anúna
Anúna is an Irish choral group. In 1987 Dublin composer Michael McGlynn founded An Uaithne, a name which describes the three ancient types of Celtic music, Suantraí , Geantraí and Goltraí . One of the group's stated aims is to explore and redefine this music...
, the Celtic Tenors
Celtic Tenors
The Celtic Tenors began life as the Three Irish Tenors on RTE's Theatre Nights on October 1995. The group at that time consisted of James Nelson, Niall Morris and Paul Hennessey....
and Celtic Woman
Celtic Woman
Celtic Woman is an all-female musical ensemble conceived and assembled by Sharon Browne and David Downes, a former musical director of the Irish stage show Riverdance...
. She is better known by the stage name Deirdre Shannon.
Background
Shannon was born into the Gilsenan family of County Meath as the middle child of five siblings.Shannon's exposure to music came very early on from her parents and older siblings. Her formal introduction came at the age of nine when she was enrolled for piano lessons. She and her siblings participated in the church choir and in local events, including weddings, funerals and local concerts.
In 1992, Shannon entered Dublin's College of Music and studied under the guidance of vocal trainer Mary Brennan. She participated in many musical activities, including traveling with the Dublin Institute of Technology
Dublin Institute of Technology
Dublin Institute of Technology was established officially in 1992 under the but had been previously set up in 1978 on an ad-hoc basis. The institution can trace its origins back to 1887 with the establishment of various technical institutions in Dublin, Ireland...
Choir.
Shannon began her professional career in 1996 when she was selected to be a member of the Irish choir Anúna
Anúna
Anúna is an Irish choral group. In 1987 Dublin composer Michael McGlynn founded An Uaithne, a name which describes the three ancient types of Celtic music, Suantraí , Geantraí and Goltraí . One of the group's stated aims is to explore and redefine this music...
.
In 1997, Shannon was selected by Michael Flatley
Michael Flatley
Michael Ryan Flatley is an American Irish dancer, choreographer, actor, musician and occasional television presenter. He became internationally known for Irish dance shows Riverdance, Lord of the Dance, Feet of Flames, and Celtic Tiger...
to join his world wide tour with the show Lord of the Dance
Lord of the Dance (musical)
Lord of the Dance is an Irish musical and dance production that was created, choreographed, and produced by Irish-American dancer Michael Flatley, who also took a starring role...
. She was cast into the role of Erin the Goddess and performed in over 800 shows over a four-year period covering most of North and South America.
Since her professional debut, Shannon has performed with artists including Eily O'Grady, Dionne Warwick
Dionne Warwick
Dionne Warwick is an American singer, actress and TV show host, who became a United Nations Global Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization, and a United States Ambassador of Health....
, The Celtic Tenors
Celtic Tenors
The Celtic Tenors began life as the Three Irish Tenors on RTE's Theatre Nights on October 1995. The group at that time consisted of James Nelson, Niall Morris and Paul Hennessey....
, Air Supply
Air Supply
Air Supply is an Australian soft rock duo, consisting of Graham Russell as guitarist and singer-songwriter and Russell Hitchcock as lead vocalist. They had a succession of hits worldwide, including eight Top Ten hits in the United States, in the early 1980s...
, and Celtic Woman
Celtic Woman
Celtic Woman is an all-female musical ensemble conceived and assembled by Sharon Browne and David Downes, a former musical director of the Irish stage show Riverdance...
. Shannon's accomplishments have also included participating in the sound track of RTÉ's historical documentary television series called The Island. She has also made appearances on CBS Morning News
CBS Morning News
For CBS's main morning news program, formerly known as CBS Morning News, see The Early Show.CBS Morning News is the half-hour daily television broadcast from CBS News that airs following Up to the Minute and features late-breaking news stories, weather forecasts, and sports scores...
, Fox Morning TV, and The Late Late Show
The Late Late Show
The Late Late Show, sometimes referred to as The Late Late, or in some cases by the acronym LLS, is the world's longest-running chat show by the same broadcaster and the official flagship television programme of Irish broadcasting company RTÉ...
.
On 1 October 2006 Shannon released her solo album, simply entitled Deirdre Shannon. She is also featured in the Celtic Woman: The Greatest Journey Essential Collection
Celtic Woman: The Greatest Journey
Celtic Woman: The Greatest Journey is the fourth studio album by the group Celtic Woman, released on 28 October 2008. It is an Essential Collection album composed of tracks from their self-titled debut and A New Journey albums with a couple reworked, plus three new tracks.Performers in The...
DVD. Shannon also sings "Harry's Game" as well as a couple more songs in Celtic Thunder
Celtic Thunder
Celtic Thunder is a singing group composed of male soloists who perform both solo and ensemble numbers. Celtic Thunder debuted in August 2007 at The Helix in Dublin, Ireland...
: Storm
Celtic Thunder: Storm (DVD)
Celtic Thunder: Storm is the title of both a CD album and DVD which was released on September 20, 2011, by the musical group Celtic Thunder. This article relates mostly to the DVD, which is worthy of mention because unlike Celtic Thunder's other DVDs, which are filmed versions of their touring...
which was released on CD and DVD on 20 September, 2011.
External links
- DeirdreShannon.com - Official website