Emmet Cahill, award-winning Irish tenor and a principal vocalist with the popular Irish music show Celtic Thunder, returns to Minneapolis for a concert at St. Olaf Catholic Church on June 12th at 7:30 p.m.
The relationship between St. Olaf’s and Emmet was formed when Joel Anderson, the church’s organist invited Emmet to be a guest Cantor on a Sunday morning in the fall of 2016. Celtic Thunder was performing that evening in Minneapolis, so Emmet was in town and available to offer cantoring duties at morning Mass. “He did such an astounding job, we knew we just had to have him back for a full concert as soon as the opportunity arose.”
And Cahill is looking forward to coming back to Minneapolis. “I am excited to be coming back to Minneapolis once again. I’m thrilled to return to St. Olaf’s and and to be working with Joel and the choirs. I grew up singing in church at home in Ireland and am so looking forward to meeting the whole community. It’s going to be a great night of songs and stories. I will definitely be hoping for the audience to sing along with me, too!”
The 27-year-old from Mullingar, County Westmeath is passionate about sharing songs from his homeland to a new generation of music lovers. His debut orchestral album, “Emmet Cahill’s Ireland” was released in February 2017 on the Sony Music USA label and went to number one on the Billboard World Music chart. The album includes traditional classics such as “Danny Boy”, “When Irish Eyes are Smiling”, “An Irish Lullaby” and “Wild Mountain Thyme”.
“I am very proud to be Irish,” explains Cahill. “I want people to feel a real connection to the songs, as well as the people and the stories that they represent. There has always been a special relationship between the Irish and American people and I want to further enrich that friendship.”
In addition to performing selections from his album, Cahill will sing Broadway standards (“Music Of The Night”, “This Is The Moment”, “Bring Him Home”), nostalgic favorites (“Moon River,” “Tennessee Waltz”), sacred hymns (“How Great Thou Art”, “Be Thou My Vision”), plus an occasional operatic aria that will showcase his classical vocal training received at the Royal Irish Academy of Music in Dublin.
The St. Olaf Chancel Choir will perform several songs with Cahill.
Cahill began touring as a solo artist in 2015. He has performed in over 60 cities across the United States and Canada. Last year, Cahill opened the prestigious New York City St. Patrick’s Day parade with a performance of “Danny Boy.” He also made his U.S. solo symphony debut and has since performed with several symphonies. The concert in Minneapolis comes just a few months after Cahill made his Carnegie Hall debut in New York City.
General admission tickets are $30 and may be purchased at the door or online at http://www.emmetcahill.com/tour-dates/. A limited number of Meet & Greet tickets, which include the concert and a pre-show meeting with Cahill, are available for $45. St. Olaf Catholic Church is located at 215 S. 8th Street in Minneapolis.
