Thursday 23rd November 2006

“The Hanna Sisters, Mary, Nuala and Breige, who hail from County Armagh, are a musical trio to be reckoned with.

They burst onto the Irish music scene in the early noughties and quickly established a reputation as an exciting and entertaining live act with a heady mixture of Celtic Rock, traditional and contemporary covers mixed among some of their own fledgling compilations.
Playing an eclectic range of instruments including keyboards, guitars, violins, Uilleann pipes and even bongos, the girls’ talent and distinctive vocals have proved popular with audiences.
The sisters have toured extensively throughout the UK, playing support to a variety of bands including Capercailie and Westlife.
‘Maiden Voyage’ and ‘Ocean Apart’, the girl’s first two albums, gave some inkling of what the Armagh songwriters were capable of, winning them the Best Newcomer accolade at the 2001 Irish Post World Awards in London.
In 2003 touring was limited by the arrival of Nuals’s first child, Sarah, although at eight-weeks-old she went on tour with the band to Denmark where The Hanna Sisters have established a strong following.

Motherhood

The impending arrival of Breige’s twins, Jack and Tom, and Nuala’s second child, Padraig, in 2005 again curtailed touring.
However motherhood has its benefits. The break allowed the girls the time to concentrate on their songwriting which is evident in their latest album ‘About Time’.
Talking about about their most recent musical efforts the sisters said, “We knew that we had time to get it right on this album once we became aware that touring was going to be severely curtailed.
“We were able to focus on the songs and the music and we’re delighted with the end result. A case of life imitating art I suppose”
The more mature offering will be officially released in early 2007, but has already met with critical acclaim.
Jackie Hayden of Hot Press magazine has expressed his delight with the tracks he’s heard so far, saying “The Hanna Sisters offer us classy, intelligent pop songs, tastefully blended with their exhilarating Irish traditional musicianship, all topped off with their fine harmonies. Irish radio needs records like this.”
The three Armagh sisters feel ‘About Time’ is the album they have been trying to create since their initial emergence onto the music industry.
The album is new ground for the Hanna Sisters, a world they’ve written for themselves as much as for anyone else.
With the creative world done, the next step is promotion for the sisters, who will begin touring early next year, appearing in the Market Place Theatre in Armagh to satisfy their local fans.
For more information on the upcoming tour or new single ‘Princes Port’ and B side “My Angel Knows” visit wwww.thehannasisters.net
‘Princes Port’ will be on sale exclusively at www.thehannasisters.net