A highlight on the traditional Irish music scene from 2001 - 2011, Trad group Gráda are reuniting in 2023 with a 9 date tour across New Zealand. The tour will begin in Wellington on the 18th October before the group head to New Plymouth, Hamilton, Auckland Kerikeri, Tauranga, Hastings, Nelson and Lower Hutt.
With members from both Ireland and New Zealand, Gráda spent much of their time touring internationally, performing in over 1000 cities in 30 countries over the course of a decade. Gerry Paul, Andrew Laking, Nicola Joyce, Alan Doherty and Tola Custy make up the groups current form. Previous highlights included concerts at the Sydney Opera House, Royal Glasgow Concert Hall, Ireland’s National Concert Hall and headline performances at multiple European and American folk festivals. Through their US Label Compass Records, the band sold over 50,000 albums.
In 2011, Gráda disbanded to work on individual projects. This saw the members involved in various ventures including musical groups The Whileaways and ALDOC & T-Bone, solo albums, collaborations with composers such as Hans Zimmer & Pauliene Scanlon, parts in RTE TV series, publishing books and directing and programming festivals such as CubaDupa, Loemis & Verb. The band reformed in 2020 to play a one-off concert in New Zealand. Buoyed by the response to this, Gráda are playing two shows in Ireland in August, followed by a nine date tour of New Zealand.
Gráda's sound is rooted in trad, while drawing influences from folk, jazz, world music and Americana. The band’s live shows exude energy, with an improvisation element that made them unique within the trad music world. The repertoire is seeded with original songs and instrumentals that have captured the imaginations of audiences all around the world.
