"ECSTASY" Geantraí - Irish Songs of Joy

Singer Caitríona O'Leary formed Dúlra in 1998 to perform Irish song in a new way. Using her performance experience of medieval music, she has applied many of its principles to her own native music. The result is a shimmering liquescence of melody, unhindered by a rigid tempo or conventional harmony, structured, rather, on the rhythm of the Irish language and the flow of the modal line. The stark simplicity of this delicately floating melodic line is enhanced by the uncluttered accompaniment by the distinguished instrumentalists of Dúlra who are steeped in both Traditional Irish and Early Music backgrounds. Her two solo CDs with her band Dúlra (I am Stretched on Your Grave and Dúil, Irish Songs of Love and Nature) were released to rave reviews in 2000, and 2001, and continue to haunt radio play-lists in Ireland and abroad. Caitríona O'Leary and Dúlra’s live performances are theatrically staged, presenting audiences with a hauntingly beautiful and original musical experience.

Dúlra is the Irish for "elements" and the name expresses the group's commitment to peeling away cluttering layers and finding the core of the music. Also evoked is green, budding nature, bursting with potential and life.