John McSherry is a major figure in Irish/Celtic music, hailed as one of the finest exponents of the art of Uilleann Piping in the world today – “a true master” according to Irish Music Magazine. He won two All-Ireland piping championships at the age of fourteen and was the youngest ever winner of the prestigious Oireachtas Piping Competition in 1988, going on to represent Ireland at the Lorient Inter-Celtic Festival that year as a result.
A founder member of top trad bands Lúnasa, Tamalin, Donal Lunny’s ground-breaking supergroup Coolfin, At First Light, and Ulaid, John has produced an array of critically acclaimed and innovative albums, both solo and collaborative, including his most recent solo album, ‘The Seven Suns’. His piping has featured on many film and TV soundtracks including, ‘There You’ll Find me’, ‘Waking Ned Devine’ and ‘This Is My Father’ and he has twice been the recipient of an IMA award: Best New Irish Album (2010) and Best Uilleann Piper’ (2009), as well as being nominated for ‘Musician of the Year’ at the 2017 BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. He is also co-author of the book ‘The Wheels of the World’ – 300 years of Uilleann Pipers which was released in the Autumn of 2015.
John has performed all over the world on many great stages from the Royal Albert Hall to Glastonbury Festival and is widely admired on the Irish traditional scene as an offstage character and an onstage magician. He is a prolific composer, producer, arranger and an established studio session musician of world class renown, recording and performing with a myriad of artists including Clannad, Sinéad O’Connor, Rod Stewart, Nanci Griffiths, Gary Kemp, The Corrs, and in projects bringing together top musicians including the highly acclaimed Irish Sea Sessions concerts and albums, produced in Liverpool 2011-2013 and touring to London’s Southbank, to Belfast and Derry.
John continues to push the boundaries of Irish music with his pioneering transatlantic post-rock band, the olllam, featuring Tyler Duncan, Joe Dart, Michael Shimmin, Sean O’Meara and Joe Hettinga, and the characteristic “dualling pipes” approach is also at the forefront of the John McSherry Trio, his latest project, featuring Francis McIlduff on uilleann pipes, whistles and bodhran; and Brendan Quinn on guitar, vocals and stomp. The trio made their debut at West Belfast Festival 2022 and appeared at the 2023 Lorient Inter Celtic Festival. The trio’s album ‘Féile Live’ was recorded at Red Box Studios in Belfast and launched at Ennis Tradfest in November 2023, followed by a tour of dates in England and Wales, supported by Culture Ireland.