The 16th Ballincollig Winter Music Festival 2026 proudly presents Niamh Regan with Special Guests, Dinty Child & Mark Erelli.
With her acclaimed 2024 release Come As You Are, Niamh Regan has firmly established herself as one of Ireland’s most distinctive songwriters. Nominated for the RTÉ Choice Prize for Irish Album of the Year, the album showcases her gift for intimate storytelling, rich arrangements, and emotional honesty, marking a confident evolution from her 2020 debut Hemet, which received nominations for the RTÉ Folk Awards and the Choice Music Prize.
Produced by Tommy McLaughlin at Attica Studios, Come As You Are is rooted in vulnerability and introspection. It invites listeners to embrace authenticity while exploring personal doubt, relationships, and questions of direction. Regan pairs delicate folk instrumentation with expansive, cinematic soundscapes, creating a work that feels both personal and ambitious.
led to extensive touring across Ireland, the UK, Australia, and beyond. She has supported artists including CMAT, Villagers, John Grant, SOAK, Patrick Watson, James Vincent McMorrow, and Sam Amidon, honing a powerful live presence and deep connection with audiences.
Inspired by artists such as Julia Jacklin, Caroline Rose, and Wilco, Come As You Are confirms Regan as a singular voice in contemporary Irish music. With the album now available worldwide and a Choice Prize nomination secured, 2025 is shaping up to be an important year as she continues to evolve as an artist.
Dinty Child & Mark Erelli
Boston-based songwriters and multi-instrumentalists Dinty Child and Mark Erelli will perform together for their first Irish tour in January 2026.Their collaborative show features live renditions of their sixteen co-written songs, blending Erelli’s acclaimed singer-songwriter sensibility with the raucous musicianship Child has honed during his time with Session Americana. The performance o?ers a rare, up-close look at one of Boston’s most creative musical partnerships.
Their creative partnership began more than a decade ago at a songwriting retreat in New Hampshire on Lake Winnipesaukee, where they penned their first co-write, “Look Up.” The song—a lyrical meditation told through the perspectives of a janitor at the Sistine Chapel, Michelangelo, and God—sparked an enduring creative alliance that now spans sixteen compositions. Over the years, their co-writes have appeared on both artists’ solo albums and as standalone singles. “We each perform several of our co-writes in our own concerts,” says Erelli, “but recently we realized that if we lined them all up back-to-back, we could play an entire show together.”
Their songs explore shared humanity with humor, warmth, and a sense of spiritual curiosity. The result is a blend of introspection and playfulness that reflects both artists’ unique styles—Erelli’s thoughtful storytelling and Child’s inventive musicianship as a founding member of Session Americana and the Chandler Travis Philharmonic.
“It’s not really a ‘show’ at all, per se,” Erelli admits. “It’s more like getting to eavesdrop on two friends sitting knee to knee, swapping stories, instruments, melodies, and harmonies.” While “Look Up” remains the emotional centerpiece, the evening will include several songs that have never been recorded or performed anywhere else.
