Belinda O’Hooley is a gifted pianist and singer, and songwriter. A cornerstone of many exceptional collaborations including O’Hooley and Tidow and Coven, Belinda is also known for her inventive, minimalist, sometimes flamboyant accompanying of folk luminaries including Rufus Wainwright, Nic Jones, Jackie Oates and the Mercury- nominated; Rachel Unthank and The Winterset.
In her new solo project, Inversions Belinda’s abilities as a sensitive composer and pianist are showcased. Many of the piano pieces are inspired by the songs and tunes her father inherited from a long line of male musicians in the hills of the west coast of rural Ireland.
With the death of her father in 2017, Belinda – the first woman to be handed the tradition – has found the freedom to express the music of her ancestors in her very own, unconventional way, evolving and migrating into something you could describe as an inversion: a reversal of the norm.
Belinda O’Hooley appeared at HOME last year with the feminist collective Coven, and is well known as one half of BBC Radio 2 Folk Award Best Duo nominees, O’Hooley & Tidow alongside her wife Heidi Tidow; together described by The Guardian as “exceptional songwriters.”
This event is part of Manchester Folk Festival – an urban folk festival. It takes place from 15-20 October 2019, in and around HOME and the city centre. Over the autumn weekend, they present an exhilarating range of events, with the spotlight on contemporary and traditional English folk music.
