Maire(Moya) Brennan

Maire(Moya) Brennan

Genres: celtic, new age, irish, female vocalists, folk

Similar artists via Last.fm

Máire Brennan Clannad Capercaillie Órla Fallon Loreena McKennitt

About Maire(Moya) Brennan

Moya Brennan (also known as Máire Brennan) (born Máire Philomena Ní Bhraonáin in Dublin on 4 August 1952; died 13 April 2026) was a Grammy Award-winning Irish Celtic folk singer remembered for co-founding the band Clannad and for her solo work. Brennan released her first solo album, "Máire", in 1992. She received a Grammy Award from five nominations and won an Emmy Award. She acontributed vocals and music to several film soundtracks, including "Titanic", "To End All Wars", and "King Arthur". Her daughter is musician Aisling Jarvis and sister is Enya. Born in Dublin after her parents had moved from County Donegal to marry in County Louth, she grew up as the eldest child in a musical family in Gweedore (Gaoth Dobhair), County Donegal, an Irish-speaking region. Her mother, Máire (née Ní Dhúgáin), was a music teacher, and her father, Leo Brennan, performed in a cabaret band. Brennan was the eldest of nine children, including her sisters Deirdre, Eithne (known professionally as Enya), Olive, and Brídín, and her brothers Ciarán, Pól, Leon, and Bartley. She performed with her siblings at Leo’s Tavern in Meenaleck and took part in local theatre productions. She studied harp, piano, and singing at the Royal Irish Academy of Music in Dublin and later taught music at Holy Cross College in Falcarragh, County Donegal. In 1970, Brennan joined her brothers Pól and Ciarán and her mother’s twin brothers Noel and Pádraig Ó Dúgáin to form Clannad. The group gained international recognition during the 1980s, particularly following the success of the album "Magical Ring" in 1982. Brennan contributed as the lead vocalist on 17 albums with Clannad and received several awards with the group, including a Grammy Award, a BAFTA, and an Ivor Novello Award. Her sister Enya was briefly a member of Clannad in the early 1980s before pursuing a solo career. Brennan left Clannad’s active lineup after its initial peak period but later participated in reunion activities, including a planned but ultimately unreleased acoustic project. She began her solo career in 1992 with the album "Máire", released on Atlantic Records. This was followed by "Misty Eyed Adventures" in 1995. She later signed with Word Records and released "Perfect Time" in 1998 and "Whisper to the Wild Water" in 1999, the latter receiving a Grammy nomination for Best New Age Album. Her music was often associated with Celtic and new age genres, though she stated that her work was also influenced by her Christian faith. In 2000, Brennan published her autobiography, "The Other Side of the Rainbow". She performed "Perfect Time" at World Youth Day in Rome in the presence of Pope John Paul II, an event attended by large crowds. She also contributed to the associated compilation album "One" and recorded the duet "Peace Has Broken Out" with Booley (later known as Duke Special), a song addressing the Troubles in Ireland. Brennan contributed vocals and compositions to film and television projects, including "King Arthur", for which she co-wrote "Tell Me Now (What You See)" with Hans Zimmer, and "To End All Wars", for which she contributed additional music. She also performed the song "You're the One" with Shane MacGowan for the film "Circle of Friends". Her collaborations included work with artists such as Chicane, Alan Parsons, Bono, Robert Plant, Van Morrison, Michael McDonald, Bruce Hornsby, Joe Elliott, The Chieftains, Paul Young, Paul Brady, Michael Crawford, Joe Jackson, and Ronan Keating. Her recording of "Saltwater" with Chicane was also used in tourism advertising campaigns in Scotland and Ireland. Across her career, Brennan recorded more than 20 albums and sold an estimated 20 million records. From the early 2000s she began using the name Moya Brennan professionally, and in 2009 she formally changed her name by deed poll. She released "Two Horizons" in 2003 under this name. Later albums included "An Irish Christmas" (2006), "Signature" (2007), "Heart Strings" (2008), and "My Match Is a Makin'" (2010, recorded with Cormac de Barra). She also released "Voices & Harps – Affinity" (2013) with de Barra and "Canvas" (2017), co-written with her children Aisling and Paul. She continued to collaborate on various projects, including contributions to Alan Simon’s "Excalibur III – The Origins" and participation in the charity single "Dreams" as part of Irish Women in Harmony in 2020. Brennan also toured extensively across Europe and North America with her solo band, which included musicians such as Cormac de Barra and later her daughter Aisling Jarvis. Brennan’s autobiography described both her career and personal life, including periods of difficulty and her later religious commitment. She was married briefly in the 1980s to musician Pat Farrell, and in 1990 she married photographer Tim Jarvis, with whom she had two children. She died at her home in Gaoth Dobhair, County Donegal, on 13 April 2026. Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moya_Brennan Studio albums Máire (1992) Misty Eyed Adventures (1994) Perfect Time (1998) Whisper to the Wild Water (1999) Two Horizons (2003) An Irish Christmas (2005) Signature (2006) My Match Is A Makin' (2010) (with Cormac de Barra) T with the Maggies (2010) (as a member of T with the Maggies) Voices & Harps (2011) (with Cormac de Barra) Affinity (2013) (with Cormac de Barra) Canvas (2017) Timeless (2019) (with Cormac de Barra) Nollaig Ghaelach (2023) (re-recorded songs from “An Irish Christmas”) Voices & Harps IV (2024) (with Cormac de Barra)

Taken from Last.fm

228,719 listeners  ·  2,084,451 plays via Last.fm