Bands
McGoldrick has been a member of several influential bands. In 1994, he was awarded the BBC Young Tradition Award, and in 2001 he was given the Instrumentalist of the Year award at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. [1]
McGoldrick was a founding member of the Celtic rock band Toss the Feathers while still at school. [1] During this time, he competed at the Fleadhanna with fiddler Dezi Donnelly, whom he had met through local Comhaltas meetings. [1] He appeared at various local and national festivals and ran whistle/flute workshops at theCambridge Folk Festival and for Folkworks on their "Flutopia" concert tour.
In the mid-1990s, McGoldrick was a member of Arcady, performing and recording with the band during its later years. [2]
In November 1995, McGoldrick co-founded the band Fluke! (later renamed as Flook) with Brian Finnegan and Sarah Allen. After one tour, he left the group to pursue other musical projects. [1]
From 1997 until 2000, McGoldrick waws an early member of Lúnasa, performing on the group's initial recordings and tours. In 1998, he joined the Scottish Gaelic band Capercaillie, with whom he has recorded eight albums to date, including two live releases.
McGoldrick played regularly with Afro-Celt Sound System and has been a longstanding member of Kate Rusby 's touring and recording band. He has also led his own ensemble, Michael McGoldrick Band, since the late 2000s.
In addition to larger ensembles, McGoldrick has been active in smaller collaborative projects, including long-running duos and trios with musicians such as John Doyle, John McCusker, Tim Edey, John Carty, and Dezi Donnelly, resulting in several studio and live recordings.
Since 2007, McGoldrick has been a regular member of the house band for the Transatlantic Sessions, where he has performed both traditional material and his own compositions and arrangements.
In 2010, Michael temporarily replaced John McCusker, joining Tim O'Brien on Mark Knopfler's US leg of the Get Lucky Tour. [3] Following this stint, he continued with the band for the European leg of the workd tour. As of 2024, McGoldrick remains an active touring and recording member of Mark Knopfler's band.
In the early 2020s, McGoldrick became a member of Usher's Island, a folk supergroup featuring Andy Irvine, Donal Lunny, Paddy Glackin, and John Doyle, contributing to recordings and live performance. [4]
In 2025, Michael released a tune collection and accompanying recording titled 50 Original Tunes and Chords, featuring Donald Shaw on piano and Innes White on guitar. [5]
