Four great traditional music gigs in Ireland this week

Saturday, 23rd June

Sharon Shannon
National Concert Hall; 8pm; €19.50-€34; nch.ie
The irrepressible accordionist returns to a venue which she has triumphed in many times before, in the company of Sean Regan, Jack Maher and Jim Murray. Expect to hear Shannon's high energy cocktail of traditional Irish music mixed with African, Cajun, blues, hip-hop and jazz.

Wednesday, 27th June

Jack Talty, Shane Mulchrone, Saileog Ní Cheannabháin and Michael McCague
The Black Gate, Galway; 8.30pm; €15; raelachrecords.com
A finely-curated gathering, thanks to Raelach Records, featuring concertina player, Jack Talty, banjo and tenor guitar player, Shane Mulchrone, pianist, singer, fiddle and viola player, Saileog Ní Cheannabháin and guitar and bouzouki player, McCague.

Thursday, 28th June

Soul Clap Hands & Sing
Poetry Ireland, 11 Parnell Square East, Dublin; 7pm; €10; poetryireland.ie
Another instalment in the inspired summer series of collaborative recitals from Poetry Ireland and the Irish Traditional Music Archive. The night sees poet, Mary O'Malley join forces with piper, Tommy Keane. Playing the Octopus is more than just a metaphor for how hard it is to play the pipes: it's also the title of O'Malley's most recent collection of poems. Clearly, poet and piper share much by way of an understanding of the intricacies of Keane's chosen instrument. There's a promise that they'll wend their way through life's many tentacled surprises tonight.

Friday, 29th June

An Góilín Singers Club
The Teachers Club, 36 Parnell Square, Dublin; 9.30pm; €3, goilin.com
Tonight sees a raft of diverse singers gather to celebrate the Songs for our Children songwriting project, facilitated by Aileen Lambert and Michael Fortune. Songs about animals, plants and the odd, errant hero or two. Singers include (alongside Lambert and Fortune), Nóirín Lynch, Anne Rynne, Sandra Joyce, Ceara Conway, Catherine Ann Cullen, Karan Casey, Rosie Ní Galóglaigh and James McDonald.