Fiddler Dana Lyn and guitarist Kyle Sanna first met at a traditional Irish music session in New York City and soon discovered a shared interest in classical, jazz, and experimental music, as well as a deep admiration for Irish music. Both are active participants in Brooklyn’s eclectic music scene as arrangers, composers, players and improvisers. Their collaborative effort, “The Hare Said a Prayer to the Rainbow and Followed the Fox Down the Hole,” reflects both their wide range of influences and the depth of their experience with traditional Irish music, and has been hailed as “ground-breaking” by noted folklorist Mick Moloney.
Lyn and Sanna have brought their music to clubs, festival stages and concert halls throughout the US and Canada. They have taught workshops at the Old Songs Festival, the Catskills Irish Arts Festival, the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival, Wellesley College, the University of Eastern Carolina, and West Virginia’s Augusta Heritage Center. The duo has collaborated with renowned Irish musicians Kevin Burke, Cillian Vallely and Susan McKeown, as well as with actor Vincent D’Onofrio. They are currently working on a second recording to be released in the fall of 2013.
Dana Lyn has performed in New York City’s Town and Carnegie Halls as well as Saturday Night Live, the National Folk-life Festival, the Milwaukee Irish Music and Celtic Connections, among others. She has worked with a wide range of artists including the Green Fields of America, Grammy Award-winning vocalist Susan McKeown, indie rock artists The Walkmen and Florence and the Machine, as well as noted actors Ethan Hawke, Vincent D’Onofrio and director Sam Mendes. She was also featured on ‘The Raw Bar’ and ‘Geanntrai’: two documentaries on traditional Irish music that aired on national television in Ireland. As a composer, Dana has received commissions from the Apple Hill String Quartet, Brooklyn Rider, Cherish the Ladies, cellist Marika Hughes and the National Army Strings.
Kyle Sanna has performed with some of today’s greatest virtuosos, including Edgar Meyer, Yo-Yo Ma, and Chris Thile; with veterans of New York’s downtown scene such as Matt Darriau and Satoshi Takeishi; and with some of the greatest living interpreters of Irish music, including Kevin Burke and Martin Hayes. He has arranged for artists and ensembles including Kaki King, the SWR Orchestra, Korean pop-superstar Rain, Jan Vogler (Sony Classical), Martin Hayes (NPR’s Performance Today), and Yo-Yo Ma (Grammy-winning release for Sony Classical, The Colbert Report). As a composer Kyle has received commissions from Beta Collide and the Oregon Bach Festival, Brooklyn Rider, The Knights, and flutist Alex Sopp.
