Gradam Ceoil TG4

Citation

The recipient for this year’s Singer of the Year is Niall Hanna from Derrytresk, Co. Tyrone. Niall’s musical education began as a very young boy at home on the shores of Lough Neagh. His grandfather Geordie Hanna, Geordie’s sister Sarah Anne O’Neill, and the extended Hanna and O’Neill families ensured he was immersed in the songs, stories and music of the lough shore from a very early age. With the foundations of such a strong family musical heritage Niall has embraced the wider Ulster traditional song repertoire while also developing his own song writing talents. His sense of place and family strongly influence his musical journey, and his solo work and various musical collaborations continues to bring Ulster music and song to a wider Irish and International audience.