Irish born, Italian by adoption, for over twenty years now, Kay McCarthy has been bringing Irish traditional music and culture to Italy. Well-known and highly considered here in Italy, she is appreciated and respected abroad too. Her style is unequivocally her own: unique, refined, communicative it defies all labels and fads and is quite alien to fashion and defies the dictates of the market. An able entertainer, Kay McCarthy draws inspiration from the cultural heritage of her native land which she ably and artistically moulds to give expression to her very own view of the world. Her approach to music and stagecraft is deceivingly simple and magical; in Italy she is seen as one of the most interesting Irish artists upon the international scene.

Her repertoire ranges from traditional melodies to songs and instrumental tunes written by herself and her Italian musicians. She began performing in Rome in the seventies when the city's mythical Folkstudio hosted her on a regular basis and produced her first LP "Roisín Dubh" for the Fonit Cetra Record Company in 1978. Soon after that came her triumphal tour with the Chieftains in 1982 and a new LP "Stormy Lullaby" on RCA International label. The following years were devoted almost exclusively to live performances and to perfecting her performing and stage technique. In 1995 this long experience was channelled into her first CD "Arís" published by an independent Roman label, Helikonia. In 1996 followed "Níl Sé 'na Lá" again on a Helikonia label. This second album, distributed with one of Italy's foremost weeklies, Avvenimenti, was acclaimed by critics and the public alike, selling 80,000 copies in one week.

The third Cd entitled "Fadó, fadó…" saw the light in 1998 once more for Helikonia and contains finely chiselled interpretations of both traditional and original tunes. Here the exquisite musicianship of her fine Italian classical musicians blend perfectly with her enchanting voice communicating a kaleidoscope of sensations from simple sweetness and to stimulating foot-tapping enthusiasm to the listener.
The Irish artist is supported by a group of first-class Italian classical musicians perfectly capable of rendering both the pathos of the more melancholy songs and the contagious rhythm of the dance tunes.

In August 2000, Kay and the group were hosted by Lorient's prestigious InterCeltic Festival, there winning the hearts and the applause of the international audiences who flocked to their concerts. For the occasion Helikonia issued a Limitied Edition CD called "Crosaire". In November 2000 Helikonia released Kay's new CD called "AM", distributed by Storiedinote a splendid album containing mostly compositions by Kay and her musicians.
In January 2003, the prestigious Italian musical magazine World Music made a gift of a re-edition of "Stormy Lullaby" on CD to its readers.

Autumn 2003 marked the release of "Rìanta", tracks, pathways, traces..... by Helikonia, containing thirteen original compositions by Kay and her musicians.
It is distributed in Italy by Storiedinote and in the rest of Europe by Mint Records  www.zyx.de

In Summer 2005 the CD "Kay McCarthy live in Rome, Villa Ada", a limited edition, saw the light. November 2006, Kay and the group joined forces with Chieti's Marrucino Theatre in writing, producing and staging "RIANTA", a Musical directed by Kico Fusco. This opera-ballet opened the theatre's 2006/7 Opera Season.

Coming shortly : Kay and the Ensemble are about to release, the Helikonia, Rome label,  a new CD/DVD "Quintessence" containing the best of their songs and tunes.