We are really excited about our team of tutors for 2026. They represent some of the finest folk musicians and teachers in England today.
For 2026 our resident tutors will be Bradon Smith (fiddle), Dominic Henderson (uilleann pipes, flute, whistles), and Kit Hawes (guitar). They will be joined by four guest tutors. Three extraordinary vocalists rooted in the American, English and Irish traditions will teach vocal technique and song: Nuala Honan, Nick Hart and Ríoghnach Connolly. Kai Carter will expand our instrument workshops still further, teaching Old Time tunes on banjo and guitar.
Bradon Smith – fiddle
Bradon Smith is a respected fiddle player and educator, focussing on the traditional music of Ireland and the Irish diaspora in England. Through his teaching and courses he has helped thousands of fiddle players (re)discover a love of traditional music. He studied on the Royal Irish Academy of Music’s inaugural Teach Irish Traditional Music and Song course, developing his own traditional music pedagogy. He plays fiddle with The Sunny Banks and Straight from the Jug.
Bradon will (mainly) teach traditional music from Ireland. Workshops will focus on the fiddle, with all instruments welcome.
Dominic Henderson – uilleann pipes, flute, whistles
Dominic is a renowned uilleann piper and whistle player from North London who earned his stripes as a teenager playing at sessions, before taking his talents further afield, qualifying for the All-Ireland uilleann pipe final in 2007, and subsequently co-founding TEYR and releasing two studio albums.
Born into a family of music lovers, it wasn’t long before he was exposed to a vast range of music from jazz, classical, rock, blues and folk. Upon hearing the pipes for the first time as a young teenager he immediately decided to take on the task of joining the ranks of fellow pipers.
Dominic has a huge respect and great interest in traditional piping, but his strength lies in a unique modern uilleann piping style which is reflected in the many tunes and songs he has composed.
Kit Hawes – guitar
With a dynamic career spanning folk, roots, and acoustic music, Kit has worked and collaborated with an impressive array of artists, including Grammy-nominated Yola, folk powerhouse Seth Lakeman, music legend Jools Holland, and drum & bass pioneer Roni Size.
His contributions to several critically acclaimed albums have cemented his place as one of the finest musicians on the UK folk scene.
Kit will teach traditional music from the British Isles including from the rich heritage of his native South West of England. Kit’s workshops will be led on guitar, but all instruments are welcome.
Nuala Honan – voice, song
Australian born Nuala Honan is a romantic storyteller, with a gift for timeless songwriting and one of those astonishing voices that don’t come around often. Her 20-something year career spans many countries, genres and accolades including Bristol based beloved old-time country-folk bands Medicine Creek and Boogaloo String Band. Her second studio album ‘Doubt & Reckoning’ came out in 2020 to great acclaim and high profile accolades including BBC 6Music Album of the Day and a spell touring with This Is The Kit. Nuala is now a passionate teacher and facilitator alongside her life as an artist.
Nuala will teach singing, with a particular focus on American and transatlantic folk songs, and dive deeper into technique and embodying your voice to give you more support and confidence.
Nick Hart – song
Nick Hart is a singer and multi instrumentalist whose work within the English ballad tradition has seen him acclaimed as “probably the finest interpreter of traditional English folk songs this generation has produced.” (tradfolk.co)
He has released three solo albums, a duo album with violist Tom Moore and is the musical director of the Real Nursery Rhyme Project.
Nick will lead workshops on singing traditional singing.
Ríoghnach Connolly – voice, song
Ríoghnach Connolly is a professional vocalist, flautist, lyricist, workshop facilitator, and musical activist. She has a worldwide publishing deal with Real World Records as a writer and holds titles for RTÉ’s and BBC Radio 2’s Folk Singer of the Year.
Ríoghnach grew up surrounded by a rich musical familial heritage and through Armagh Pipers’ Club in Armagh City, in the northeast of Ireland. Now based in Manchester, she has toured internationally and extensively, performing and recording in bands The Breath (Real World Records), HoneyFeet (Stardust Works) Band of Burns (Órd Bán) and Afro Celt Sound System (ECC).
Ríoghnach will teach workshops on ‘songs of the people’.
Kai Carter – Old Time banjo, guitar
Kai Carter is a fixture of the Old Time session scene in Bristol and a founding member of Kai Carter’s Old Time Trio. He is an avid enthusiast for sharing the joy of a simple trancey tune.
Kai will teach old time melody and accompanying rhythm. Workshops will be led on banjo and guitar but players of all instruments will be welcome to join.
