Legendary Irish traditional music group Altan will headline the 19th Irish Festival of Oulu, taking place in Oulu, Finland from September 23–27, 2026.
OULU, FINLAND – The world’s northernmost Irish cultural festival returns with one of its strongest music programmes to date, bringing internationally recognised Irish artists together with musicians from Finland and elsewhere in Europe. The five-day festival features Altan, Tempest, Gráinne Holland and Band, An Chéad Ghlúin Eile, Antti Järvelä and Friends, The Shire, Yläsiirtola Ramblers and The Soap Pig, alongside daily traditional Irish music sessions and workshops.
The 2026 festival takes place during a historic year for Oulu and Irish culture in Finland. The Irish Festival of Oulu is an official programme partner of Oulu2026 European Capital of Culture and is also part of Culture Ireland’s Global European Union Presidency Cultural Programme, coinciding with Ireland’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union.
At the centre of this year’s music programme is Altan, one of the most iconic bands in Irish traditional music and among Ireland’s most important cultural ambassadors. Described by The Irish Times as “A mighty celebration of the bottomless well of the tradition” and by The Boston Globe as “The hottest band in the Celtic realm,” Altan have spent four decades bringing the music and songs of County Donegal to audiences around the world.
Formed in County Donegal in 1985 by fiddler and lead vocalist Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh and her late husband, Belfast flutist Frankie Kennedy, Altan have remained firmly rooted in the musical traditions of Donegal. Irish-language songs and dynamic twin-fiddling are hallmarks of their sound, reflecting the distinctive musical heritage and culture of Ireland’s north-west.
Few Irish traditional bands of the past 40 years have had a wider international impact. Altan have sold more than one million records while remaining true to their Donegal roots. In 2006, the Irish Government honoured the group’s contribution to Irish culture by featuring Altan on an official Irish postage stamp.
Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh states, “Altan are looking forward to returning to Oulu in Finland. This festival has always remained one of our favourite as it’s so well organised and the people there are just exceptional!”
Opening the Altan concert will be An Chéad Ghlúin Eile (Irish for “The Next Generation”), sean-nós singing sisters Étáin and Máire Ní Churraoin. Following in the footsteps of their granduncle, renowned sean-nós singer Darach Ó Catháin, the native Irish speakers perform traditional Irish and folk songs in harmony.
The sisters’ debut album Cá’il an Bheirt? won Album of the Year at the 2025 NÓS Awards, celebrating contemporary Irish-language music. They will be joined in Oulu by guitarist Jack Warnock.
Belfast is strongly represented at this year’s festival thanks to a new collaboration with Belfast UNESCO City of Music. Tempest features Brendan Mulholland, Blaithín Mhic Cana, Aaron O’Hagan and Luke Ward. Formed in 2023, the ensemble is firmly rooted in the traditional music and song heritage of Ulster, with particular emphasis on the singing tradition of Mhic Cana’s native South Armagh. Their acclaimed debut album has established the ensemble as an exciting new voice in Irish traditional music.
Belfast singer, songwriter and storyteller Gráinne Holland brings Macha’s Race to Oulu, combining traditional music, storytelling and dance in a contemporary interpretation of the ancient Irish legend of the goddess Macha. Holland is accompanied by Ciara Maguire on fiddle and vocals, Seosamh Mac on guitar, Emma Robinson on vocals, flute and whistle, Conor Lamb on uilleann pipes and whistles, James Shields on electronics and dancer Myfanwy Carville.
Finnish folk music has an important place in the programme through Antti Järvelä and Friends. Born into the renowned Järvelä musical family of Kaustinen, Järvelä is a respected Finnish folk musician, composer, arranger and educator. A founding member of the Finnish-Norwegian ensemble Frigg, he also performs with Baltic Crossing, JPP and Troka and founded the folk collective Orivesi All Stars.
From Italy, The Shire bring the energy and warmth of Irish traditional music to Oulu with a repertoire of songs, reels, jigs and session tunes performed on vocals, guitar, fiddle, flute, tin whistle and accordion.
Oulu’s own traditional music community also features prominently. Yläsiirtola Ramblers, whose roots stretch back to the early 1990s in Oulu’s Yläsiirtola district, combine traditional folk music with strong Irish and North American influences. Local band The Soap Pig bring their lively onstage craic through traditional Irish tunes, original compositions and songs of love, heartache and immigration sung in English and Irish.
Artistic Director Brent Cassidy adds: “In a historic cultural year for Ireland and Oulu, we wanted to bring our audience a diverse programme of Irish traditional music and song, representing sean-nós singing and songs in Irish, English and Finnish. The music line-up, anchored by the world-renowned Altan, represents the very best of the tradition.”
Beyond the concerts, daily traditional Irish music sessions and workshops bring visiting artists, local musicians and audiences together. The sessions remain central to the festival’s musical identity, presenting Irish traditional music as a living social tradition shared between musicians and listeners.
The festival also forms part of Cultural Kaleidoscopes, The Irish Festival of Oulu’s contribution to Oulu2026 European Capital of Culture. The wider programme brings Irish and Finnish music, dance, folklore and storytelling together with international street and spectacle arts in Oulu city centre.
Since its foundation in 2006, The Irish Festival of Oulu has developed into an internationally recognised Irish cultural event and an established meeting point for traditional musicians and audiences in northern Europe. In 2026, its music programme connects internationally established artists with a new generation of performers, spanning Donegal fiddle music, sean-nós and Irish-language song, Ulster traditional music, Finnish folk music and the living Irish session tradition.
FACT SHEET
MAIN EVENT: ALTAN IN CONCERT
- One of the world’s best-known Irish traditional music groups
- The first traditional Irish music group to sign a recording contract with Virgin Records
- Has collaborated with artists including Dolly Parton, Enya, The Chieftains and Bonnie Raitt
THE IRISH FESTIVAL OF OULU 2026
- The Irish Festival of Oulu
- 23–27 September 2026
- 19th edition
- Founded in 2006
- The world’s northernmost festival of Irish culture
- Part of the Oulu2026 European Capital of Culture programme
- Part of the Culture Ireland Global EU Presidency Culture Programme
- Programme includes music, storytelling, theatre, dance, street arts and workshops
- Pegasus spectacle presented for the first time in Finland and the Nordic countries
- Includes the new Cultural Kaleidoscopes street event, 25–26 September 2026
- Oulu is home to the world’s northernmost branch of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann (CCÉ). Comhaltas has more than 450 branches in 22 countries across five continents.
TIMELINE
- 2006: The festival is founded in Oulu.
- 2020–2021: The festival is held online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- 2021: The Irish Government highlights the festival as an example of Irish cultural engagement in the Nordic countries.
- 2026: The festival forms part of both the Oulu2026 European Capital of Culture programme and the Culture Ireland Global EU Presidency Culture Programme. The new Cultural Kaleidoscopes street festival is presented as part of The Irish Festival of Oulu for the first time.
