Dr Lauren Ní Néill (CEO)

Lauren Ní Néill is a sought-after traditional harper, teacher and researcher from Glenullin, Co. Derry. She has both performed and taught at festivals throughout Ireland and Europe and is a current musical director of both the Derry Harp Ensemble and the Inishowen Harp Ensemble. In 2021 Lauren featured as one of eight young traditional musicians on the TG4/BBC Alba production Sruth and has since featured on Seth Lakeman’s Folk Map of the British Isles (2020), and the ILBF/TG4/BBC Gaeilge Beart Bunting (2022). Lauren’s keen interest and passion for historical and contemporary Irish harp practices is reflected in her recently completed practice-led PhD research – Bairdne: A practice-led re-imagination of harp accompaniments to Gaelic bardic poetry. She has recently been appointed Cruit Éireann | Harp Ireland’s first CEO, and continues to lecture in Irish Traditional Music at Ulster University.