The Forge

The Forge is Maeve Gilchrist, Anna Colliton, Cara Frankowicz, and Nicole Rabata: North America’s most powerful new traditional Irish music group. Hailing from both sides of the Atlantic, the women of The Forge perform a stunning fusion of tradition and today. With inspiration born in the small, most musical hours of the America’s leading Irish music festival, Maeve, Anna, Cara, and Nicole breathe fresh life into Ireland’s traditional music – and deliver it with thrilling energy.

Maeve Gilchrist (harp and vocals), Anna Colliton (bodhran), Nicole Rabata (flutes) and Cara Francowitz (fiddle) are leading performers of their shared art. They have appeared together and in many groups throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. They’ve graced dozens of international stages, including the Celtic Connections Music Festival, the Hebridean Celtic Festival (Scotland), Festival Interceltique du L’Orient (Brittany), the International Flute Festival of Lund (Sweden), WOMAD Festival (UK), Milwaukee Irish Fest, Augusta Celtic Week, Catskills Irish Arts Week, ICONS Festival, Philadelphia Irish Festival, and the World Harp Festival. As individual artists, they’ve performed with renowned performs such as the Chieftains, the Three Irish Tenors, and Capercaille.