Martin is the eldest son of Ireland’s ‘Prince of Pipers’ Finbar Furey, and is a highly talented musician in his own right. A masterful guitarist and a Uilleann pipes player of amazing ability, he has taken his style of music to delighted audiences all over the world for over three decades. Along with his emotive voice, Martin puts all his talents to good use both on his self-penned songs and on the traditional Irish music his family is so steeped in. He brings it all home by highlighting songs in their purest form with the resonance and ornamentation of the 19th century, yet the melodies and instrumentation that are timely and refreshing.
Martin has a unique brand of contemporary singer/songwriter folk music, which takes traditional rhythms and instruments, and adds an oblique twist to produce an exhilarating sound that has been wowing audiences for decades. In addition to his vocal abilities, Martin is also a master of:
Uilleann Pipes / Whistles: Martin was in his own words “forcibly inducted into the pipes fraternity aged 7” with his father, Finbar being a three time All Ireland champion, it was almost inevitable that the pipes would come to play a major role in Martin’s life and music.
Guitar / Banjo / Bouzouki: Many of Martin's fingerpicking and chord styles were passed on by his father and through both grandparents, Ted and Nora Furey, who came from an ancient line of traveling or gypsy musicians and music, indigenous to Ireland.
With a professional career spanning over 30 years, some recent highlights include performing at London’s Trafalgar Square St. Patrick’s Celebration to an estimated 15,000 people in 2012. Martin was honored above all else to be asked to play at Áras an Uachtaráin, twice at The White House itself by President Obama and also the Pentagon in 2015 by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Martin E Dempsey (ret.), who asked specifically for Martin to be present. In 2016, Martin performed at RTÉ’s Centenary Concert to mark the 100-year anniversary of Ireland’s Easter Rising.
Martin has worked tirelessly to re-establish a traditional style of Irish singing, and through pure effort, skill and passion, he has successfully managed to repopulate an impressive amount of airwaves and venues with his unique take on both well-known and long forgotten songs.
