SEPHIRA - BIOGRAPHY
Sephira are Irish sisters Joyce and Ruth O'Leary, who have joined forces to create a stunningly original sound. Since the release of their self-penned classical crossover debut album ‘Believe’ in 2006, Sephira have been evolving, developing, pushing the boundaries and expanding the vision of their reality. They mesmerize audiences with their intensity and captivate them with their on-stage alter egos. “When you experience Sephira, you are instantly reminded that these girls are not delicate dainty creatures, they are two very talented and powerful women with fire in their souls”. Their story has ultimately molded what they have become. Sephira recently went back into the studio to record their self-produced Christmas album “Starlight” which is testament to the abilities of these multi-talented sisters. Joyce & Ruth’s violin training began very early, aged 2 and a half and 6 respectively. They individually achieved many accolades along the way making it an obvious decision to take their musical studies to third level education. Joyce always had a passion for singing but since Ruth’s miraculous recovery from bad vocal nodules, the sisters now relish their newfound gift of close sibling harmony that has taken on a huge role in the evolution of Sephira. Sephira’s first performance was in 2006 at the Olympic Assembly in Dublin Castle where ten private jets were flown in and Prince Albert of Monaco was in attendance. Some of the many highlights to follow included performing for former Irish President Mary McAleese and former Irish President and UN Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson. Sephira’s debut performance outside Ireland was at the Celtic Connections Festival, 2007 in Glasgow and exceeded all expectations when 'Believe' became the talking point of the festival and went on to become the No.1 selling Irish album. Over the years, the girls have spent much time re-molding their craft, working and performing with well known acts such as Michael Bublé, Westlife, Kanye West, Katherine Jenkins, Enya, Andrea Bocelli and Rodrigo y Gabriela. In 2008, Sephira started performing with the show, Celtic Thunder, which included numerous tours of the US and Canada along with appearing on multiple PBS specials. This was an amazing experience and proved to be a turning point in their career. In July 2010 they made a huge decision and decided to rebuild their brand and follow their dreams in the city that never sleeps, NYC. The following few months were a true test of character for them. They found comfort in knowing that no matter what happened, they had each other. Through hard work and determination, Sephira have re-emerged stronger than ever with the most character building stories of their lives. Sephira now fly all over the world performing as “Irish ambassadors” for Tourism Ireland creating the image of a more modern Ireland. They recently headlined the largest Celtic Music Festival on the west coast of the United States and they have also come to the attention of icons including Larry Hagman, (A.K.A. J.R Ewing from the hit TV series Dallas) who is a huge fan of Sephira and regularly attends their shows and also Prince Albert of Monaco who recently saw the Sephira show for the second time and will be looking forward to their return trip to Monaco. December 2011/Jan 2012, sees Sephira performing twenty-one Christmas shows in San Francisco. The girls currently feature on Michael Londra’s Beyond Celtic PBS special that is airing all over the United States where Sephira perform the well-known track “Misirlou” from the cult movie Pulp Fiction. Sephira’s new Christmas album “Starlight” is due for digital release Nov 8th and physical release Nov 18th. For further info check out: www.sephirastarlight.com |