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Artist
Ava McMahon
12+ albums
celticfolktraditionalirish
about
Éabha McMahon (pronounced AY-va) is a contralto Irish singer and a former member of the ensemble Celtic Woman. In 2020 she began recording music under the name AVA. Éabha was born in Dublin, Ireland on 9 December 1990. She is a fluent Irish speaker and was brought up singing and speaking Irish at home in Dublin. English was not spoken at home until Éabha was 6 years old. Éabha attended an Irish speaking primary school. When she was 5 years old, she was inspired by her teachers to become a member of the local Sean Nos choir. Éabha holds a Human Rights degree from NUI Galway. She was a member of the musical society at NUI Galway. After graduating, Éabha spent time in Vietnam and Mongolia. There, she worked with Christina Noble and the Christina Noble Children's Foundation. Éabha began her singing career in 1998 when, at the age of 9, she was chosen by Veritas to record an album for Beo go Deo, a children's book. She then began singing in sean-nós, a traditional style, taught by such singers as Moya Brennan, Máire Ní Choilm, Íde Mac Mathúna, and Séamus Mac Mathúna. At the age of 15, Éabha won the under-18 All Ireland Oireachtais final. From age 13 to 17, she was the reigning Leinster champion in the Irish music competition Fleadh Ceoil. Between the ages of 14 and 18, she was the Dublin champion in the Fairview Feis Ceoil 5 times. Éabha joined Anúna at the age of 15. In 2008, she recorded the PBS holiday special Anúna: Christmas Memories, released that year on DVD and CD.
