About Dan Ar Braz

Dan Ar Braz, born Daniel Le Bras (15 January 1949, Quimper, Brittany), is a French (Breton) guitarist and the founder of Dan Ar Braz et l'Héritage des Celtes. He collaborated with the famous breton harpist Alan Stivell at his debut. In 1972 he formed his own group called Mor. Compared to Stivell's group, this was middle-of-the-road (MOR) and broke up shortly after recording one album. Ar Braz followed this with a solo album of Irish jigs and reels but this was not commercially successful. In 1976 he relocated to England and joined Fairport Convention for a while. In 1992 the organiser of the Festival de Cornouaille in Quimper asked him to create a live show uniting traditional music with modern styles. Ar Braz had many contacts in Britain, France and America and delivered beyond all expectations. Dónal Lunny came from Ireland, Karen Matheson from Scotland, Elaine Morgan from Wales and Bagad Kemper (bagpipers) and also Alan Stivell from Brittany. Altogether 75 musicians were involved. The group, called "L'Héritage des Celtes" performed at the Quimper festival in July 1993 then went on to Rennes in 1994. A hugely successful studio recording recreated the show. It sold 100,000 copies in over ten countries. Following this, Ar Braz returned to solo work.