Banjo great rekindles his passion for trad

Béla Fleck will be joined by Irish performers for his first gig in Cork in 25 years this week, says Nicki ffrench Davis

BÉLA FLECK, one of the world’s most adventurous musicians, performs in Cork for the first time in 25 years on Wednesday.

Fleck is widely regarded as the greatest banjo player in the world, and has performed in many genres. Bluegrass music attracted him to the banjo, growing up in New York city. In high school in the 1970s, he saw Chick Corea perform and so Fleck infused his own playing with jazz.