Máiréad Nesbitt is a Celtic violinist who is highly celebrated for her role in Celtic Woman. She is a founding member of Celtic Woman and continues to tour and record as part of the act. "Energy" and "Beauty' are the two words that Máiréad feels best describe what she strives for as a musician and as a person. A fiddle player since the age of 6, Máiréad 's Loughmore, Co.Tipperary background is steeped in music in the way that only those who grow up in a family of accomplished musicians can be. Her parents John and Kathleen, her sister Frances and brothers Seán, Michael, Noel and Karl are all musicians and in addition to them, Máiréad cites such diverse influences as classical violinist Itzhak Perlman, Irish Fiddlers Liz Carroll, Michael Coleman and Andy McGann, Jazz musician Stephane Grappelli, Country player Alison Kraus and rock performers David Bowie, Sting, U2 and Bjork.