Jo Pue Richards – Biography

Jo Pue is a well known fiddle player, singer, guitarist born in Merseyside with Irish connections. She has performed with many of the best known musicians across the region. She loves to perform live on stage at Theatres, weddings, Ceilidh’s, conferences, festivals and corporate events. Jo graduated from University in 2001 and since then has gone on to be involved in many different musical projects. She has performed solo, duo and with bands and shows across the UK, Europe and Internationally. She has performed at The Liverpool Philharmonic as guest violinist on a show about the music of Hank Williams and another with Seafoam Green in their show “The Last Waltz”. In 2013 she toured UK, Spain and Portugal with the show “Simply Dylan” performing violin and vocals on tracks such as The Hurricane, One More Cup Of Coffee, Make you feel my Love and Mozambique. In 2018 she performed at the “Giant Spectacular” Event in Liverpool with “The Royal de Luxe” World leading French Street Theatre Company to an audience of over a million visitors. In 2019 she hosted an Irish Trad Night at the Philharmonic Music Room on behalf of the Liverpool Irish Festival 2019 and TG4 Gradam Ceoil.  Jo is also the violinist in “The Guitar Legends Show” with highly acclaimed guitarist Gary Murphy and his Band and recently performed at The Brindley Theatre and The Floral Pavilion performing on tracks such as Baba O’Riley (The Who) and “The Devil Went Down To Georgia”. Jo is currently in a folk/acoustic duo called “The Skylarks” with her daughter Ava, and they recently appeared on ITV’s Season 12 of The Voice UK in 2023 in a Blind Audition in front of four Celebrity Judges Tom Jones, Anne-Marie, Olly Murs and Will I Am. The Skylarks have appeared at numerous music festivals across the country and have residencies in the pubs and bars in Liverpool. As well as performing Jo is a regular session violinist and has recently worked in the studio Paul Molloy (The Coral) on his new Album, The Sundowners on their single “A Thousand Years” featuring Paul Weller on guitar and April Moon on their new Album and music video.

As well as performing she has a passion for teaching music and bringing local community together through Music Educational opportunities, making music easily accessible and affordable for all.  She currently works as a Music Educator, whole class Instrumental Music Teacher and Peri in primary and secondary schools.  Jo is also an experienced Early Years Music Specialist and promotes Early Years Music through teacher training opportunities in schools to provide ideas and material for teachers to use in the classroom.  

In 2009 she set up her own music business called “Melody Makers” with the aim of embedding music within Early Years settings and primary schools to inspire others to love music.   Jo has a passion for Traditional Irish Folk Music and Ceilidh dancing and since 2009 she has been touring schools with a team of professional folk musicians and her “Celtic Roadshow” promoting Celtic Music to pupils and involving the children in the music making. She has been lucky enough to secure Music funding from the Big Lottery, Public Health, Music Matters Fund and The Arts Council.  In 2012 she became a partner of the local Music Hub for Wirral and Cheshire “Musical Routes” who are funded through the Arts Council and has worked in partnership with them. In 2013 she set up a Trad fiddle group for children and teenagers.  The group have gone from strength to strength and have performed every year at the Liverpool Irish Festival including the Festival launch nights in 2019 and in 2023. They have also performed for the Lord Mayor at the Mersey River festival Tall ships Parade and for the Lord Mayors Charity events on many occasions.

Ava Richards – Biography

Ava Richards is a multi instrumentalist from Merseyside. Her passion for music blossomed from an early age, as she was heavily influenced by her mum. She embarked on a journey to study performance professionally full time, after years of gigging around local pubs and bars in a duo with her mum called "The Skylarks". As a proud student of LIPA Sixth Form College, the school has allowed many new and exciting opportunities for Ava's personal journey as a musician. It is noticeable her confidence both on the stage, playing and singing has reached new levels. Her songwriting has also shown a lot more maturity, drawing from her experiences working with other musicians of like minds and from her own personal journey, which has pushed Ava to become more passionate about her career in music.

Making her first appearance on the ITV show, The Voice in 2023. The programme has allowed for Ava to unlock and experience wonderful opportunities, as working with a professional team of technicians, vocal coaches, media presenters and musicians. Not only has this given her a new level of confidence performing on national television, but has also allowed her to appreciate and understand the determination and hard work it takes to drive a successful career in music and performance.