Ambient Orbit returns to RTÉ lyric fm on Sunday October 4th for a ninth series with 12 new episodes. The new series will feature live performances recorded at festivals including Love Is A Stranger at Ballyvolane House in Co. Cork, Rothe House at Kilkenny Arts Festival, Another Love Story at Killyon Manor in Co. Westmeath and Dublin by Dusk at Douglas Hyde Gallery in Trinity College this summer. Expect to hear ambient sounds performed live by the likes of Rhiannon Giddens, Daniel Luke, Eimear Reidy, Ultan O'Brien, Anna Mieke and more.

Rhiannon Giddens (Photo Dylan Vaughan)
Rhiannon Giddens performing on Ambient Orbit (Photo Dylan Vaughan)

The new 12-part series will broadcast on Sunday nights at midnight with a repeat on Friday morning at 06:00. The show is produced by Peter Curtin and Áine Gallagher and is a non-presenter led ambient music programme which first aired in October 2022. It occupies a unique space in Irish radio with its beautifully crafted mix of ambient sounds and field recordings from the Irish landscape allowing the listener to reset and escape the noise of everyday life.

Photo taken by Áine Gallagher RTÉ staff
Ambient Orbit Summer Solstice Broadcast from Oileán Chléire

Series nine will feature field recordings from new locations around the country including Annascaul Lake in Co. Kerry and Coole Park Nature Reserve in Co. Galway, capturing the wonderful variety of wildlife and landscapes in Ireland alongside the best new ambient sounds from Irish artists and beyond.

The new series will culminate with a live broadcast from Killadangan Megalithic Complex in Co. Mayo to mark the winter solstice on December 21st.

The first episode airs on Sunday October 4th at midnight. You can hear all previous seasons of Ambient Orbit here