Glen Hansard (The Busker)
Born in Dublin, Ireland in 1970, Glen Hansard is the lead singer, guitarist and a founding member of Irish rock group The Frames. He quit school at the age of 13 to begin busking on Dublin streets and gradually established himself as one of Irish music’s most popular and greatest talents. He first came to public attention as guitar player Outspan Foster in the Alan Parker film THE COMMITMENTS. Prior to THE COMMITMENTS, he secured a record deal with Island Records and subsequently formed The Frames in 1990. The band has been recording and touring ever since, and included filmmaker John Carney as bass player in its earliest incarnation. The band released their sixth studio album The Cost in September 2006 to widespread acclaim. In April 2006, Hansard released his first solo album, The Swell Season, in collaboration with Czech singer and multi instrumentalist Markéta Irglová.
Markéta Irglová (The Girl)
Born in Monravia in 1988, and a resident of Prague in the Czech Republic, Markéta Irglová is a multi-instrumentalist and songwriter. Although only 19, she has proved to be quite a talent, having already recorded an album of music with Glen Hansard while also co-starring alongside him in ONCE. She began playing music at the age of seven, when her parents got her a piano and piano lessons. When she was nine, her father bought her a guitar and she immediately began playing and learning songs by ear. She met Glen Hansard when he was visiting Prague, and they began playing together and eventually collaborated musically, which resulted in the release of an album, The Swell Season.
