The story of Áed begins in 2013 when Ilenia and Helen met at the Irish traditional music session in Lucerne, Switzerland.

Ilenia has been singing and drawn to folk music ever since her childhood. Born into a Sicilian family, she was exposed to Southern Italian folk music early, discovering all kinds of world music later. While studying Celtic Studies in Ireland, she learned the bodhrán from her long-time friend and tutor Robbie Walsh. His powerful playing style and introduction to the Irish traditional music world influenced Ilenia's musical path considerably.

Helen has also been fascinated with folk music since a very young age. Her old papa, being an accordionist in the genre of klezmer, often played music around the house. These wonderful and exotic sounds inspired young Helen to start the fiddle at age 8. She never put the instrument down since and has been playing and singing with countless groups over the years.

Through Ilenia and Helen’s shared passion for folk music and their admiration for each other’s expression in their playing, they immediately built a strong bond. After playing at numerous sessions, and concerts and travelling through Ireland together several times, they decided to start a group of their own.

On their musical journey, they met Jonas and Raoul. Jonas is an experienced double bass player from the gypsy swing scene. With a backpack and a tent, at age 18 Jonas had also traveled around Ireland where he had fallen in love with the island, its people, and the music. Though he later studied jazz music, part of his heart remained reserved for Celtic music.

Likewise, acclaimed guitarist Raoul who, although he has studied classical guitar, has always been fascinated by Irish traditional music. Both he and Jonas became regular visitors of the trad session in Lucerne and it’s there where they met Helen and Ilenia.

All these stories flow into Áed's compositions. Together Ilenia, Helen, Jonas and Raoul mine the rich soil of Celtic music with passion and sincerity, offering up timeless lilts that merge seamlessly with influences from around the world. Flowing from the lively charm of jigs and reels to ballads of ethereal beauty, combining styles from various traditions, Áed create fresh compositions and modern arrangements that celebrate folk at its core while pushing the genre in new and exciting directions. In May 2020 the band released their debut album "Moved". The album release tour followed in 2022. Áed’s second album “Leaf” will be released on 10th June 2023.