Normally, it's horses that top the bill at the World Equestrian Games but last week in Kentucky the Chieftains took centre stage at a major charity gig to aid victims of the Haiti disaster.

"When you get an invitation like this, you can't refuse," said Paddy Moloney, who has led the Chieftains for nearly half a century. "This was our way to help. The thing hasn't gone away; [Haiti is] just as bad as ever. It's a pity we didn't have another day to rehearse so we could have done some Haitian music".

The Chieftains did the concert free as part of Alltech's Haitian harmony project, which aims to create employment and educate the country's young people.

Alltech president Dr Pearse Lyons saluted his fellow Irishmen for not just staging the concert but for the way they left a lasting impression on the huge audience which attended on Tuesday night.

The concert raised more than $53,000 (€38,000) from donations and sales of tickets and Haitian coffee.