McGoldrick formed the band Fluke! (later renamed as Flook), with Brian Finnegan and Sarah Allen in November 1995. He was an early member of Lúnasa and played on their first two albums. He joined Capercaillie in 1997, has played regularly for Afro-Celt Sound System and Kate Rusby's band. He now leads the Michael McGoldrick Band.

On any of his chosen wind instruments (he commands a small army of flutes, pipes, and whistles) McGoldrick combines peerless technique with a musically rich sense of dynamics and texture. The traditions that are the bedrock of his art remain simultaneously timeless and strikingly immediate. McGoldrick’s fluid, soulful performances and compositions are seamlessly melded with a startling variety of rhythmic backdrops.

Surrounded by a group of extraordinary and brilliant musicians a McGoldrick band performance is never less than mind blowing.