Meitheal, a brand new community chamber choir from the Galway arts collective Unhinged, is now welcoming singers of all abilities to join. Under the artistic direction of Oran Tobin, the choir will create unaccompanied choral music rooted in Irish place, myth and living tradition, and it is looking for voices from across the community to bring it to life.
Open to everyone aged eighteen and over, Meitheal asks for no previous singing experience. Just a willingness to learn, a love of Irish music and culture, and a desire to be part of something that gives back.
The choir takes its name from the Irish tradition of the meitheal: neighbours gathering to help one another with work that benefits the whole community. Harvesting crops. Building homes. Supporting families in busy seasons. Meitheal carries that spirit into music. Every performance is a collective act, with singers, audiences, composers, volunteers and community partners all contributing to something that belongs to everyone.
Rob Partridge, Co-Founder of Unhinged, said "Unhinged keeps getting better, and I have a feeling Meitheal is going to be something really special. Oran has a vision for this choir that gives me goosebumps, honestly, and I cannot wait for Galway to hear what we're building. Come and join us at the very start. You won't want to be telling people you weren't there."
Original compositions will be a hallmark of the ensemble, who will premiere at least one new work at every concert, combined with established masterpieces of the choral repertoire from various eras across the classical canon. The choir will sing a variety of repertoire from ambitious modern works to early madrigals, all in the pursuit of making high level choral singing available to all who wish to sing, or hear it.
For centuries choral music has been used to mark important festivals and dates across cultures and religions, Meitheal aims to explore how such a legacy might be transferred to the traditional festivals and feasts days from early pre-Christian Ireland. With this in mind, it’s future programme is built around the turning of the Irish year from candlelit Samhain vigils, and somber Winter Solstice concerts to joyous performances celebrating the return of light at Lughnasa.
Oran Tobin, Artistic Director and Conductor of Meitheal, said "We are building something rooted in this place: the landscapes, the language, the old festivals and the living traditions of Ireland and Irish people. The music will be unaccompanied, intimate and ambitious, and should feel like it belongs to everyone. If you have ever stood in a room full of people singing and felt the hairs on your arms stand up, you already know what we are making. Come and build it with us."
Rehearsals are starting soon in Galway. Singers interested in joining can apply at unhinged.ie/join or contact [email protected]
