On Saturday, November 11, Galway will be filled with the sounds of Ireland’s iconic instrument, the harp. Celebrating the first National Harp Day, Galway members of the newly formed national organisation Cruit Éireann/Harp Ireland have organized three free events in Galway City Museum during the day, and an informal concert in the Crane Bar in the evening.
At the museum on Saturday, see an exhibition of harp making by Galway makers Eriu Harps and Callan Harps (12:30pm-1:30pm ), learn about the history of Ireland’s harp from medieval to modern (1:30pm-2:30pm ), and hear Galway harpers and their students play a variety of harps, from the Early Irish harp strung with brass to the modern Irish harp and pedal harp (3:00pm-4:30pm ).
At 20:00pm in Crane Bar, Galway harpers and friends will delight you with geantrai (dance music ), goltrai (laments ) and suantrai (lullabys ), in a feast of traditional music celebrating Ireland’s instrument.
All events are free, but booking is required for museum events. To book, ring 091 532460. For more information on museum events, visit the Galway Museum webpage http://galwaycitymuseum.ie/events/.
Cruit Éireann/Harp Ireland was established in 2016 by harpers in collaboration with the Arts Council/An Chomhairle Ealaion, to support the continuing development of the harp in Ireland. It is the national umbrella resource organisation for the harp, its organisations, harp players and harp makers in Ireland. National Harp Day, which takes place on Saturday, November 11 aims to promote our national instrument and celebrate its place in Irish music today.
