From Wednesday August 5 to Tuesday August 11, the Feakle Traditional Music Festival will celebrate its 22nd year with a vibrant programme of traditional music, song, and dance.
The musical style of east Clare is at the core of the celebrations and the festival continues to honour and provide a platform for local musicians to demonstrate their musical heritage. The village welcomes genuine music lovers from all corners of the globe, every year, with many returning annually for the quality of music and entertainment on the festival programme as well as the unique ambience of its presentation.
The festival’s opening ceremony on Wednesday night has evolved to become a platform to honour and pay tribute to local musicians both past and present. This year the festival celebrates the role of dance and particularly the influence of dance teacher Kathleen Moloney from Glendree. Kathleen with her husband Jimmy have left a legacy of great set dancers and have instilled the love of dance to many generations throughout east Clare.
New this year are the Thursday night early and late concerts, in the beautiful setting of Caher House on the shores of Lough Graney. The evening will begin with a musical adaptation by Sean Tyrrell of the famous poem The Midnight Court composed by Brian Merriman. The performance will be followed by a second concert with renowned musicians Tony Mac Mahon and Steve Cooney. Booking is recommended.
Feakle is delighted to welcome one of Ireland’s foremost composers, Shaun Davey, for the Friday night recital in the parish church. Under the banner of Beal Tuinne, the line–up includes Rita Connolly, Eilís Ní Chinnéide, Seamus Begley, Eoin Begley, Lawrence Courtney, and Gerry O’Byrne. The concert will conclude with the annual heart stopping performance by Martin Hayes and Dennis Cahill. Online booking will guarantee tickets for this stellar concert.
The Saturday night concert will focus on Clare Connections celebrating the array of talented musicians, singers, dancers, and storytellers by artists not just from Co Clare but those who have deep connections with Feakle and Co Clare. The wealth of talent lined up will ensure a great night of music and fun, presented in the style of a traditional house party. Both Friday and Saturday night concerts commence at 7.30pm.
Over the past number of years the festival has placed an emphasis on providing free open-air entertainment and this year it welcomes back Colm O’Donnell and the Border Collies. For the children there will be many activities including a puppet show by Dog and String Puppets. Other free events include a poetry reading with poet Arthur Watson and a talk from local historian Ger Madden about his new publication on the Slieve Aughty Mountains. There will be many sessions with renowned musicians in all the local pubs as well as a special student/beginners session.
The workshops are an integral part of the festival offering top class tutorials by master musicians. This year sees the addition of some new tutors to the regular team. They include Sean Ryan for whistle, Lasairfhíona Ní Chonaola for sean nós singing, Phil Callery (Voice Squad ) for traditional singing, and Conor Keane for accordion.
The full programme of events, venues, and times can be seen on the Feakle Festival web site www.feaklefestival.ie Tickets for the main concerts can now be purchased in advance via the festival web site or from www.glor.ie The festival welcomes the continued support of The Arts Council, Clare County Council, Fáilte Ireland, and Heineken.
