The first Westport Festival of Chamber Music will be held on September 6 to 8. Tickets for the event are on sale in the Clew Bay Hotel and online at www.classicallinks.ie Both Westport House and Holy Trinity Church are perfect venues for live music performances, providing a most appropriate setting for a music festival.
Featuring world-class, Irish based musicians, programmes will include duos, trios, and quintets by Beethoven, Boccherini, Franck, Brahms, and Mozart, as well as a tribute to Fritz Kreisler. Violinist Catherine Leonard and pianist Hugh Tinney, the artistic directors, will be joined by the RTÉ Vanbrugh Quartet and guitarist Redmond O’Toole.
Catherine and Hugh have given recitals in Holy Trinity Church over the past few years and are delighted with the prospect of being joined by their guest musicians in such an appropriate venue for music as well as in the majestic Westport House. They are regarded as Ireland’s foremost violin and piano duo, performing together in Ireland and internationally since 1999. Catherine has been spending time with the festival committee members in and around Westport recently and is very excited with festival preparations: “I’m just thrilled with the way things are developing and have to thank all involved in making it happen. Westport is the ideal location for our new venture and I look forward to many more years of world class music-making there.”
Catherine has been principal artist of Camerata Pacifica in California for the past nine years as well as performing as soloist with many top orchestras. Since winning major international piano competitions in Italy and Spain, Hugh Tinney has performed in more than 40 countries.
Also winners of a major competition, the London International String Quartet Competition in 1988, the RTÉ Vanbrugh Quartet perform around the world as well as being resident quartet for RTÉ and in University College Cork.
Redmond O’Toole is an unusual classical guitarist, with an eight-string guitar which he plays in the cello position.
The festival is grant aided by The Arts Council and Westport Town Council. Patronage and donations will play a significant part in establishing and continuing a world-class chamber music festival. Full details and on-line booking are available on www.classicallinks.ie or from the festival manager, Madeleine Flanagan, at [email protected]
Tickets are available to personal callers in the Clew Bay Hotel.
