We’re lucky we’ve so much music here – embrace it!
THEY SAY music hath charms to soothe a savage breast, but it also has the power to unite, entertain and inspire.
I spent a delightful evening last Thursday at the beautiful home of Dragon’s Den impressario Gavin Duffy and his equally pioneering wife Orlaith Carmody, as details of this year’s Drogheda International Classical Music Series were announced.
The first concert isn’t until October, which may sound a lifetime away, but as soon as the school holidays are over, it’ll be upon us in no time.
A lovely group of local people had gathered to hear what’s in store, and on the surface, it looked like we didn’t have a lot in common, but the one binding thread was we all, in one form or another, have a passion for music.
Not necessarily classical music, but we all know what a powerful experience it can be to lose yourself at a concert and escape the stresses of life sometimes.
Anyone who knows me, knows I’m a rock chick at heart, but that doesn’t mean I haven’t an appreciation for all genres of music.
I have often found the raw passion, intricacy and complexity of some heavy metal has its roots in classical music and if you have listened to Apocalyptica or 2 Cellos, you know the two forms blend with ease.
How boring to limit yourself to one type of music, when different emotions can be experiences with diverse categories!
Platforms like Spotify and iTunes have made everything much more accessible to us, and easier to experiment.
The first concert in the series features an incredible international artist, the pianist Barry Douglas.
I have wonderful memories of the first time I heard him live.
It was at the official opening of the magnificent Waterfront Hall in Belfast, where I was a relatively new addition to the BBC news team there.
I was 27 and, to me, classical music was stuffy and tedious.
But the combination of occasion, location, and his outstanding talent – playing the most electrifying of pieces – made it a night to remember.
In Drogheda, we are blessed not only to have a stunning venue in St. Peter’s Church of Ireland, but a Steinway piano, and I think it will be madness if that concert isn’t sold out in minutes.
If we don’t support the arts in all their myriad forms in our town, we’ll lose them to Dundalk and we know we hate when that happens! Music has the most wonderful ability to unite. Recently around 900 local people were treated to the stirring sound of the Drogheda Male Voice Choir and the Welsh Aber Valley Male Voice Choir in a joint concert in St. Mary’s Church.
Lifting the roof of the church with every style of music, it was a night to make you proud to be from Drogheda, once again silencing the empty vessels who shout so loudly that nothing ever happens in this town.
The Cecilian Singers and St. Peter’s Male Voice Choir also appeared at a charity event on the Chord Road last weekend, turning what could have been a small and quiet affair into a joyful community event, drawing neighbours onto the street to listen, some of whom had never spoken to each other before.
This autumn and winter, do yourself a favour, and open your mind to classical music and the richness and pleasure it can add to your life – however fleeting.