This year, the Scoil Gheimhridh Ghaoth Dobhair winter school will mark 25 years since its original inception as Scoil Gheimhridh Frankie Kennedy in 1994. It runs from 27 December to 1 January in northwest Donegal, and will feature some of the top trad and folk musicians in the country.
The school was set up to honour and celebrate the life of the talented Belfast flute player Frankie Kennedy, who co-founded trad supergroup Altan with his partner in life and music, Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh. Frankie died in September 1994 at the age of 38, and the school was inaugurated as that year came to a close and ran for the next 20 years.
The esteem in which Frankie was held, and the enduring involvement of Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh and Altan, ensured that the school attracted musicians of the highest calibre as tutors and performers. In 2014, the school was renamed Scoil Gheimhridh Ghaoth Dobhair, but other than that little has changed. During the darkest, bleakest days of the year in a dark and wind-blown corner of Ireland, it offers warmth to all who cross the threshold of venues for sessions, concerts, get-togethers and talks over almost a week idir dhá Nollaig - between two Christmases.
This year, famed Gaoth Dobhair musical family Na Casaidigh will perform in concert on Friday 28 December at 8.30 pm, together with young trad musicians An Crann Óg, for Oíche Cheoil na gConallach, a celebration of the music of Donegal and it will be broadcast live on RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta. The Ó Casaidigh family is originally from Gaoth Dobhair, and brothers Odhrán, Feargus, Seathrún, Aongus and Fionntán will be joined on stage by members of the next generation of the family too, including Sibéal Ní Chasaide, who came to prominence with her soul-stirring performance of Mise Éire during the Centenary concert on RTÉ on Easter Monday 2016. Na Casaidigh have performed in venues around the world, but this will be a very special occasion as they return home.
An Crann Óg celebrates 10 years this year. The group developed from a community project to encourage young people in the area to play music, and has now developed into a highly-regarded group of traditional musicians with two albums to their name -
RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta presenter and Gaoth Dobhair native Rónán Mac Aodha Bhuí will be MC for the night, and he has many fond memories of concerts at the school over the years:
Tá mé ag freastal ar an Scoil Gheimhridh ón uair gur thosaigh muintir Uí Mhaonaigh an fhéile seo an bhliain go bhfuair Frankie bás, i 1994.
Tá lúcháir orm fosta go raibh baint bheag againn leis an fhéile fríd na blianta, mar go seoltar clár na féile ar mo chlár Rónán Beo ar RTÉ RnaG achan bhliain.
Fear uasal , galánta, lán ceol, craic agus spraoi a bhí i Frankie, agus thug siad an t-ómós ceart do leis an fhéile seo. Is cuma cén cineál siocáin, sneachta nó droch aimsire a bhí ann, d’éirigh leo ceoltóirí agus lucht leanúna ceoil a mhealladh as achan áit ar domhan don fhéile seo.
Tá an cheolchoirm le Skara Brae nuair a tháinig siad ar ais le chéile go speisialta don Scoil Gheimhridh ar an cheolchoirm is mó a chuaigh i bhfeidhm orm féin. Bhí mé ag fanacht le Skara Brae a fheiceáil i rith mo shaoil, mar go raibh an t-albam a d’eisigh siad sa bhliain 1997 ar cheann de na ceirníní is fearr a chuala mé riamh. Bhí sé iomlán draíochtúil Mícheál, Maighréad , Tríona agus Dáithí a fheiceáil ar an ardán in Ionad Cois Locha den chéad uair. Tá mé ag súil go mór le ceolchoirm na gCasaidigh i mbliana mar go bhfuil meas fiánta agam orthu mar cheoltóirí, mar dhaoine agus mar Ghaeil.
Tá mé ag súil go mór fosta le ceann de bhuaicphointí na féile, an seisiún amhránaíochta a bhíonn ar siúl Tigh Hiúdaí, ar lá na bliana úire, leis na hamhránaithe is fearr i dTír Chonaill, agus níos faide ó bhaile. Téann an seisiún ar aghaidh agus ar aghaidh, mar nach bhfuil duine ar bith ag iarraidh imeacht ‘na bhaile!
Oíche Cheoil na gConallach will be broadcast live on RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta on Friday 28 December at 8.30 pm - find out more about Scoil Gheimhridh Ghaoth Dobhair here.
