Melissa Nolan, Festival Manager of The Dublin International Choral Festival, previews this year's event, hosted by RTÉ's Aonghus McAnally, which runs from March 22-24.
The Dublin International Choral Festival celebrates choral music in all its forms by presenting a variety of choirs from Ireland and abroad in Dublin’s stunning churches and cathedrals. Our aim is to provide a uniquely Irish experience to the visiting choirs and to forge connections between the participants.
The first DICF took place in 2017 as part of MusicTown, a 10-day multi-genre music festival founded by Dublin City Council's Arts Office. Choral singing remains very popular, whether as a hobby, as part of a community choir or in a more formal educational setting. This is a non-competitive festival, and the focus is on the quality of a shared experience for all; the choirs will present their own repertoire as well as perform some works together in the final concert with The Orchestra of Ireland and renowned conductor David Brophy.
What makes the festival unique? The joint singing performance is intended to encourage connections among the participating choirs, who learn a contemporary Irish piece, giving the visiting choirs a uniquely Irish experience - as well as new material for their own repertoire.
Dublin International Choral Festival - A Trio Of Festival Highlights:
Friday 22 March 2019 – St Ann’s Church, 8pm
In this first concert of the Dublin International Choral Festival, hosted by Aonghus McAnally, we celebrate various forms of choral music with performances by choirs of all ages. Showcasing the magic of choral singing, Dublin audiences will enjoy the classical and contemporary repertoires of People’s College Choir, Classic Harmony and a special appearance by Visionaries Choir – a choir for people who are blind or visually impaired (an initiative of Fighting Blindness). From across the waters we welcome two American choirs, Valdez High School Choir and ChoirFire, who will dazzle audiences with an eclectic range of American song.
Saturday 23 March 2019 – St Ann’s Church, 8pm
Combining choir and artist, this evenings performance showcases the fantastic family choir Classic Harmony, conducted by Frank Kelly, as they wow audiences with their splendid arrangements of popular and classical songs. Our special guest artist is our host for the weekend, Aonghus McAnally, a talented artist and musician in his own right. A night not to be missed!
Sunday 24th March 2019 – St Patrick’s Cathedral 8pm
One of the aims of the Dublin International Choir Festival is to provide a uniquely Irish experience to visiting choirs. In this concert, choirs will present works from their respective repertoires. We then up the ante, as the choirs unite and perform two choruses from Handel’s Messiah, along with the ever-classic Danny Boy by Frederic Weatherly. The Orchestra of Ireland and choirs, conducted by Ireland’s own David Brophy, will be joined by Classic Harmony; ChoirFire; First Congregational Church; Huron High School A Cappella Choir & Huron High School Bel Canto Choir and Valdez High School Choir.
Find out more about this year's Dublin Choral Festival here.
