Peter Stobart, Artistic Director of Cork International Choral Festival, introduces this year's event, which will take place online from April 28th – May 2nd.
Despite the fact choral singing has been all but eradicated over recent months, Cork International Choral Festival has been entirely reimagined this year and will take place online.
Founded in 1954, the Choral Festival, which is the region's longest running festival, has been cancelled only twice in its history; last year due to Covid-19 and once previously, due to Foot and Mouth Disease.
Every year the festival attracts 5,000 world class singers and 50,000 visitors to the region but this year we are inviting choirs from around the world to compete in the festival without needing to travel.
Research shows that the connections and community which so many people experience by singing in a choir contribute to wellbeing and mental health. We are therefore seizing the opportunity to engage with a more diverse audience than ever before in virtual form and we are delighted that people across the world will be able to enjoy all our events online for the first time.
The festival’s opening on Wednesday night will feature a specially commissioned poem on the theme of A Singing City, written by Cork poet Billy Ramsell and read by Elmarie Mawe. Thursday will feature a specially prepared documentary about the vocal ensemble Anúna, made by their founder director and composer Michael McGlynn.
Throughout the weekend, each evening at 8pm we will be broadcasting a gala concert, starting on the Friday night with Chamber Choir Ireland giving no fewer than three world premieres as part of their programme. The first is a new piece by composer Amanda Feery which was commissioned by the festival last year, while the winning compositions of the 2020 and 2021 Seán Ó Riada Composition Competitions, Peter Leavy and Norah Walsh, will also be performed. This concert of mostly new music will contrast with Saturday night’s concert, Bach and Before, performed by the early music ensemble Resurgam conducted by Mark Duley.
Finally on Sunday evening, the Berlin based group ONAIR will perform the very best of a cappella gymnastics to close the festival. These concerts will all be preceded by a discussion with the performers, giving the audience an added insight into what they will be hearing.
We will also be screening a multitude of choral video recordings from around Ireland and internationally, of which a large number will form our competitive element this year. Many of the videos were submitted by choirs who simply wanted to convey their choral greetings to us at this extraordinary time, and to participate virtually as a substitute for travelling to Cork in person and enjoying the normally convivial atmosphere the festival creates across its 90 venues.
In another exciting move, this year, for the first time we are holding a Workplace Choir of the Year Competition, supported by the business organisation, Ibec. The initiative came about in conjunction with our Choirworks programme, as a way of bringing those who are working at home together at a time when the traditional office environment remains closed. The act of singing is an excellent social cohesive, promoting listening and improving mental health, as well as being a fun activity to take part in with colleagues during the working week. It seemed appropriate this year to engage with these groups and offer them an opportunity to sing together and to sing with us.
The festival is also staging several interactive workshops in which everyone can join. Ciarán Kelly, the artistic director of vocal ensemble Ardú, will lead the ever popular Big Sing, with a focus on unaccompanied choral repertoire, and there will be a seminar on voice production from the specialists at Vocology Ireland. There will also be a discussion entitled Diversity in Choral Music, looking at how barriers can be broken down in the choral world and trying to see beyond a choral stereotype.
We hope that this year’s Cork International Choral Festival has something for everyone and that as many people as possible will engage with what we have to offer and support the festival at a time when the arts and singing particularly are affected so gravely. We genuinely appreciate the support of the Arts Council and all our sponsors and partners, without whom we would not be able to deliver this unique festival of song, and we look forward to being back in person in 2022!
The Cork International Choral Festival will take place online from April 28th – May 2nd - details of all concerts, workshops and competitions are available here.
