The 9th annual Concertina Cruinniú, rescheduled this year, due to Covid-19, from its normal mid-February date, will take place this weekend in Miltown Malbay.
It is an annual community, non-commercial event organised by Oidhreacht an Chláir in promotion of the musical and cultural heritage of Clare. It provides a packed programme of top-level tuition, concerts and lectures, featuring most of the leading concertina players in Ireland.
Miltown Malbay, internationally acknowledged as the home of Irish traditional music, and renowned as the home of the annual Scoil Samhraidh Willie Clancy since 1973, is especially suited to an event of this nature, where formal instruction and professional expertise for students of the concertina are blended with the comfort of easy physical and personal interaction between visitors and the local community.
High-quality Tuition
There will be small classes for all grades (Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced and Master) delivered by a panel of experienced tutors and overseen by Master Tutor Noel Hill.
Tutors include Edel Fox, Bernie Geraghty, Mairéad Hurley, Claire Keville, Mary MacNamara, Caoilfhionn Ní Fhrighil, Liam O’Brien, Sorcha Curtin and Conor O’Loughlin, as well as Noel Hill. The venue for all classes is the newly rebuilt, spacious Community Centre.
Saturday and Sunday, 10.00am -1.00pm (Community Centre). Fee for those two days of tuition and admission to all other events is only €60. Please register online in advance for Classes at www.concertinacruinniu.ie.
Major Concert
The Mulcahy Family and Noel Hill
Saturday, 8.30pm – 10.00pm (Community Centre). Admission €15.
Lectures and Recitals
Concertina Players of East Clare in my Childhood – Memories, Stories, Tunes and Recordings. Curated by Mary MacNamara.
Friday, 8.30pm-10.00pm (Community Centre). Admission €5.
Keepers of Tradition: the Musical Legacy of Paddy Murphy in the history of Irish Concertina Music. Curated by Michelle Mulcahy.
Saturday, 2.30pm – 4.00pm (Community Centre). Admission €5.
Free Public Sessions
Open Junior Session
Led by Josephine Marsh.
Saturday, 3.00 pm – 4.30 pm (Open air event: The Garden at the Westbridge). Admission free.
Songs & Tunes Session
Eileen O’Brien, Áine & Francis O’Connor, Tim Dennehy and Róisín White.
Sunday, 3.00pm – 5.00pm (Open air event: The Forge at The Players). Admission free.
Full details of the Concertina Cruinniú are available at www.concertinacruinniu.ie.