Ballina youngsters make impression at overseas festival

COMMUNITY NOTES: BALLINA - WESTERN PEOPLE (NOVEMBER 5 EDITION)

A group of Bofield Comhaltas Ceoltóiri Éireann musicians returned last week from a visit to Sitges ’24, an Irish music festival in Catalonia, Spain.

Seventeen young instrumentalists and singers from around the Ballina area were accompanied by a small group of adults for the festival, which began on October 24.

Under the Bofield CCÉ group’s tutor, harp player Siobhan Buckley, the young musicians entertained audiences at a range of events in Sitges and also managed to spend time enjoying the music of other performers and the sights of the beautiful coastal town, located less than an hour from Barcelona.

Catalonia has a long history of its own traditional music and the proud region has always shown a strong affinity with the music, culture and history of Ireland.

This annual festival, which celebrates the very best of Irish arts and performance, is organised by the Irish arts organisation Artscope through its Creative Connections brand.

Headline concerts and fringe sessions brought together traditional Irish and folk musicians from many parts of Ireland alongside established music acts such as No Crows, Maria Doyle Kennedy, Niamh Kavanagh, Cathy Jordan and Alan Burke.

Among the most successful outings for Bofield CCÉ was a show in the famous Montroig Café in Sitges, an architecturally impressive and characterful venue where the audience enjoyed a stunning performance by the musicians and singers of the group, in collaboration with the dancers of Craobh Sean Treacy CCÉ from the northside of Dublin.

The four-day festival also included lectures, readings, films and workshops, and featured artists from the Catalan region.

Bofield CCE has thanked everyone for their support with fundraising over the last few months. A special word of appreciation was extended to Sarah Barrett and Marcella Holmes for their tireless efforts in helping to organise fundraisers.