Castletown House, in Co Kildare, was the founding venue for the Music in Great Irish Houses Festival in 1970. It was soon joined by other stately homes, not least Russborough near Blessington in Co. Wicklow that was at the time the home of Sir Alfred and Lady Clementine Beit. Generous supporters of the arts, they donated a large number of their paintings to the National Gallery.
The house continues to be part and parcel of the country’s musical endeavours and is the centre for the annual West Wicklow Chamber Music Festival curated by founder and artistic director, Fiachra Garvey, who is also one of our leading younger generation pianists. Another of the festival’s principal locations is St Mary’s Church in Blessington itself.
The festival opens next Thursday (May 16) at Russborough with Korean violinist Inmo Yang and French pianist Yannick Rafamilanan in a varied programme that will conclude with César Franck’s monumental Sonata. Besides music by CPE Bach, Mozart and Schumann, the duo also brings a lesser-known piece – Nocturne et Cortège – by Lili Boulanger who died in 1918 aged 25.
Staying in the French repertoire, Cécile Chaminade’s 2nd Piano Trio Op 34 opens tomorrow evening’s concert at Russborough by visiting violinist Alexander Sitkovetsky, cellist Isang Enders and pianist Wu Qian. Before concluding with Tchaikovsky’s marvellous Op 50 Trio, the artists offer a contemporary work – Freakshow – by Cork’s Sam Perkin, which the composer tells us was inspired by the Rat Circus at Frongoch Camp in Wales where many Irish prisoners were held in the aftermath of the 1916 Rising.
Saturday (May 18) morning’s venue moves to St Mary’s Church in Blessington for young musicians Maria O’Dea, bassoon and Luke Lally Maguire, piano. Both are studying at London’s Guildhall School and both have played in London’s prestigious Wigmore Hall as part of an Irish Heritage Music Bursary event. Their interesting programme includes sonatas by Hindemith and André Previn.
At Russborough on Saturday afternoon (May 18) visiting ensemble Quatuor Arod separates two classical works – Haydn’s Sunrise Quartet and Beethoven’s C sharp minor Op 131 – with the contemporary Koran inspired Al’Asr by Benjamin Attahir (b 1989). It is said the French composer’s piece brings to mind “glaring light, sweltering heat, diffraction of the air as it touches the ground”.
Saturday evening (May 18) has another change of scene when US singer/song writer Judi Jackson appears in Blessington’s Tramway Theatre. Described as “a compelling live performer and burgeoning songwriter, blessed with a pitch-perfect voice”, her programme will comprise songs by jazz greats Nina Simone, Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald.
Aimed at young people, Sunday morning (May 19) has a quintet of musicians from the Irish Chamber Orchestra for a short programme with Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf at the Tramway Theatre.
The West Wicklow Chamber Music Festival ends on Sunday afternoon (May 19) in St Mary’s Church when soprano Claudia Boyle, baritone Gyula Nagy and Fiachra Garvey join forces for a programme of songs and arias as well as a blend of Irish and Hungarian folksongs. Variety is the spice of life!