By Dan Walsh
Music from Lord of the Rings, a classical cocktail of Mozart and Shostakovich and an evening of Wexford music making are among the headline events at this year’s Live from Wells House and Gardens across the June Bank Holiday weekend.
The mini-festival in the heart of rural Wexford will feature a mixed programme of the classical and the contemporary by the celebrated chamber collective, Musici Ireland, and invited guests such as singer-songwriter Gavin Glass and Wexford composer Liam Bates.
Spanning three days (June 4th -6th), the performances will take place in the Victorian Wells House against a backdrop of hundreds of acres of woodland and garden walks.
“Our programme both embraces Musici Ireland’s roots as classical musicians and musical crossover by including well known film scores like Star Wars,” said Artistic Director Beth McNinch.
“It is exciting to present such a diverse programme which I hope will broaden the appeal of classical music,” added Beth, who is from Blackwater. “We welcome first time concert goers, families, and regulars alike to come and immerse themselves in this musical journey we will take them on!”
With the rise of streaming services in lockdown, more people turned to classical music and its rise in popularity is reflected in the Gala Concert on June 5th. Alongside original work by multi-instrumentalist Gavin Glass and soulful Wexford singer Rachel Grace, Musici Ireland will also perform music by Liam Bates, Arvo Part, Jessie Montgomery and Phillip Glass.
Founded in 2012, Musici Ireland is a female led chamber collective that takes pride in presenting interesting and evocative programmes, and is planning ground-breaking projects, including site-specific and multi-disciplinary performances. “The emphasis will be towards making classical music more accessible to audiences by being less impersonal and more interactive.”
Live from Wells House Programme:
Saturday, June 4th 8 p.m.: String Quartet music by Mozart, Florence Price, Shostakovich, and Dvorak, featuring Ioana Petcu-Colan and Lynda O’Connor (violins), Beth McNinch (viola) and Katie Tertell (cello).
Sunday, June 5th 11 am: A concert of harp music by CPE Bach, Gabriel Faure and Pearl Chertok; Sunday, June 5th 8 pm: Gala Concert – Musici Ireland joined by special guests Gavin Glass and Rachel Grace and including compositions by Liam Bates, Arvo Part, Jessie Montgomery, and Phillip Glass;
Monday, June 6th 3pm.: A family concert of music from the movies: a great opportunity to be up close and personal with a string quartet as they play famous soundtracks from Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Pirates of the Caribbean and many more.
For further information: contact 085 179 2901
Tickets from: https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/musici-ireland-live-from-wells-house-337899
WexfordLocal.com 