In just under three weeks’ time, cello enthusiasts, classical aficionados, music and arts lovers will gather in Galway in their thousands for the start of Cellissimo, Ireland’s brand-new international cello festival.
Taking place from Saturday, May 18 and running for nine glorious days and nights, Cellissimo promises festival-goers the absolute best in music, performance, talks, masterclasses, theatre, gaming, film and so much more!
Cellissimo encompasses twenty-seven concerts across Galway city and county, with more than 500 musicians, performers, composers, singers, dancers, actors, storytellers, game designers and speakers from Ireland and across the world taking part.
With community celebrations, student-focused events, a film screening, a gaming event with live score, a mystery cello trail on Inishbofin Island, a photography exhibition and a melting pot of Irish trad and classical sounds at the late-night Festival Club at HYDE Hotel each evening, the West of Ireland is the only place to be this month
This new festival at the Edge of Europe will showcase all that Galway has to offer, from incredible local dining and the very best of Ireland’s café and bar scene, to the breathtaking vistas of mountain and sea that await as you venture out from the city itself.
Magical Musical Lineup
Giants of the classical world from home and abroad who will make the journey to Galway for Cellissimo include conductor and composer Eimear Noone, cellists Alban Gerhardt, Camille Thomas, Nicolas Altstaedt, Jakob Koranyi, Killian White, Adrian Mantu and Natalie Clein, sopranos Rachel Croash and Claudia Boyle, pianists Daria van den Bercken, José Gallardo, Finghin Collins and Hugh Tinney, violinists Bogdan Sofei and Barnabás Kelemen, percussionist Alex Petcu, clarinettist Macdara Ó Seireadain and dance artist Stephanie Dufresne.
Also featured in the lineup are Ireland’s National Symphony Orchestra, the Irish Chamber Orchestra, the dynamic performers of Cello Ireland and many more.
Down the phones and kick back at the Classic Hour series, a three-part programme of classic duos for cello and piano featuring Alban Gerhardt and Hugh Tinney; Killian White and Daria van den Bercken; and Natalie Clein with the festival’s Artistic Director Finghin Collins.
Or get your contemporary cello fix with six new cello works commissioned by Music for Galway from six Irish composers, which will be premiered daily alongside its partner Bach Cello suite during the Bach Plus Series, performed daytime in St. Nicolas Collegiate church in the heart of Galway city, then transported to stunning venues across county Galway for a repeat performance the same evening.
The Cellissimo Spectacular will lift the roof off Leisureland, with a glorious cacophony of sound celebrating the talent and enthusiasm of cellists of all ages and abilities.
Elsewhere, French cellist Camille Thomas will present The Story of the Cello at Black Box Theatre, in her debut performance with the Irish Chamber Orchestra.
And don’t miss the incredible German French cellist Nicolas Altstaedt in his long-awaited Galway debut, alongside Hungarian violinist Barnabás Kelemen and the Argentinian pianist José Gallardo, for a programme with Eastern European vibes.
Music fans can peak behind the scenes at cello student life and sit in on eight fascinating masterclass events which will take place at Nun’s Island Theatre throughout the festival.
Meet the new wave of upcoming cellists from across Europe at The Student Showcase Concert and enjoy The Cellissimo Ambassador Evening at the Town Hall Theatre, where Mullingar cellist Catherine Cotter will pass guardianship of the beautiful Music for Galway’s Galway Cello to the next Cellissimo Ambassador, who will be crowned on the night.
Also at Town Hall Theatre, hundreds of young people will enjoy a week of brilliant children’s theatre with a new show commissioned with the award -winning children’s theatre company Branar.
“The Song of the Trees” is a new and original performance combining live music and storytelling, narrated by Little John Nee, with Neil Martin on cello, devised and directed by Marc MacLochlainn.
At the heart of Cellissimo is the Songs of Travel programme, an open and inclusive forum exploring the power of music and the arts to tell the stories of those whose lives, families, homes, and futures have already been deeply and irreversibly impacted by climate change.
Songs of Travel, a three-year trans-national Creative Europe Cooperation Project, ideated and led by Music for Galway CEO Anna Lardi, will feature five events at Cellissimo including five world premieres by acclaimed composers, many of whom have experienced and lived the impacts of climate change and/or migration in their own immediate lives.
Music for Galway is incredibly honoured to present the new work of Djuro Zivkovic (Serbian-Swedish), Hawar Tawfiq (Iraqi Kurdistan – Dutch), Lasse Thoresen (Norwegian) and Karmit Fadael (Dutch – Israeli).
In reaching new and expansive audiences, the Songs of Travel programme also features a brand-new game from Austria’s Causa Creations, with new music composed by Elaine Agnew (Northern Ireland).
The festival opens on the afternoon of Saturday May 18 with an exciting collaborative community project Galway Bay is Calling, enabled by the Creative Climate Action fund, an initiative of Creative Ireland, led by Music for Galway in partnership with Galway Atlantaquaria and Atlantic Technological University.
Galway Bay is Calling will take place in Leisureland and will feature a new composition by Galway-born, Florence–based cellist, composer, and singer Naomi Berrill, performed by more than one hundred singers, musicians, and performers from Galway Jam Circle, Voice of Galway, and Galway Camerata.
For the full programme of events, the most up to date event news, the best way to experience Galway and to purchase tickets for all Cellissimo events, see cellissimo.ie
