Bagpipes, harps, seagulls and dogs all on show at the Galway Sessions

Date Published: 01-Jun-2011

Love them or hate them, it’s hard to ignore the bagpipes. And residents of Galway City won’t be allowed to ignore then next week, with daily piping parades taking place as part of the 10th annual Galway Sessions traditional music festival.

The Galway Sessions, organised by musician Mick Crehan, first began 10 years ago and this year’s event hosts a range of local and visiting musicians, including a group from the Scottish city of Stirling on their second visit to the Galway Sessions.

The Stirling contingent includes pipers from the Royal Scottish Academy. Their parades will start at 2pm on Shop Street, daily from June 13-19, and will feature Highland dancing from champion dancers Narissa Home and Eileen MacRobert.

Venues throughout the city will hold a series of free and paid-in events including an afternoon series of free shows at the King’s Head at 3pm daily.

The first of these, on Monday, June 13, features Graham Wells, Billy Sutton and Dwayne Andrews from Newfoundland. The three play accordion, fiddle and guitar, a combination that’s common to that area.

On Tuesday, June 14, it’s Mary Shannon and Friends and on Wednesday, June 15, Stephie Geremia (fiddle), Maureen Browne (flute), Johnny ‘Ringo’ McDonagh (bodhrán), and Gerry Paul (guitar) take to the stage.

Thursday’s free concert is from Trossach Sounds. The Trossachs, north of Stirling City is one of the most beautiful areas of Scotland and home to a wealth of traditional music, song and dance. On Friday, June 17 it’s the turn of Kerry’s Niamh Ní Charra, singer and multi-instrumentalist who will be joined by Galway’s Paddy Kerr, Dominic Keogh and Johannes Fromseier.

Meanwhile, the Crane Bar on Sea Road will host a series of free ‘super sessions’ starting on Sunday, June 12 at 9pm with a Highland Fling to welcome the musicians from Stirling. On Monday at 9.30pm all are welcome to a Festival Club hosted by the visitors.

On Tuesday, June 14 it’s the turn of John Wynne and John McEvoy on flute and fiddle, both consummate players of the music of the Sligo/Roscommon region. On Wednesday, June 15 at 9.30pm, Kevin Crawford (flute), Mick Conneely (fiddle) and Tony Linnane (fiddle) are the hosts.

Griogair Labhraidh from Glencoe in Scotland – an accomplished bagpiper, uilleann piper and highly regarded Gaelic singer – will be joined on Saturday, June 16 by Síle Denvir of the group Liadán, a noted singer and harpist. That free show is at 6.30pm in the Crane.

The Galway Sessions will host three concerts in St Nicholas’ Collegiate Church. The first, on June 13, features two exponents of Northern Ireland music, Dermie Diamond and Tara Bingham on fiddle and flute. The Kinlochard Ceilidh Band and the Royal Scottish Academy Pipers will perform there on Wednesday, June 15.

Finally, on Friday, June 17 the Alan Kelly Quartet, featuring Stephie Geremia (flute), Tóla Custy (fiddle), Tony Byrne (guitar) and Alan on accordion, take to the stage. These concerts are at 8pm and admission is €15.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.