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Irish Independent
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Soprano Celine Byrne helps raise €14,500 to restore Wicklow church bells
St Saviour's Church in Arklow recently played host to an evening of classical music headlined by acclaimed Irish soprano Celine Byrne that raised €14,500 towards the restoration of the parish's 125-year-old church bells. Performing to a packed audience, the 'Harmony in Faith' classical concert saw international award-winning artist Byrne, who has performed with greats like Andrea Bocelli, take to the stage with support from the Arklow Revival Gospel Choir and the 'A-Chord-ingly' barbershop quartet from Greystones. The funds raised will go towards the refurbishment of the church bells, which were manufactured and installed in St Saviour's in 1989 by John Taylor, the original bell and foundry maker, who perfected the tuning of the bells. Delighted with the turnout and fundraising total, organiser and ringing master Matthew Dent said: 'It was a fantastic night, with over 300 people in attendance, and Celine was a fabulous performer, she wowed and captivated the audience with opera arias, Irish folk songs and spiritual songs. 'We were joined by His Grace, the Archbishop Michael Jackson and St Peter's and Mary's Fr Ó Cochláin, as well as the Presbyterian minister Michael Anderson and also the minister Fadzi from the Methodist church. 'We served non-alcoholic bubbly and Italian ice creams at the interval, and Celine captivated onlookers with her dazzling personality during the break by speaking to various guests. Overall, the night was a high success. 'We raised a total of €14,500 before costs, so we have enough to see the full restoration of the bells and a little extra to go towards the church roof repairs. 'We will now be showcasing the bells and the hard work to restore them in a digital presentation at St Saviour's on Heritage Week, August 16 to 24, where the public are welcome at this free event to show how their generous donations and support have been spent,' he added. 'A big thanks to all the town's businesses for supporting us, who were also specifically thanked at the event for their support. 'We also invite anyone looking to join bell ringing at the church and would like to learn the art of campanology (bell ringing) free of charge every Friday evening from 7 pm till 8.30 pm (email: stsavioursbells@
Irish Independent
18-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Soprano Celine Byrne to help Wicklow church restore ‘the best bells in Ireland'
Headlined by international award-winning artist Byrne, who has performed with greats like Andrea Bocelli, the 'Harmony in Faith' classical concert will feature support from the Arklow Revival Gospel Choir and the 'A-Chord-ingly' barbershop quartet from Greystones. Funds raised will go towards the refurbishment of the church bells, which were manufactured and installed in St Saviour's in 1989 by John Taylor, the original bell and foundry maker who perfected the tuning of the bells. The bells are unique in that they are a specific shape known as a 'profile', of which only three sets in existence, with the others in the UK and New York. As part of the conditions of a maximum Heritage Council grant of €25,000 secured by the project committee to carry out the restoration, they are offsetting the carbon footprint incurred through the transportation of the bells to the UK by using 98pc existing materials and planting Irish native trees. Looking ahead to the fundraising concert, organiser and ringing master Matthew Dent provided some insight into the history of the bells, adding that they would ring out again as part of Arklow's Heritage Week celebrations, with an accompanying video that documents the entire restoration process. 'We are very blessed to have Celine Byrne performing, along with the Arklow Revival Gospel Choir and A- Chord-ingly, so it'll be a nice varied concert, supporting local groups and bringing an international star to the St Saviour's stage,' Matthew said 'The funds raised will go towards the restoration of the church bells, which, believe it or not, are the best bells in Ireland because of their shape, profile and the thickness of the brass. They don't make them like that anymore, so they're an unusual set. 'There's also a good bit of history to them, and a nice story about a gentleman called William Washbrook. He rang what's called a 'peal of bells', which is a three-hour constant ring, where you ring 5,040 different positions. 'He rang that single-handedly, and they didn't believe that he did it. So he did it a second time, here at St Saviour's Church, in front of the Irish Bell Ringers Association, and then they put it in the papers. 'When the bells are restored, we'll be presenting them and playing them out for Heritage Week (August 17 to 24) and we're planning on having the school children of Carysfort to plant the trees to offset the carbon footprint that we've used to take the bell parts over to England to be refurbished,' he added. 'We will create a video of the entire process so that people can come to the church, hear the bells ring and see the full restoration. Carysfort NS will also send some of their students to educate them on the whole process. The video will also be available on your tube for historical purposes. 'Harmony in Faith' will take place at St Saviour's Church in Arklow on Saturday, June 28, from 7 pm to 9 pm. Tickets are €30 and available from
