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Irish Examiner
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
A vision for West Cork: Plans progress on €20m arts and cultural hub
How did you get a theorbo onto an airplane? You buy it a seat. It might sound like a line from a bad cracker joke but it was a very real problem for West Cork Music, the organisers of the West Cork Chamber Festival, which got underway on Friday heralding a three-festival season worth €4.74m annually to the local economy. 'The theorbo is a kind of lute but it stands about seven or eight foot high. It's also known as a giraffe in the trade,' says West Cork Music founder and chief executive Francis Humphrys, who was busy doing his own final boarding pre-festival checks this week. 'Instruments can't go in the hold. The air pressure and the temperature in the hold is completely different. If you put them in the hold, the wood can crack, and these are instruments that can be worth millions.' Francis recently turned 80 but is as busy as ever. Last year, the three festivals - the West Cork Chamber Festival, the West Cork Literary Festival, and Masters of Tradition - sold a combined 15,922 tickets, the highest combined total yet, worth €259,811. Ticket sales from the Chamber Festival brought in €125,294; the Literary Festival recouped €84,850 in ticket sales while Masters of Tradition brought in €49,667. Irish fiddler and Masters of Tradition artistic director Martin Hayes outside St. Brendan's Church in Bantry. Picture: Karlis Dzjamko/Alamy Live News But it wouldn't be a real festival without drama. In 2024, a strike by Aer Lingus pilots affected flights just as visiting performers were making their way to Ireland. Another hurdle to negotiate, for performers and for visitors. Getting musicians and their instruments to Cork is always a worry, like the theorbo dilemma, and also a practical financial consideration. 'A string quartet going on an airplane will work out as five seats because the cellist must have an extra seat. Some international airlines refuse to take a cello, even when the seat has been booked. Sometimes, it's at the pilot's discretion. Cellists worldwide worry, every time they get on a plane, because they don't know if they're going to be allowed fly with their instrument.' Organising a chamber festival should be all about the music and tuning to a perfect fifth. Instead, someone must be looking after the purse strings. Yet in challenging times for the arts, West Cork Music has the data to show the monetary lift that festivals bring. An economic impact assessment carried out by Prof Eleanor Doyle at UCC's Dept of Economics estimates the three festivals brought in an estimated €4.74m to the region last year, including direct expenditure of €2.8m through local accommodation, catering, transport, and other local services, up 30% on 2023. 'Relative to the estimated aggregate impact, every euro invested by these agencies in West Cork Music generated €8.50 in economic activity,' said Prof Doyle. This represents seriously good value for money for the €557,500 in State-derived funding from the Arts Council (€445,000), Fáilte Ireland (€65,000), and Cork County Council (€47,500). Undertaking economic analysis of the three festivals puts their value in perspective, says Francis. 'We've been carrying these out since the economic crash 15 years ago. I realised that politicians were only going to listen to us if we had an economic presence. They used to just think of us as a drain on national resources.' The Chamber Festival is celebrating its 30th anniversary, and has earned a reputation for world-class music in breathtaking surroundings. On Saturday night, the Ardeo Quartet and Barry Douglas perform the main evening concert at beautiful Bantry House, in a concert that will be broadcast live on Lyric FM and to millions more across Europe and beyond, via the European Broadcasting Union. Yet locals and visitors in Bantry can attend the concert for as little as €14. Other events are free. The festival is headquartered in Bantry, but fringe and other festival events on the programme take in Cork Airport, Glengarriff, Skibbereen, Ahakista, Ballydehob, Schull, and islands like Sherkin, Heir, Bere, and Whiddy. Just a few weeks later, the West Cork Literary Festival directed by Eimear Herlihy will bring a different creative strand - not to mention a dabble of stardust from the likes of Graham Norton, Richard E Grant, and Neil Jordan - as Irish and world authors and guests come to Bantry and its environs. In August, Masters of Tradition, curated by Martin Hayes, will complete the eclectic summer season. An architect design of the interior for the proposed cultural hub and music centre in Bantry. The next step in the development of West Cork Music is to create a permanent music, education, and civic space in Bantry. This will include an auditorium, and an education centre, adjacent to Bantry Library, creating a new cultural hub for the town, and indeed for West Cork. The total cost is estimated at €20m. The concert hall will be used for performances of chamber music, folk, jazz, and traditional music from Ireland and other cultures. It will be a purpose-built space: a warm acoustic, with modulations, particularly around the stage, helping to disperse sound and reduce the likelihood of echoes or resonances. Variable acoustics systems, such as trackable drapes on the side walls will reduce the reverberance of the venue. This will be key for spoken word events where speech clarity is of prime concern, and for amplified music where this will help control loudness and improve sound quality from loudspeakers. Other uses for this space will include touring opera, theatre, and dance productions, and local community and school activities. The auditorium will host the festivals, and will also be suitable for conferences, lectures, informal talks, and masterclasses. The seating capacity is 270 seats. Local businesses have been hugely supportive. Land has been earmarked near Bantry Library and the project is currently going through the planning process, says West Cork Music venue development manager Siobhan Burke. 'The potential to create stable facilities where you can make that economic impact count year-round is phenomenal," she said. "One of the great things about West Cork Music is it sits in an absolute sweet spot between the arts, tourism, and rural regeneration. All of these things that we would like to see flourish in rural Ireland are in some way enabled or supported by the different strands of this project.' Designs for the new centre in Bantry have been created by award-winning Irish architects McCullough Mulvin. Fundraising is continuing, with around €750,000 of a €1m target achieved to get the project through the labyrinthine pre-planning process. A thriving Friends Scheme is helping provide support for ongoing costs, and West Cork Music is exploring the possibility of corporate sponsorship for its festivals. An design for the interior for the proposed cultural hub and music centre in Bantry, which would be located near Bantry Library. It is expected to go for planning by the end of this year. If that gets the green light, applications for grant funding can be made. All going to plan, the new hub will be complete in time for the 2029 festival. 'For Francis, it has genuinely always been part of the plan: to create a way for people to access the arts year-round in West Cork,' said Siobhan. For a man who started a music festival 30 years ago from the kernel of an idea while playing classical music to his milking cows, Francis knows keeping economic realities in play are always key. He's looking to the future - "I've always wanted to put on a world music festival here" - but aware of the importance of the present. 'All of us in the arts, even West Cork Music which is quite a substantial organisation, are stretched to the limit,' he says. "If we break even, we're doing brilliantly. Last year, we more or less broke even. At this stage, it's difficult to know what the final figure for this year will be, with the best part of 20% of box office receipts coming in during the festival. I had a pacemaker fitted last year and I put it down to box office trauma!" "The Literary Festival will reach its target before it starts and they'll sell another €10,000 or €15,000 worth of tickets during the festival. Masters of Tradition is the same, they will almost certainly reach their target before Martin arrives. 'That's the beauty with three festivals in one organisation, you spread your risk that way.'
Irish Independent
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Cork singer takes starring role on Opera House stage amid array of concerts celebrating its 170th
Corkman Today at 08:00 Cork Opera House continues to keep the people of Leeside and those further afield entertained as the venue unveils three shows as part of its 170th anniversary celebrations. Following a Gala Concert earlier this year and the launch of its Send It Home campaign to collect historic memorabilia, the venue continues to entertain. The first of the unique shows, Hänsel und Gretel, takes to the stage on Sunday, August 24. The classic opera will be performed by members of the Cara O'Sullivan Associate Artists programme. Cork mezzo-soprano Niamh O'Sullivan (Hänsel) and Wexford soprano Kelli-Ann Masterson (Gretel) debut in the title roles of this fairy tale opera. They are joined by Rory Dunne, Bríd Ní Ghruagáin and Emma Nash and the Cork Opera House Concert Orchestra conducted by Elaine Kelly. A night celebrating Cork and Irish traditional music swiftly follows on Wednesday, September 10, as a collaboration with Masters of Tradition, an internationally renowned Bantry-based festival. Martin Hayes is the Artistic Director and he is set to curate an evening full of music with several special guests, including Hayes' long-time collaborator, the acclaimed pianist, composer, and arranger Cormac McCarthy. The third instalment of this special 170th announcement will present a dazzling evening of music that pays tribute to Cork Opera House's rich jazz heritage. Swingin' & In Time – Jazz Giants at Cork Opera House Through the Decades - is a high-energy, glamorous celebration of jazz, featuring the dynamic Paul Dunlea Big Band and curated by acclaimed trombonist, arranger and composer Paul Dunlea. He will recreate some iconic jazz moments that blessed the Opera House stage over the decades with esteemed performances by Ella Fitzgerald, Mel Tormé, Buddy Rich, Maynard Ferguson, and Blossom Dearie. Swingin' & In Time will hit the stage on Saturday, September 27. ADVERTISEMENT Learn more Cork Opera House CEO and Artistic Director, Eibhlín Gleeson said the newly announced productions are 'a celebration of opera, traditional music and jazz.' 'Created in collaboration with some of Ireland's most esteemed artists and musicians, these performances reflect Cork Opera House's commitment to celebrating everything that makes Cork unique—its culture, its creativity, and its community. 'Each production is a testament to the innovation and artistry at the heart of Cork Opera House. As we mark 170 years of performance, we invite you to join us in celebrating this milestone with works that honour our past, resonate in the present, and inspire the future,' she concluded. Tickets are now on sale for these performances from and Box Office (021 4270022).
Irish Examiner
08-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Examiner
Home pays homage to tradition in West Cork town that hosts 'Masters of Tradition' amongst other festivals
IF ever there was a home in tune with the festival ethos of its locality, it must be this one-off in triple-festival-blessed Bantry. The house is suitably elevated above the town, at Seskin, for the best bay views. Desperately seeking Seskin 'No detail has been left to chance; it really is a gem,' says estate agent Brendan Bowe, of this 1996-built home. It integrates architectural salvage and a Georgian lodge flair in to its design and finishes to put a twist on one of Bantry's trio of summer celebrations, so it is, in its own, sweet way, a master of tradition, as per the Masters of Tradition music festival. Sweet surrounds Summer festivities, worth an impressive €5m per season to the local economy, kick off later this month (June 27 July 6) with the 30th anniversary West Cork Chamber Music Festival, which consists of 60 performances in 10 venues, from otherwise private settings to the impressive Bantry House, with its 300 years of history. Keeping up with the Joneses? Better not try with venue Bantry House... Pausing for breath for less than a week, Bantry follows with the week-long West Cork Literary Festival, which has been graced in the past by Booker Prize winners, as well as facilitating workshops for budding writers of all ages, with a now almost annual benediction from local resident, international celebrity, and best-selling author, Graham Norton. Untraditional: local resident Graham Norton is almost a hardy annual at Bantry festivals Then, after a break of a month, the vibrant cultural hub rekindles with the Masters of Tradition Irish music festival, from August 20-24. Phew. And here's just the place to enjoy future summers of music and words down in the town, in a home that itself is crying out for the adornment of an Irish harp, harpsichord, or a piano — its own forte is harking back to the past. Now an executor sale, and having been in the one set of owners' hands since it was delivered in 1996, this is a home that's otherwise hard to date, such is the attention to detail and proportion. It has a slate roof, weighted over six sliding sash windows and feature demi-lune gable windows, ornamental detailing, ceiling cornices and plasterwork, salvaged staircase and refinished old wood floors, plus fine fireplaces, including one thought to be a genuine Adam chimneypiece, in white marble with brass insert and another in pitch pine in the principal bedroom, one of four bedrooms, in a c 2,476 sq ft house. Listed with a €850,000 price guide, its selling agent, Brendan Bowe, says that it is 'a property that was meticulously planned, detailed, and appointed by its original home owners, who fastidiously set about presenting a very interesting property, with many genuine Georgian period features, to deliver a home that is, quite simply, handsome and hypnotic'. Mr Bowe highlights its gracious rooms, ornate plasterwork, wainscoting, fireplaces, Georgian fanlit door case with old brasses/ironmongery, plus further fanlight over an inner hall door, reclaimed slate roof, ornate fascias, and ochre-tinged lime harling or external render. Make a grand entrance It's set on the higher end of its 1.6 acre of grounds, all inside automated electric gates, which are useful, since staff to open up the gates to visiting charabancs and carriages can be in rather short supply at times like this, of full employment and high-minded festival fun. VERDICT: A Regency timepiece, reinterpreted.
