*Photograph: Finbar MacGabhann.
MUSICIANS from Mozambique and Maghera were among those to entertain the masses at the thirty eighth annual Feakle Traditional Music Festival.
Feakle’s annual festival concluded on Monday evening and had began the previous Wednesday with large crowds travelling to East Clare to soak up the atmosphere.
It began with a tribute concert to accordion player and former Tulla Céilí Band member Charlie Harris to celebrate his contribution to Irish traditional music and ended with an Evening Céilí with the Sliabh Aughty Céilí Band.
On Saturday, the Kilfenora Céilí Band performed a gala concert with the Tulla Céilí Band performing a grand finale céilí on Sunday night.
Among those to launch CDs during the course of the festival were Brid O’Gorman, Eimear Coughlan, Francis Cunningham, Máirín Fahy and Patsy Broderick.
Adding a new twist to the festival was an outdoor concert on Sunday where East Africa met East Clare as traditional musicians from Mozambique played in concert with a group of east Clare musicians. Members of the Xiquitsi Mozambique Youth Orchestra were invited to this year’s festival in Feakle by the Cnoc na Gaoithe cultural group. The initiative followed a trip to Mozambique by the group of East Clare musicians last year, and was supported by the Irish embassy and the Mozambique and South African ambassadors.
Speaking in Feakle, Humberto Tandane Junior from Mozambique said it was a great privilege for the group to come to Ireland. “It’s my first time in Europe, it has been an amazing experience. Beside learning from a new culture in this small town in Ireland, where the culture if very rich, we are also ambassadors for our own culture. We are really proud to learn Irish music and also to share some of our own culture with the Irish people”.
Gary Pepper, chairman of the Feakle traditional music festival said that the African musicians have hugely added to this year’s festival. “They have played with some of our local musicians and they are really good. They have also sang our national anthem – which they learned off by heart before coming to Ireland and they have been really impressive”.
“Thirty eight years is phenomenal, it is more than my lifetime,” said PRO of the Feakle Festival, Aoife Hayes. “Feakle is a quiet village and it is the one time of year where it does come to life, there is a buzz around,” she added.
Also, at this year’s festival, a music session was held to highlight the plight plight of the people of Gaza and Palestine more widely. Manager of Cuimhneamh an Chláir Oral History Project and Clare FM presenter Paula Carroll chaired the event. Around 25 musicians played for three hours for the crowd in the Fair Green and they were joined by the Clare choral group Éisteacht, who raise awareness of Palestine through song. They have performed at numerous events in Clare and other counties and performed at Electric Picnic last year.
Paula Carroll as chairperson and Cllr Pat Hayes (FF) of the Feakle Festival committee, both spoke of the ongoing genocide of Gaza and theft of Palestinian land in the West Bank, and called on people to keep campaigning for aid to be delivered and an end to the lsraeli onslaught. Claire Ni Grianna spoke on behalf of the Clare branch of the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign and thanked all the performers for their generosity in giving their time and sharing their talents for free. She also thanked the audience for attending and the Feakle Festival committee for supporting the initiative.
