Harp Day events come to Louth this month

Harp Day 2022 takes place on Saturday October 15th with live and online events planned all over the world including in Louth.

Harp Day in Louth starts off at 10 am in the wonderful County Museum, Dundalk where you can peruse the exhibits to the sound of the harp as it rings around the beautiful old building. Spread across 3 levels, harpers will be dotted around the building providing background music to museums patrons from 10am to 1pm.  Should you prefer something a little more formal, the museums auditorium will host short performances from the rising stars of harping in Co. Louth.

Drogheda’s Millmount Museum will host some of the young local harpers learning at Music Generation Louth’s after school hub.  Following the performance you can try the harp yourself with Music Generation Louth educator Sharon Carroll.

At 8pm in the historic surrounds of Dundalk Gaol, now known as the Oriel Centre, you can hear the rare duet on Harp and Uilleann Pipes of Laoise Kelly & Tiarnan Ó Duinnchinn. From Mayo and Monaghan respectively, they are leading, influential exponents of their instruments. Their acclaimed album ‘Ar Lorg na Laochra’ | ‘On the Shoulders of Giants’ pays homage to the source of their repertoire, encompassing many of the various tune and song air types to be found in 17th-19th century manuscripts from different parts of Ireland. 

“Laoise Kelly is a young harpist with the disposition of an iconoclast and the talent and technique of a virtuoso.” Irish Times 

‘Ó Duinnchinn’s precise articulate playing quickly explains his many awards. His mastery of the pipes is without question and leaves no doubt about the subtleties of his musical inventiveness.’ - Journal of Music

‘Laoise Kelly and Tiarnán Ó Duinnchinn harper and piper respectively have achieved levels of excellence and mastery realised by only a very few musicians. They are regarded by many in the same light as the giants they invoke on the album title… Humour, gaiety, mischief and sorrow weave in and out of the musical narrative.’ – Nuala O’Connor 

Admission is free of charge however booking is essential.

Tickets: https://bit.ly/harpdaylouthconcert

Supporting Laoise and Tiarnan on the night will be the Music Generation Louth Harp Ensemble.  The ensemble will also perform at the Gala Concert on Sunday 16th in Dublin with The Music Generation Harp Collective, a large National ensemble comprising harpers from Music Generations Laois, Louth and Mayo.  

Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/harps-together-la-na-cruite-harp-day-2022-gala-concert-tickets-426073175337