Cathedral concert caps planned music industry event

A concert of classical and contemporary singing at the Cathedral of Saints Patrick and Felim later this year, headlined by renowned Irish soprano Celine Byrne, will anchor a first of its kind three-day music industry event planned for Co Cavan.

‘Drumlinia’, the brainchild of songwriter and producer, Don Mescall, developed in collaboration with Cavan Arts and Cavan Institute, will take place in Cavan Town between Thursday-Saturday, October 12-14.

It will involve a series of expert-led workshops and masterclasses with input from some of the biggest names in the business, covering every aspect from publishing to dealing with record companies, PR, IMRO, radio, film, and songwriting.

Don, who has taken on the ‘executive producer’ role explained, his idea was an expression of gratitude for the welcome he's received since moving to Belturbet three years ago: “I see a lot of the industry centred around Dublin, so I thought, if even just for a few days, why not get these people to come to Cavan?”

Thursday, October 12, will get underway with industry leaders giving seminars, followed by a question and answer session.

Friday, October 13, will see workshops staged at the Cavan Institute campus, with expert input in composing music for film and TV, advanced drumming workshop and workshops in gospel choir, classical singing, a soprano and alto saxophone masterclass, a live band sound and set-up workshop, and tips on stage management.

On Friday evening then, Irish television personality and former newscaster, Mary Kennedy will host ‘Classical in the Cathedral’, which will feature local musicians and singers including Cobhla Surlis, winner of The Soloist 2019.

“We’re very excited to have the world renowned soprano Celine Byrne as the headline artist, accompanied by the Cavan Cathedral Choir under the direction of Eileen Tackney, and with special guest Cobhla Surlis. The event is being hosted here at the cathedral in association with Drumlinia, to support the restoration fund,” he explained.

Speaking to The Anglo-Celt, Celine spoke of her love for the venue.

“I’m so looking forward to singing here because I haven’t performed in Cavan before. When we were thinking about doing a concert here we just decided to go for the biggest venue available,” laughs Celine.

From recording in Cavan at Don’s studio at Quivvy Church, near Belturbet, Celine says she became aware of the cathedral’s restoration plans and wanted to do what she could to help push the required funding campaign towards its eventual goal.

“It’s wonderful the work that’s been done here so far, and it’s amazing. To complete it they need more funds, so I’m happy to help that.”

Celine says it was important to bring a “local element” to proceedings, and says the concert will offer “a mixture of everything”.

“We have Don who is internationally acclaimed, and now is local. Cobhla, a local. The organist, the choir, all local. So it’s not just a Celine Byrne concern. It’s very much me immersing myself into the community, its musicality. There will be music from the world of Opera, from musical theatre, Irish music, and of course some sacred music. I’ll also have the great honour to debut some of the new music Don has written and produced for an album I’m currently working on, which is due for release next year.”

Close to €2.3 million has already been spent on the cathedral’s restoration to date, yet still there’s work to do, and Fr Kevin Fay says he is delighted to welcome an event of such stature through its hallowed doors. “[Don] loves the venue, and so we’re delighted to be able to facilitate it. Cobhla was involved in the youth choir here about 15 years ago and she’s still a brilliant talent.

“Of course it’s a fundraiser for us too, and I think it’s wonderful in how it involves so many wonderful musicians from the locality as well. It promises to be something very special.”

Tickets will be available soon, from Multisound Music and the Presbytery at the Cathedral, and Don is hopeful that Classical in the Cathedral can become an annual event, and one of several landmark concerts in an expanding industry showcase going forward.

The final day of the three day event (Saturday, October 14), will see 10 live music performances staged at 10 “unusual venues” in Cavan Town, all featuring original music and songs played by the artists involved.

Titled the ‘The Listening Room, Limerick-native Don says: “I think it’s something different, and a wonderful way to showcase young musicians and singers from Cavan and surrounding areas. Cavan and the border region has so much talent within, and an event like this, three days rubbing shoulders will industry leaders, could be the opportunity to give them the encouragement to take the next step in their musical career.”