Mayo choirs come together for Fauré Requiem at Ballintubber Abbey

ON Sunday, November 19, in Ballintubber Abbey, two Mayo choirs - Cór Mhaigh Eo and Louisburgh Voices - will join together to perform the Requiem by Gabriel Fauré in a concert to benefit Ballintubber Abbey Trust and Daisy Lodge, Cong, which is being set up to support children who are being treated for cancer, and their families.

The choirs will be conducted by Dr. Brian Lennon (conductor of Cór Mhaigh Eo) and will be accompanied by the ConTempo String Quartet and Michael Quinn (organ). The soloists are Nan Fee (soprano) and Owen Gilhooly-Miles (baritone). The concert is supported by Mayo County Council Arts Office.

Along with Fauré’s beautiful Requiem, the programme will also include Fauré’s ‘Cantique de Jean Racine’, Saint-Saëns’ ‘Prière’ for cello and organ, with Adrian Mantu (of the ConTempo Quartet) and Massenet’s poignant ‘Méditation’ with violinist Bogdan Sofei (ConTempo Quartet).

The concert in Ballintubber Abbey on Sunday, November 19, is at 5 p.m. Advance booking is required. Tickets are €25 and are available from The Clew Bay Hotel, Westport, (098) 28088; Parsons Shoes, Castlebar, (094) 9021064; and Tuffy’s Gala, Louisburgh, (098) 66394.

Cór Mhaigh Eo was established in 1994, and has performed as part of the Messiah performances at Knock, directed by Proinnsías Ó Duinn. The choir regularly participates at international choral festivals and was part of the 120-strong Peace Choir in the Concert for Peace, Knock Basilica, in 2016, and part of The Armed Man performance at the National Concert Hall in 2017 with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, and travelled to Pesaro, the home of Rossini in Italy, in 2018 for a joint concert with Coro San Carlo.

Soprano Nan Fee has performed throughout Ireland and abroad, in repertoire ranging from choral to popular genres. Growing up in a musical family in Tyrone, she sang with the Ulster Youth Choir, and later with the Hallé Choir, Manchester, and Oriana Choir, London. Her musical homage to Kate Bush has led to sold-out performances at the Lyric Theatre, Belfast, and at Westival - Westport’s art and music festival.

Owen Gilhooly-Miles is an established operatic soloist, having performed at Covent Garden and the BBC Proms in London, in addition to regular appearances with Scottish Opera, Opera North, Irish National Opera, and Wexford Festival Opera, in repertoire ranging from Mozart and Rossini to Verdi and Puccini.

The ConTempo Quartet is a major international presence in the world of chamber music, with performances at leading venues in London, Paris and Berlin to their credit, which have garnered critical acclaim, in addition to several international awards. Their repertoire is diverse and wide-ranging, and in addition to a busy concert schedule, they continue to engage in many educational projects.

Established in Bucharest in 1995, the four members of the quartet are Bogdan Sofei (violin I), Ingrid Nicola (violin II), Andreea Banciu (viola) and Adrian Mantu (cello).

Michael Quinn co-founded Louisburgh Music School and Louisburgh Voices with Pauline Graham. As organist, Michael has collaborated with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, and performed Poulenc’s Organ Concerto with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, along with numerous organ recitals.

Louisburgh Voices is a mixed-voice adult choir, established by Pauline Graham and Michael Quinn, which includes singers from the Louisburgh, Killeen, Lecanvey and Westport areas. The choir performed Purcell’s opera Dido and Aeneas in Louisburgh in 2019, and previously collaborated with Cór Mhaigh Eo for a performance of Fauré’s Requiem. They have also sung at the Mayo International Choral Festival, and for a Burns Night event at Glen Keen Farm in support of hospice.