The KBC Great Music in Irish Houses Festival Turns 45

This June 9th-14th marks the 45th KBC Great Music in Irish Houses Festival, featuring an array of both Irish and international artists.

The KBC Great Music in Irish Houses festival once again promises to excite audiences this year with a diverse selection of performances, from Beethoven to Brahms and Ravel to Reich. The event, which takes place across a variety of locations in Dublin, will feature a day-long series of concerts to mark the 150th anniversary of the birth of W.B. Yeats, whose work has inspired composers and musicians for decades.

The festival will open in the Samuel Beckett Theatre at Trinity College with the sensational, critically acclaimed Colin Currie Group, which is comprised of the UK’s finest percussionists. The first of two ‘sister acts’ of the festival are Latvian siblings Baiba and Lauma Skride.

The stunning National Botanic Gardens will play host to a concert by the American Escher Quartet, an ensemble known for its profound musical insight and tonal beauty. Killruddery House is the backdrop to a programme of composition giants; Beethoven and Brahms performed by three of Ireland’s leading musicians; pianist Hugh Tinney, violinist Michael D’Arcy and cellist Christopher Marwood.

On Saturday 13th June, the Armida Quartett (pictured above), which swept the board at the prestigious ARD International competition, will provide a wake-up call to festival goers with a noon performance in Belvedere House in Dublin.

Following the success of last year’s Dublin Musical Saunter, the day-long mini festival within the festival this year will focus on the birth WB Yeats 150 years ago and the influence he has had on the musical world. Taking place on 14th June, the Dublin Musical Saunter will include performances from acclaimed artists including tenor Robin Tritschler, the Vanburgh Quartet, the festival’s second pair of sisters, Deirdre and Fionnuala Moynihan, soprano and pianist respectively, and many more. The Saunter will feature four different arrangements of Yeats’ poem, The Sally Gardens, a work included in the repertoire of many celebrated singers.

A special performance will take place in the Dublin Writers’ Museum featuring Soundwave (Paul Roe clarinet and actress, Nuala Hayes). The festival will conclude on 14th June with a performance by Lynda Lee, William Dowdall, Simon Aspell and Andreja Malir, in the Chapel Royal at Dublin Castle.

Tickets for each event are priced between €10 and €15 and are available from the National Concert Hall Box Office, online, or by calling 01 417 0000. More details on the festival are available on the KBC Great Music in Irish Houses Festival website.