News
On 21 June every year, World Music Day is celebrated throughout the world. Launched in 1982 in France as the Fête de la Musique, it is now held on the same day in more than 700 cities in 120 countries, making it a truly international event. With the emphasis on participation for everyone, different music styles are celebrated in community centres, on the streets and in public spaces including healthcare settings. Arts + Health Co-coordinators Ireland (AHCI) is an all-Ireland support network of professionals who are responsible for managing arts and health initiatives. This year, MusicAlive, in partnership with West Cork Mental Health Services, and West Cork Arts Centre, St Patrick’s Hospital, Dublin and Waterford Healing Arts Trust (WHAT) are organising events to celebrate World Music Day.
In Dublin, to mark World Music Day and the Summer Solstice the Twilight Programme at St Patrick’s Hospital will host musicians Mairead O’Donnell and Mischa O’ Mahony for an evening of Music & Song on Tuesday 21 June from 6.30 – 8.00 pm in the Phoenix Room. This is event is an internal event for service users and staff members.
In County Cork, MusicAlive, in partnership with West Cork Mental Health Services and West Cork Arts Centre, have staged the ‘The Open Door’ music sessions since 2011. The aim of these sessions is to promote creative spaces for communal music making and community participation. In celebration of Music Day, MusicAlive will deliver a series of music workshops and performances in selected health and community settings around West Cork on 21 June. In advance of this, a special ‘Open Door’ session will also take place outside the entrance to Uillinn: West Cork Arts Centre, Skibbereen, County Cork on Saturday 18 June from noon to 1.30pm.
This event will feature an eclectic line up of performers, including: The Open Door House Band, The Happiness Ensemble, Singers from Bantry community choir and Pamela Marshall & the Sunshine Singers. There will also be an open mic element, to which all musicians and singers are welcome to contribute. The event on 18 June is free and all ages are welcome to drop in, listen, or sing!
For further enquiries on the West Cork events, contact Uilinn/West Cork Arts Centre at 028-22090 or e-mail info@westcorkartscentre.com
In the sunny South East, WHAT is delighted to present a performance of traditional West African ballet dance by Bambé Mansaré, as part of its Healing Sounds in the Foyer programme.
Bambé Mansaré was born in the village of Sitakoto in south central Guinea and at the age of six moved to the capital Conakry. It was there that Bambé was exposed to many different styles of traditional music and dance. At the age of ten, Bambé joined the ballet group Konaté Kounda and danced up to six hours a day. In her seven years with Konaté Kounda, she became one of the leading dancers of the group performing for weddings, baptisms, coming of age ceremonies and traditional dance events such as Sabars. This dance is performed to the beat of the Sabar drum and incorporates feelings of feminine sensuality and flirtatiousness. It is a dance of expression that uses every part of the body, from the arms and legs to the eyes. Bambé moved to another quarter of Conakry called Kipé at the age of sixteen and joined a ballet group called Limaniya where she danced until moving to Ireland in 2014, she now resides in Waterford City.
This performance of West African dance will take place in the foyer of University Hospital Waterford on Tuesday 21 June at 1.30pm. WHAT is grateful to AIB and the Arts Council for their continued support of Healing Sounds in the Foyer programme.
For further information on this event contact Alan Browne at 051-842664 or e-mail WHAT@hse.ie
