Event
Create Louth, the Arts Service of Louth County Council, in partnership with Kids’ Classics, is hosting Trad@Heart this August, a complementary traditional Irish music programme across hospitals and health settings in the community. Taking place from 8-15 August in the lead up to and during Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann 2018, the festival will include a series of heart-warming live performances, sessions, workshops and a Céilí at various locations across Louth.
Patients, residents, visitors and healthcare staff in Drogheda, Dundalk and beyond can expect some toe-tapping cultural visits from leading traditional players and professional hospital musicians.
Established artists participating in the community events include Zoë Conway and John McIntyre – ‘simply one of the best folk duos on the planet’ (BBC) – and Louth’s own contemporary folk trio Kern who will perform ahead of their prestigious billing at this year’s Milwaukee Irish Fest.
Connecting music across the generations will be Nós Nua, a Louth County Folk Orchestra and joint initiative of Music Generation Louth, and Oriel Centre, Dundalk Gaol (Comhaltas Regional Centre), supported by members of Music Generation Louth Harp Ensemble. Both groups have been bending ears in the North East recently and will be bringing the finest Irish music to St Oliver’s Hospital in Dundalk.
This pioneering initiative is the brainchild of Louth County Arts Officer Brian Harten and Gráinne Hope, founder of Kids’ Classics, Ireland’s leading music and health provider. Their combined ambition to bring some of Ireland’s leading musicians directly to those who cannot access the Fleadh due to their current health circumstances was the inspiration behind setting up Trad@Heart. This new programme will see over 15 professional musicians, three leading Irish bands and two youth ensembles bring music into the heart of communities in Louth across 14 events over six days.
The Kids’ Classics’ team of professional hospital musicians currently brings live music interactions into ten hospitals and six nursing homes and day care settings around Ireland. They also provide training for professional musicians and healthcare staff in the skills required for appropriate music delivery in the healthcare and community area.
More information on their work in hospitals, communities, education and training can be found at kidsclassics.ie.
