Music

Mellow Tonics Concert: Saturday, 21 June | 7.30pm

We are delighted to host the Mellow Tonics Choir for their summer concert Catching the Uplift on Saturday, 21 June at 7.30pm.  Formed in 2015, the Mellow Tonics are a mixed voice choir whose repertoire spans classical to popular contemporary music, with a particular focus on Irish-composed works.  They have a special interest in collaborations with other art forms and have engaged with dancers, comedians, and visual artists on numerous projects in the past.  The Mellow Tonics are led by award-winning composer Norah Constance Walsh.

This concert is a celebration of the choir’s tenth anniversary, with a programme featuring favourite songs that have shaped their journey over the past decade.

Tickets are €18 (€12 children) and available here.

Choral Evensong in Killiskey this Sunday, 11 May

The choir has been invited to sing the evensong service at 5.00pm at Nun’s Cross Church in Killiskey, Ashford, Co. Wicklow (A67 WP83).  The service will be led by the rector of Nun’s Cross, Revd. Jack Kinkead, and be followed by refreshments.

A service of said compline will replace choral evensong at Saint Bartholomew’s.

Whether you choose to attend compline at Saint Bartholomew’s or to follow the choir to Killiskey, all are warmly invited.

UCD Philharmonic Choir: Wednesday, 23 April | 8.00pm

We welcome the UCD Philharmonic Choir to Saint Bartholomew’s on Wednesday, 23 April at 8.00pm for Caeli et Terra: Sacred and Secular Works by Haydn and Mozart.  Conducted by Amy Ryan and with David Leigh at the organ, the programme will feature Mozart’s Ave Verum Corpus, Haydn’s Little Organ Mass, and more.  The choir is also excited to announce the participation of acclaimed Irish soprano Éadaoin Hassett in this performance.  Tickets are €12 (€8 concession) and available on Eventbrite.

Feis Ceoil Organ Competition: Tuesday, 1 April

Saint Bartholomew’s is once again hosting the organ competitions of the Feis Ceoil, Ireland’s premier classical music competition.  Competition day is Tuesday, 1 April, and the action begins at 11.00am:

All are welcome to drop in for a listen, free of charge.

Gaudete Singers: Saturday, 8 March | 8.00pm

The Gaudete Singers return to Saint Bartholomew’s for their spring concert, Vinea Mea Electa: Music for Lent by Poulenc and Vaughan Williams.  This performance will showcase two sacred masterpieces of the early twentieth century that, although both contemporary, represent very different and contrasting styles.  Vinea Mea Electa is the second of Francis Poulec’s Quatre motets pour un temps de penitence, a series of four Lenten motets produced during a period of mourning for his friend and fellow composer Pierre-Octave Ferroud.  The Gaudete Singers will perform all four of these motets before moving on to Ralph Vaughan Williams’s Mass in G minor.  Although Vaughan Williams was a self-declared agnostic, he composed several well-received liturgical pieces throughout his career.  Mass in G minor reflects the influence of Byrd and Tallis, but in the distinctive twentieth century style for which Vaughan Williams is known.

Tickets are €20 (€15 concession; €5 students) and available at the door.  Payment may be made by cash or card.  All tickets include a glass of wine or soft drink after the concert.

Quartet Slavey Concert: Saturday, 7 December

Quartet Slavey is a Bulgarian vocal group specialising in traditional folk music, and we are pleased to welcome their unique sound to Saint Bartholomew’s on Saturday, 7 December at 5.00pm for an a cappella Christmas performance.  Their repertoire comprises folk music from all parts of Bulgaria, along with Church Slavonic chants from the 19th and 20th centuries and original arrangements of some of Bulgaria’s best-known composers.  The creation of Nadka Karadjova, known as “the nightingale of Bulgaria,” Quartet Slavey has performed over 3000 concerts worldwide since its founding in 1991.  They have also featured on Hollywood soundtracks and collaborated with numerous pop singers.  Admission to this concert is free, but it is strongly recommended that you reserve a spot on Eventbrite.

This concert is organised by the Embassy of the Republic of Bulgaria in Ireland.

For more information, please visit Quartet Slavey’s official website.

Christmas Concerts

It may only be October, but since the annual choir Christmas concert is by far the most popular event at Saint Bartholomew’s, it’s time to save the dates—and yes, that’s plural! Last year, we sold out faster than we ever have before, so we have decided to hold two showings this year:

Sunday, 8 December @ 6.00pm
Sunday, 15 December @ 6.00pm

Tickets will be available from Friday, 1 November… well, for the general sale, that is. If you’re a Friend of the Choir, you can secure your tickets much earlier than that. In fact, this year our Choir Friends are receiving two free tickets for each showing. The cost of four tickets is already worth a good chunk of the annual membership (and the peace of mind in knowing you’re guaranteed a place at an event that will almost certainly sell out surely counts for something, too!), so why not go all in and become a Friend?

Click here to join.