Nine days of concerts, music and dance workshops with over 40 musicians
By Byron Toben
Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Brittany, Cornwall and the Isle of Man are all part of the Celtic nations. Scholars argue over the inclusion of Asturias and Galicia as well. In any event, all eight areas boast a heritage of Celtic music.
The lively tunes are kept alive in Canada in all provinces. Here in Quebec, we are blessed with the annual Celtic Harmonies International Festival from October 5 to 13 in and around the Eastern Townships destinations of Lac-Brome (Knowlton), Waterloo and Mansonville.
Jammed into those 9 days are 10 concerts, 19 music and dance workshops and 40 musicians from Ireland, Scotland, Brittany, Quebec and Canada’s East coast. Some highlights include Prince Edward Island outstanding fiddler Richard Wood and Ireland’s soulful balladeer Sean Tyrrell.
The whole is orchestrated by convention organizer par excellence April O’Donoughue who initiated the idea on the Douglas hospital campus back in the 1990s.
Visit celticharmonies.ca for more details.
Images: courtesy of Celtic Harmonies International Festival
Read more articles from Byron Toben
Byron Toben, a past president of The Montreal Press Club, has been WestmountMag.ca’s theatre reviewer since July 2015. Previously, he wrote for since terminated web sites Rover Arts and Charlebois Post, print weekly The Downtowner and print monthly The Senior Times. He also is an expert consultant on U.S. work permits for Canadians.
