Do you want to be part of “Ceol le Chéile” – Donegal’s Choir of Ages? If the answer is yes, then this is a great opportunity for you, as Ceol le Chéile is looking for new members.
Donegal County Council’s Social Inclusion Co-ordinator Mairead Cranley explains “we have been amazed at the impact that Ceol le Chéile has had on everyone involved since it first formed earlier this year.
“We knew music was a wonderful and uplifting way of bringing people together but since the first rehearsal we have seen first-hand the benefits that the choir has had in terms of the mental and emotional well being of those involved and their families and it is also a great opportunity for building positive relations between children and older people. We are delighted that rehearsals for the choir will be continuing up until Christmas”.
Ceol le Chéile Integenerational Choir during their debut performance at An Grianan Theatre, Letterkenny in July. Photo by John Soffe (www.johnsoffe.com)
Ceol le Chéile is an intergenerational choir made up of 80 older people, children and young people, male and female from all walks of life in Donegal and is an initiative of the Donegal Age Friendly Programme with the aim of promoting social inclusion and developing stronger intergenerational relationships.
The choir’s debut performance took place in An Grianan Theatre in Letterkenny in July when they performed on stage with Daniel O’Donnell and Ceol le Chéile will be returning to the stage this Saturday night (29th September) at the Abbey Arts Centre in Ballyshannon from 7.00pm when they perform as part of this year’s Donegal Bay and Bluestack Festival.
The intergenerational ensemble is led by charismatic, Choral Director, Veronica McCarron. Veronica memorably led the Choir of the Presentation Secondary School, Kilkenny, to the semi-finals of Britain’s Got Talent in 2016.
“We have been very fortunate to have Veronica McCarron working with us on this project. Veronica’s professional conducting includes voice training, breathing techniques, elocution lessons, choreography and building the confidence to sing in front of others and this is done in weekly rehearsals” explains Mairead.
Veronica McCarron
“We are planning on doing various Christmas performances around the county and this means that we are now recruiting new members to the choir. We are also changing the format of the intergenerational choir to that of a multi-generational choir. This means that as well as recruiting older people aged 60+ we are now also inviting young people from 12 to 15 years of age to join” says Mairead.
Mairead adds “joining the choir is a big commitment with rehearsals every Friday from 2 to 6pm in the Letterkenny Institute of Technology. Children’s rehearsals are worked around their school times. There will be additional rehearsals nearer Christmas as well as various performances around the county. SITT (the Local Link bus) are providing transport for older people coming from the Donegal Town direction”.
Anyone interested in joining the choir should come along and register in Letterkenny Public Service Centre, Neil T. Blaney Road, Letterkenny on Friday 5 October from 3 to 4.30pm. Places are limited so a first come first served policy will be in place. For further information contact mairead.cranley@donegalcoco.ie ormairenifh@donegalcoco.ie
This initiative is kindly funded by Healthy Ireland, Donegal County Council, Local Links Bus, Creative Ireland with valuable support from the Regional Cultural Centre, Donegal Library Service and LYIT.
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