Cork International Choral Festival announces new manager

Cork International Choral Festival will bring Cork city to life with song this May when almost 5,000 singers and 50,000 visitors arrive from all over the world for five days of choral music, international trophy competitions and non-competitive gala performances under the guidance of new festival manager, Elaine FitzGerald.

Ms FitzGerald, who spent the last 14 years as sponsorship and promotions manager with Cork’s 96FM and C103, said she was “thrilled to have been appointed to such a prestigious, interesting and challenging role” with the globally renowned Choral Festival, which takes place in her home town from May 1st – 5th, 2019.

Having taken up the position late last year in time to fully plan the event, Ms FitzGerald said she relishes the opportunity “to sustain the delivery of a successful, high-standard choral festival and to grow the event in 2020 and beyond.”

Commenting on her appointment, she said: “Over the year’s in radio, I had worked very closely with almost all of the festivals in Cork and I love the buzz that festivals bring to the city. So, when the opportunity arose to work with the Cork International Choral Festival, I just jumped at.

“The choral festival is such a wonderful, colourful event, with singers and musicians from all over the world performing in so many different languages and styles, it really brings the city to life in a very joyful, uplifting and positive way.

“There are singers of all different age groups and backgrounds and so many children and young people performing in the schools’ competitions that it brings an enormous amount of energy and excitement to the festival venues. I’m really looking forward to all the choirs arriving and the festival getting underway with the first competitions and gala performances in City Hall. It’s going to be really exciting,” she said.

The festival, which is the oldest in Cork and one of Europe’s most prestigious choral events, takes place in more than 90 venues across the Cork City from May 1st – 5th 2019, with gala concerts and competitions centring around Cork’s City Hall.

Selected Irish and international choirs will participate in a wide range of festival events including national and international trophy competitions, fringe concerts and informal public performances, which will see choirs popping up throughout Cork city and county in new and unexpected locations during the five festival days.

Musical or not, everyone is invited to join in the music and song and participate in the various workshops, events and performances on offer.

Ms FitzGerald said that despite not being especially musical herself, she is planning to take part in the annual Big Sing at City Hall on May 4th which encourages everyone to try singing during the festival and is open to all ages and levels of experience. Last year’s event formed the largest choir of the festival, attracting 600 singers and the new festival manager hopes to top that figure this year.

“You don’t need to be able to sing to take part, it’s simply about lending your voice and experiencing first-hand the enjoyment and sense of community that lies at the heart of choral singing,” she said.

This year will also see the biggest ever Ireland’s Choir of the Year competition to take place in the festival’s 65-years history, with eight choirs competing in the national competition in City Hall. The winning choir will qualify for next year’s Aloys Fleischmann International Trophy competition which annually sees some of the world’s top amateur choirs competing for one of the most prestigious choral prizes in Europe. This year’s Fleischmann competition will be presented as a two-session gala concert on Saturday May 4th and will be judged by a panel of eminent musicians and choral experts.

Other festival highlights that Ms FitzGerald is looking forward to include headline act PUST, a Norwegian group “whose compositions are a breath of musical fresh air,” varying between Scandinavian folk, jazzy tones and all sorts of worldly and natural sounds, offering an interesting act of broad appeal for the opening gala performance.

Another highpoint will be Helene Stureborg’s Chamber Choir, who return to Cork from Stockholm for a gala performance in Cork’s North Cathedral, after winning the Fleischmann International Trophy in 2016.

Ms FitzGerald concluded: “I hope to build on the incredible success that the Festival has seen over the years under the previous festival managers and Festival Director John Fitzpatrick, who is now in his 26th year. The festival has a fantastic reputation in choral circles internationally due to the high standard of music, the friendliness of the city and the opportunity singers have to perform in a range of venues that could vary from a tiny pub, to City Hall or Blarney Castle.

“It also offers an incredible opportunity to attract people from all over the world to Cork time and again, so would aim to maintain the existing reputation and grow the festival beyond expectation. I am very much looking forward to welcoming singers, musicians and music fans from all over Ireland and beyond to the city, to explore and enjoy everything that Cork has to offer during what will be a fantastic five days of music and song.”