Classical musicians hope to strike the right note in closely contested Feis Ceoil

SNATCHES OF arias and strains of Tchaikovsky will be heard coming from Dublin’s RDS in the coming days as thousands of musicians descend on the venue for the Electric Ireland Feis Ceoil 2012.

More than 5,000 classical musicians from all over the island are competing at this year’s festival, which got under way yesterday.

The 11-day festival will feature 180 individual classical music competitions.

Today is Choir Day, when thousands of students compete for the Choir of the Year award. Competitions for piano, strings and wind instruments will be held in the coming days.

Tomorrow evening, solo singers will compete for the Rathmines and Rathgar Cup by singing an item from a light opera or musical comedy.

The winners of 10 senior singing competitions which take place during the feis will be eligible to compete for the Gervase Elwes Memorial Cup on Friday, March 30th – the last night of the festival.

A gala concert hosted by RTÉ’s Gráinne Seoige and featuring a selection of feis competitors will be held in the National Concert Hall on the following day.

More than half a million competitors have taken part in the competitions since the Feis Ceoil began in the late 1800s.

Past competitors include James Joyce and Count John McCormack as well as more contemporary names such as pianist John O’Conor, singer Regina Nathan and comedian Risteard Cooper.

It has often been said that James Joyce was within a shout of winning the tenor solo competition in 1904, but his refusal to sing a piece of music at sight lost him the prize. He was awarded the bronze medal.

Folklore had it he threw the medal into the Liffey in disgust. But a 2004 auction gave the lie to that belief. Dancer Michael Flatley bought it at Sotheby’s of London for a reported €20,000.

The feis can be followed on facebook.com/electricirelandfeisceoil or on Twitter with the hashtag #thefeis.feisceoil.ie

FEIS CEOIL RESULTS SO FAR

Percy Whitehead Cup

1st: Frances Marshall

Very Highly Commended: Anna Brady

Highly Commended: Fiona Flynn and Heather Fogarty

Girls Vocal Solo (A)

1st: Robyn Richardson

2nd: Sarah Brady

Very Highly Commended:

Siobhan Brady

Highly Commended: Clare Coyne and Faustina O'Sullivan

Commended: Niamh Parkes

Claude Biggs Memorial Cup

1st: Devin O'Shea-Farren

2nd: Ellen Jansson

Very Highly Commended: Paul McDonagh-Forde

Highly Commended: Peter Regan