This year’s Opening Gala Concert will bring the works of two Irish composers to Cork: Aloys Fleischmann’s Clare’s Dragoons (Owen Gilhooly – Tenor) and Bernard Geary’s In Praise of a City (Mairead Buicke – Soprano) along with many other Irish works performed by the Band of the Defence Forces along with a bespoke Festival Chorus comprised of Goethe Institute Choir, Viva Voce Choir and East Cork Choral Society, conducted by Lt. Col. Mark Armstrong. Aloys Fleischmann was a highly influential figure in musical life in Ireland as founder of the Cork Symphony Orchestra (1934) but also our own Cork International Choral and Folk Dance Festival (1954). Bernard Geary’s compositions include orchestral, choral, chamber and instrumental works and have been performed throughout Ireland as well as in various countries. While originally scored for orchestra, both works have been newly orchestrated for wind band, soprano soloist and mixed voice choir especially for the Opening Gala Concert of the 2018 Festival, when the new orchestration of In Praise of a City will receive its second (!) premiere. 

Tickets: €31€26/€21