9 - 11 May 2014

Borris House

Borris, Co. Carlow

Barrow River Arts Festival 9 - 11 May 2014

“This new event may be a boutique festival, but its directors (Maya Homburger and Barry Guy) are pursuing an all-encompassing vision……” This was written by Irish Times music critic Michael Dervan about the first Barrow River Arts Festival back in 2011. 

Now in its fourth edition the 2014 festival, which will take place from 9 - 11 May, brings some of the world’s most exciting musicians and artists to the magnificent setting of Borris House, Borris, Co. Carlow, ancestral home of the Kings of Leinster, for a weekend of chamber music, free improvisation, visual art and literary readings.

Paintings by the Scottish artist Alan Davie, who died recently at the age of 93, will be exhibited throughout the weekend and can be viewed between concert performances. An exhibition of his work is running at present in Tate Britain, London. Distinguished journalist, Olivia O’Leary performs the official opening of the Festival and introduces the exhibition at 6 pm on Friday 9 May.   

The music events, which traverse an extensive world of sound from ancient to new and improvised start on Friday 9 May with Swiss cellist Thomas Demenaga and pianist Anton Kernjak performing works by Beethoven, Webern, Demenga and Shostakovich. Later in the weekend they are joined by French violinist Muriel Cantoreggi in a programme of piano trios by Beethoven and Schubert.

As ever there is a challenge to the “comfort zone” which should not be feared. From Canada the extraordinary pianist Paul Plimley travels to Ireland to join with no less stunning percussionist Lucas Niggli (Switzerland) and Barry Guy to present their “Hexentrio”. Expect the unexpected! Lucas Niggli also performs a colourful concert of works written and arranged for the unusual combination of baroque violin, double bass and percussion with Maya Homburger and Barry Guy.  This trio concert will also include the world première of ‘‘Rondo for Nine Birds’ composed by Barry Guy for the Homburger/Guy Duo with funds from the Steo foundation Switzerland.

The Calmus Ensemble from Leipzig has been described as ‘one of the most exciting voices in vocal music’. Winners of the prestigious German CD award ‘ECHO Klassik’ they regularly tour throughout Europe and North America.  They return to Borris for their second festival appearance to perform ‘a capella’ but will also join the Camerata Kilkenny for the final concert with works by Bach, Purcell and Handel. Malcolm Proud will perform J. S. Bach’s harpsichord concerto in D major. A highlight not to be missed.

The celebrated Irish actor Barry McGovern reads from Samuel Beckett’s Watt, Molloy, Malone Dies and The Unnamable, Flann O’Brien’s Myles na Gopaleen Irish Times columns and James Joyce’s Ulysses and Finnegans Wake on Sunday afternoon (11 May) at 4.30 pm.

Barrow River Arts Festival is funded by the Arts Council of Ireland, Pro Helvetia, the Swiss Embassy in Ireland and RTE Supporting the Arts. 

Tickets: VISUAL - Centre for Contemporary Art, Carlow. www.gbshawtheatre.ie: Telephone - + 353 (0)59 9172400 or email: info [at] visualcarlow.ie

Contact: Susan Proud, Administrator 

Tel: + 353 (0)86 1777017 Email: barrowriverartsfestival [at] gmail.com

Website: http://www.barrowriverartsfestival.com/

Facebook/Twitter: http://www.facebook.com/barrowriverarts

Committee: Barry Guy & Maya Homburger (Curators), Andrew Kavanagh, Olivia O’Leary, Malcolm Proud