Australia

The National Celtic Festival

The National Celtic Festival is widely recognised as the premier Celtic festival in the southern hemisphere. With a reputation that grows each and every year, this is Australia’s largest and most diverse Celtic gathering, attracting audiences and performers from across the country and around the world.

The NCF has welcomed Fèis Rois to Australia in 2013 and again in 2014 when they were joined by young musicians representing the Celtic Colours International Festival in Cape Breton Island, Canada. Our visitors collaborated with local young musicians on music performed at the festival, as well as doing a number of performances and appearances leading up to the festival.

Fèis Rois and Celtic Colours visit in 2014

In May/June 2014, 6 musicians will again travel to Australia representing Fèis Rois to conduct workshops with local young musicians, perform at the National Celtic Festival, and participate in a Ceilidh Trail in the lead up to the Festival.

This year Fiona Dalgety, CEO of Fèis Rois, was joined by composer John Somerville, the 2014 artistic director and four young Scottish musicians: Siannie Moodie, Ali M. Levack, Megan Mackay and Mary MacGillivray.

This year, the partnership has taken an exciting new direction to incorporate the Celtic Colours International Festival, based on Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, Canada. Celtic Colours is one of the world’s premier Celtic music festivals. This year, two young musicians will travel from Cape Breton to Australia to represent Celtic Colours and participate in the workshops with local musicians, the Ceilidh Trail and the performances at the National Celtic Festival. This year’s representatives are Rachel Davis and Maxim Cormier.

John led workshops with young Victorian musicians and our international guests, working on a new suite of music he composed to commemorate the voyage of the Hector, a ship which sailed from Ullapool on the west coast of Scotland to Pictou, Nova Scotia, carrying 170 highlanders to the New World. A group of 30 musicians performed the piece in its world premier at the National Celtic Festival.

Video Streaming HostingNCF 2014Some pictures from Fèis Rois' and Celtic Colours' visit to the National Celtic Festival in 2014Getting readyheight 720width 960originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMRachel and Max, our Canadian musiciansRachel Davis and Maxim Cormier travelled from Canada to represent Celtic Colours International Festival height 960width 640originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMOn stage at Arts Centre MelbourneYoung musicians from Scotland, Canada and Australia performing in the Fairfax Studio at Arts Centre Melbourneheight 720width 960originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMFun on the Great Ocean Road, VICheight 720width 960originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMAllie playing at assemblyStudents at North Fitzroy Primary were treated to some highland pipes at assemblyheight 720width 960originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMThe girls' first AFL match at the MCGThe Scots came to watch Collingwood vs St Kilda at the Melbourne Cricket Groundcameramake Appleheight 2448flash 16dir 292alt 24lat -37.816536long 144.947753camerasoftware 7.1.1originaldate 5/31/2014 1:23:19 AMwidth 3264orientation 1cameramodel iPhone 5Photo shoot for the National Celtic Festivalheight 720width 960originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMRehearsals with young Victorian musiciansJohn Sommerville led workshops in Melbourne for over 30 young people, where local musicians collaborated with our guests from Scotland and Canadaheight 720width 960originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMPerforming for some students at North Fitzroy Primaryheight 720width 960originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AMJamming with a local school ceilidh bandFeis Rois and Celtic Colours musicians jamming with members of the Christian College Geelong Ceilidh Band, led by Cathy Blakeheight 720width 960originaldate 1/1/0001 6:00:00 AM

Fèis Rois visit in 2013

In May/June 2014, a delegation of 6 musicians from Fèis Rois came to Australia. Led by Fiona Dalgetty and James Ross, the project’s artistic director, the delegation also consisted of four young musicians from Fèis Rois’ various programs in Scotland: Mischa McPherson, Conal McDonough, Innes White and Amy Henderson.

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The delegation led workshops with young Victorian musicians held over the weekend prior to the National Celtic Festival in North Fitzroy, where the group worked on compositions and arrangements that James had put together. The piece was then performed at the National Celtic Festival the following weekend.

The young musicians from Fèis Rois also participated in a variety of activities on a Ceilidh Trail leading up to the National Celtic Festival. Modelled on programs Fèis Rois runs in the summer for its young people aged 18-25, the group participated in various workshops, performances, events and tourism activities. These included the aforementioned workshops, performances at the Boite World Music Café and the National Celtic Festival, performing and networking at a Tourism Victoria event, conducting workshops in local schools and visiting popular tourist attractions such as Healesville Sanctuary and the Great Ocean Road.

Feis Rois kept a blog of their time in Australia in 2013. Have a read here