IN PICTURES: Laois school band chosen for National Concert Hall

A talented band in a rural Laois school made it to the big time last week, when they got to perform at the National Concert Hall.

Scoil Fionntáin Naofa NS in Shanahoe near Abbeyleix has nearly 70 pupils, and a proud tradition of a thriving and well known school band. It was one of only nine schools nationally to be chosen for the concert, a big honour just after they were awarded for leading the Mountrath St Patrick's Day Parade.

More below photos. 

All of the 42 pupils from 2nd to 6th classes who are in school band in Scoil Fionntáin Naofa got to take part in the ‘Primary Ensemble Project’, after principal Barry Whelan applied for the honour last autumn.

The concert is held in conjunction with the National Concert Hall and the Royal Irish Academy of Music.

Over the past six months, the pupils in the school band were taking lessons with specialist tutors from the Royal Irish Academy of Music in Dublin to hone and develop their skills, as part of their participation in the Primary Ensemble Project.

Tutors from the Royal Irish Academy of Music had visited the school to facilitate the engaging and participative workshops for the pupils included Hilda Milner (Programme Director), Brendan Breslin and Fergus O’Carroll.

During these workshops, the tutors assisted the pupils to further develop aural and technical skills alongside ensemble performance and improvisation techniques, and the members of the band really benefitted from the expert tutelage that was provided in this regard.

Shanahoe teacher Kristina Cahill also did an inordinate amount of work with the school band in recent months to prepare them, particularly as the most of the band’s previous accordion players had moved on to post-primary schools and could not be replaced until this year, due to the limitations imposed on band practices caused by successive lockdowns in recent years.

This meant that an entirely new cohort of accordion players had to be trained up from scratch since last Autumn and those that put themselves forward to learn the instrument displayed highly commendable levels of enthusiasm and commitment to the new task at hand.

The big day came on Tuesday, March 28 when all nine schools came together in the magnificent surroundings of the National Concert Hall on Dublin’s Earlsfort Terrace, for a large-scale performance to a capacity audience of parents, family members and invited guests.

The Scoil Fionntáin Naofa band performed two individual pieces, The Dawning of the Day and Roddy MacCorley on the main stage, ably accompanied on piano by their teacher Kristina Cahill and supported on stage by student teacher Aisling Mulhall from Trumera who was on school placement from Marino Institute of Education during March.

In addition the band performed a collaborative piece Britches Full of Stiches with Gaelscoil Uí Riada from Cork, arranged for the occasion and under the baton of Fergus O’Carroll from the Royal Irish Academy of Music.

The Shanahoe band had actually travelled to Cork in early March with teachers Kristina Cahill, Aisling Mulhall and Barry Whelan and Special Needs Assistant Lisa Walsh, to practise the piece with the school.

Scoil Fionntáin Naofa received a royal welcome in Gaelscoil Uí Riada, treated to a wonderful reception of refreshments organised by the staff and parents of the school. 

All of the travelling costs to both Cork and Dublin, were heavily subsidised by generous donations by local Cllrs Oliver Clooney and James Kelly and through the support of local singer, musician and past pupil of the school Damien Bowe, who in fact happens to be one of the original members of the school band when it was founded over thirty years ago.

5th Class pupil Nathan Cuddy was interviewed on the main stage of the National Concert Hall by project director Hilda Milner from the Royal Irish Academy of Music and he was asked to outline how the school had found participation in the project.

In addition to giving the project a very positive endorsement overall, Nathan went on to outline that following the day’s events and the euphoria surrounding same, the school would then be turning its attentions to all things sporting related and specifically to rising through the ranks in the Cumann na mBunscol hurling league this year!

The school community was delighted to have great friend of the school Mikey Hyland from Aghaboe in attendance in the National Concert Hall to support the band and provide last minute guidance and the school is most grateful for the vast musical knowledge and expertise that Mikey has shared with the band over many years.

It was also wonderful to have the founders of the school band David and Miriam Brickley in attendance in the audience on the day.

The overall performance on the day concluded with a grand finale which was a rousing vocal rendition of the hymn ‘Amazing Grace’ sung by all in attendance.

Principal Barry Whelan is delighted for them.

"The members of the school band did both themselves and the school very proud in the wonderful performances that they staged in the National Concert Hall. Their memories of playing on the main stage in the salubrious surrounding of the National Concert Hall in front of a large audience are something that they can carry forward with them into the future with both immense pride and distinction," he said.

The school band was founded the early 1990s by former Principal David Brickley and former Deputy Principal Miriam Brickley.

In more recent years, the band has been taught and conducted by teacher in the school by Kristina Cahill who has a strong background in Music. Instruments played include accordions, tin whistles and percussion instruments. Through the years, the band played at many community events, Christmas Concerts and St Patrick’s Day Parades, wearing their iconic red capes and hats.

Having not marched and played in St. Patrick’s Day Parades for over four years due to the hiatus created by the COVID-19 situation, the Scoil Fionntáin Naofa Band was delighted to be invited to lead this year’s Mountrath St Patrick’s Day Parade, on its 50th Anniversary.

The entire school marched in the Mountrath Parade with pupils in the Junior Classes (Junior Infants to 1 st Class) waving flags and shaking ‘pom-poms in time with the music and the remainder of the pupils playing instruments.

The school was even more delighted to be subsequently bestowed with the accolade of ‘Best Overall’ following this year’s parade and they were presented with a trophy in recognition by Chairperson of the Mountrath St Patrick’s Day Parade Committee Cllr James Kelly just before the Easter break.