Category Archive

I’d been tracking the emergence of a wonderful sounding gig in the Michelstown Caves on this blog, from it’s first mention on the Arts Council’s project awards, through to the public announcement before the summer, eventually grabbing tickets and  then finally making it to the gig last month.  The Journal of Music asked me to review the concert and they’ve just published the review in the past few days. Called “Drips and Echoes” you can read it in full here>

It was a wonderful experience, brilliantly brilliantly executed by Mary Hickson and her team at Cork Opera House.  I know it’s not so sexy to mention the organisation of these things, but really it was faultless, and that’s so rarely the case. The communication around the gig (temperature, the fact that it was seated, arrival times etc) was excellent, there were tons of staff in both car park and on site on arrival, and lots of lovely people to take you to your seat. The whole thing was seamless which, when organising a gig in an unusual space, is extra hard. The family and staff at the caves, and the opera house, deserve giant pats on the back.

The gig itself was wonderful, a trip down the rabbit hole and back in time. I thoroughly enjoyed all three sets, with Caoimhin’s being a firm favourite because it felt so suited to the space.  It was a magical evening, and I dearly hope the family that own the caves consider allowing concerts on a slightly more regular basis, maybe once every year or two. It would be wonderful for more people to have the opportunity to experience this most unusual of concert halls, but in the meantime the super-talented Myles O’Reilly over at Arbutus Yarns has filmed the concerts and should have a clip available in the coming months which is sure to invoke the heart of the thing, even for those not present.