Brand new company Béal presents its first ever festival
In four events, nine new specially-written works of music will be placed side-by-side with readings by performance poets from the experimental wing of contemporary poetry. In their first festival, Béal welcomes audiences to come and explore the uncharted territory where text and music meet. These concerts will be vivid productions with text-related artworks scattered throughout the space: new connections will emerge and no assumption about the relationship between music and text will be left unchallenged in this two-day celebration of contemporary music and text.
The Béal Festival begins on Wednesday the 3rd of November with the evocatively titled the phases of the night, a voice and clarinet recital, given by Paul Roe (clarinets) and Elizabeth Hilliard (soprano) with readings by poet Billy Mills in the Kevin Barry Room of the National Concert Hall. This performance will feature works by Ian Wilson, Ailís Ní Ríain, Fergal Dowling, Derek Ball and others. Later at 9pm, conversation drifts up the ventilation shaft, is an informal evening of bands and poetry with a DJ-set including Mikel Rouse’s text-based electronic tour-de-force Autorequiem at Shebeen Chic.
The open rehearsals (shown here) feature in conversation drifts up the ventilation shaft.
On Thursday the 4th Béal will present a reading by renowned actor Ingrid Craigie of John Ashbery’s marathon poem The System with improvised electronic music by Francis Heery at 12:30 in the Goethe Institute. The festival will close with cusps of light cut dazzle, a concert given by professional vocal ensemble, Milltown Chamber Choir conducted by Orla Flanagan, with poetry readings by poets Maurice Scully and Catherine Walsh and works by David Bremner, Grainne Mulvey, Jonathan Nangle, Laura Kilty and Donal Sarsfield on Thursday evening in Trinity College Chapel.
For more information on all events and for ticket bookings visit: