The Eve of St. Patrick - the Gathering of the Celtic Tribes

The Eve of St. Patrick - the Gathering of the Celtic Tribes

galway.net , 28 February 2005

Calling All Scots, Welsh and Bretons!

This year a whole new dimension will be added to the St. Patrick's Day festivities in Galway with an event on the evening of Wednesday 16th March, entitled "The Gathering of the Celtic Tribes". The theme reflects the fact that this year Galway will have visiting groups from Scotland, Wales and Brittany. It will be a more intimate event than the main St. Patrick's Day Parade, but with its own special nighttime atmosphere, and is designed to make our international guests feel welcome, to emphasise the Celtic inclusiveness of St. Patrick's Day and to get the citizens of Galway into the festive mood for the big day.

The event will start at 9pm when the IPS Pipe Band from Dublin will start marching from the Spanish Arch accompanied by the Kentish Guards Fife and Drum band from Massachusetts (representing the Irish diaspora). They will then proceed up Quay Street and Shop Street stopping off at pre-arranged rendevous points for the three Celtic nations. The Welsh will gather outside Jury's Hotel where the Caernarfon Male Voice Choir will be the lead act in the group and they will be joined by Welsh people who live in Galway and their friends. A Scottish pipe band from Isle of Lewis, accompanied by Scottish friends and supporters, will rendevous outside Tigh Neachtain's and a Cercle Breton Dance group from Lorient in Brittany will be waiting outside Tigh Coili's in Mainguard Street with a group of Breton followers.

The organizers strongly emphasise that this event is open to all to participate and they are particularly encouraging Scots, Welsh and Bretons and their friends who live in Galway to join up as supporters with their respective national groups. Flags, elements of national costume or other expressions of national pride would be very welcome. If you want to get involved, the national organizers are as follows: Scotland - Alison Dalton (alisondalton@eircom.net), Brittany: Valerie Keribin (v_keribin@yahoo.com) and Wales: Siobhan Nic Gaoithin (conradh@bradan.iol.ie).

As the Irish band passes, they will stop briefly and invite the other nations to join the "gathering" and all groups then move off together. The finale will be in front of the Town Hall Theatre, where the musical representatives of each Celtic nation in turn will be invited to sing / play their national anthem to the accompaniment of some special effects from the portico of the Theatre.

Further information from Michael Diskin / 091-569777 / tht@galwaycity.ie

Related Links

Advertisements