Fleadh spirit shines on in Ed Reavy Festival

Published: Sat 15 Oct 2016, 9:22 AM

Concerts, masterclasses, set dancing, competitions and drama galore will ensure that this weekend’s Ed Reavy Festival will once again live up to its reputation as a must-see for fans of traditional music and Irish culture.
“After the success of last year’s inaugural Ed Reavy Festival we were heartened by the obvious appetite for celebrating traditional Irish music and dance in Cavan’s county town,” enthused Eugene Lynch of Cavan Town Comhlatas Ceoltóirí Éireann - the driving force behind the festival.
“Our hat-trick of Cavan fleadhanna has inspired a new generation of people eager to hear live traditional music and watch thrilling displays of Irish dancing. Through the International Fiddler of the Year competition and workshops we also hope to provide a platform to showcase the talent in the county and beyond and to nurture the playing of traditional music. Of course Irish dancing has never been as popular, and through 'Dancing in the Drumlins’ we again aim to encourage its continued growth in County Cavan.”

Drama
Cavan’s series of All Ireland Fleadhanna widened the festival beyond the remit of just Irish music and dance, and the organisers of the Ed Reavy Festival have taken the lesson on board.
“To ensure that the festival appeals to as many people as possible we have arranged for three brilliant dramas to be staged in Townhall Cavan over the course of this weekend. These dramas - 'Tom Clarke’s One True Love’, 'Danger Money’ and 'A Night At The Mart’ - penned by local playwrights chime with the spirit of promoting the best of our national arts,” said Eugene.
No doubt Ed Reavy himself would have approved of this sentiment. The late great Maudabawn fiddle player in whose honour this festival is held did much to promote Irish music at both home and abroad. Ed was famed for penning a vast collectin of tunes, sadly many of which have been lost. Happily, many of those that survive, 'The Lone Bush’, 'Hunters’ House’ and of course 'Maudabawn Chapel’ are now standards in trad sessions worldwide.