Waltons New School of Music

SOWETO GOSPEL CHOIR
National Concert Hall, Dublin, Ireland
12 November 2024

After their sold-out concerts for Waltons New School of Music's World Masters Series in 2008 and 2013, we are delighted to welcome back the glorious Soweto Gospel Choir for their only performance in Ireland in 2024. This is our first World Masters concert since 2019, and we’re very happy to have this great concert series – which has been running since 2003 – back again.

‘meticulous and unstoppable…spirited and spectacular’
– New York Times

‘The Soweto Gospel Choir is truly inspirational, but that’s not the reason they deserve five stars. Those are simply for a flawless performance.’
– The Scotsman

‘You don’t have to be a believer to be inspired…’
– Sunday Herald

‘It is a journey that embraces the soul on a number of levels, both spiritual and emotional…’
– Johannesburg Citizen

‘This is a show overflowing with love, elation, heartache and triumph, and it is an absolute joy to watch.’
– Voice Magazine

CONCERT INFORMATION

When Tuesday, 12 November 2024
Where National Concert Hall, Dublin, Main Auditorium
Presented by Waltons New School of Music
Tickets €20 – €44 from nch.ie
10% Discount for Mailing List Subscribers • €18 – €39.60
20% Discount for New School Students • €16 – €35.20

Waltons World Masters - Soweto Gospel Choir | National Concert Hall The National Concert Hall is a national cultural institution and the designated home of music in Ireland.

RIP Toumani Diabaté (1965-2024)

We are saddened at the death of the great kora player Toumani Diabaté on July 19th. He was not only one of the world’s finest musicians but a wonderful man as well. We were so privileged to bring him, along with his son Sidiki, to perform at the National Concert Hall, Dublin, Ireland in June 2014 for the Waltons World Masters Series. An unforgettable concert.

Toumani & Sidiki Diabaté • 2014 • Waltons New School of Music Waltons New School of Music’s World Masters Series presented Toumani & Sidiki Diabaté in the National Concert Hall on 7 June 2014.

END-OF-YEAR CONCERT VIDEOS

Videos of the New School's fantastic 2023-2024 End-of-Year Concert, which took place in the National Concert Hall's John Field Room on Monday, 24 June, are now available to view on the School Concerts page of our website, as well as on the school's YouTube channel. Well done, everyone!

School Concerts • Waltons New School of Music The New School’s regular school concerts are a great opportunity for students to play in public, in a relaxed and supportive setting.

What a wonderful End-of-Year Concert yesterday evening! The concert took place in the beautiful surroundings of the National Concert Hall’s John Field Room and showcased a number of fine student performers (as well as three of our teachers).

We’d like to thank the performers, all of whom played and sang beautifully; their teachers; our supportive and enthusiastic audience; and the National Concert Hall’s superb stage team that made everything sound so good and run so smoothly. A concert to remember!

For those who weren’t able to attend, here’s a list of the performers. The concert was also recorded, and videos of the performances will be available on the New School’s YouTube channel in due course.

SUMMER TERM

Our 2024 Summer Term starts on Monday, July 1st, and students can enrol for one or both parts of the term (July and/or August).

We offer a range of music tuition in our Summer Term. In addition to private (one-to-one), partner (two-person) and small group (three- or four-person) lessons in a wide range of instruments (including voice/singing), we offer summer versions of some of our most popular group courses for beginners, summer versions of our Music for Me courses for children aged 3-6, a summer version of our acclaimed Songwriting Workshop, Intensive Lessons and Irish Music Tasters.

Summer Programme • Waltons New School of Music The New School offers private and group tuition in a wide range of instruments and subjects during our two-part Summer Term (July and/or August).

ATTENTION LEAVING CERT. MUSIC STUDENTS!

Taking place on the Saturday before the June exam, the New School’s one-day LEAVING CERT. MUSIC PRE-EXAM REVISION WORKSHOP, taking place this year on Saturday, June 15th, has provided intensive final preparation for hundreds of students studying for the Leaving Cert. Music exam. It includes a comprehensive revision of all the Listening and Composing elements of the exam, including the Prescribed Works, Irish Music, and melody writing and harmony in major and minor keys.

The workshop also provides students with strategies for exam preparation and technique, as well as a variety of sample questions from past exam papers. And workshop handouts, in pdf format, will be provided for further study and revision.

This online workshop can be taken by Leaving Cert. Music students living anywhere in Ireland.

SCHEDULE
Saturday, 15 June 2024
10 am – 12 pm: Composing
12 – 1, 1.45 – 2.45 pm: Four Prescribed Works
2.45 – 4 pm: Irish Music and the Unprescribed Question Six

‘It’s a really enjoyable workshop and very beneficial. The notes are excellent and very useful.’
– M. Branagan

‘A great way to revise Leaving Cert. Music. I would recommend it to everyone!’
– R. Brown

‘It was brilliant. The notes on melody writing and all studied pieces are really easy to understand, and this has really helped my knowledge of the Leaving Cert. Music course!’
– P. Fleming

‘The Revision Workshop really helped calm the nerves coming up to the exam! I’d advise anyone feeling a bit anxious before the exam to do it.’
– S. McConway

‘Even though it’s a quick review of the course, it goes over everything and you learn some things you didn’t know before.’
– E. O’Connor

Leaving Cert. Music Pre-Exam Revision Workshop • Waltons New School of Music An intensive one-day online workshop providing final preparation for this year’s Leaving Cert. Music exam.

CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR SCHOLARSHIP COMPETITION WINNERS

Congratulations to the winners of our 28th Annual Martin A. Walton Memorial Scholarship Competition, which took place yesterday!

Young Student and Mature Student of the Year First Prize winners will receive certificates and full-year scholarships for the 2024-2025 school year, and Second and Third Prize winners will receive certificates and vouchers that can be used for additional tuition with the New School.

YOUNG STUDENT OF THE YEAR

First Prize & full-year scholarship
Yi Lu • Piano
(Andriy Blyznyuk • Teacher)
Second Prize
Alana Satterwaite • Piano
(Varo Khachatryan • Teacher)
Third Prize
Daniel Hunter • Piano
(Mikaela McDonnell • Teacher)

MATURE STUDENT OF THE YEAR

First Prize & full-year scholarship
Katrina Ellison • Voice
(Sinéad Flynn • Teacher)
Second Prize
Rosella Parenti • Voice
(Dav McNamara • Teacher)
Third Prize
Helen McDermott • Voice
(Sinéad Flynn • Teacher)

SONGWRITING/COMPOSITION PRIZE

First Prize
Suzanne McEnaney
(Sinéad Flynn • Teacher)
Second Prize
Noah Behan
(Ana Dundovic • Teacher)
Third Prize
Helen McDermott
(Sinéad Flynn • Teacher)

THANK YOU

All students who participated in this year’s Scholarship Competition for their hard work and preparation.

Our Faculty Adjudicators:
Marta Burns • Andrew Keeling
Mihály Magyarics • George Mercer

Competition Administrators:
Zach Parkinson • Eoin Mardirosian

Go to our Scholarships • Prizes web page for more information about our Scholarships Competition.

Scholarships • Prizes • Waltons New School of Music The New School’s annual Scholarship Competition awards three full-year tuition scholarships (Young Student of the Year, Mature Student of the Year and Most Promising Beginner), as well as an Ensemble Prize and Songwriting/Composition Prize.

HANDEL’S MESSIAH

On this day in 1742 (282 years ago!), George Frideric Handel’s Messiah, his great English-language oratorio, premiered in Dublin, in the Great Music Hall on Fishamble Street. (The venue had been built specifically for concerts to raise money for the Charitable and Musical Society for the Release of Imprisoned Debtors.)

Handel composed the 259-page score, set to words by Charles Jennens, remarkably quickly - in just 24 days. Although the two men were friends, Jennens saw such speed not as an indication of divine inspiration but rather as what he called ‘careless negligence’, and their relationship was strained further when Jennens suggested improvements to the score, which Handel refused.

Whatever about Handel’s careless negligence, his Messiah was performed to a full house (to accommodate as many people as possible, gentlemen were asked to remove their swords, and ladies were asked not to wear hoops in their dresses) and was received ecstatically. ‘Words are wanting to express the exquisite delight it afforded to the admiring and crowded audience.’ And the work remains one of Handel’s most popular and frequently performed to this day.

ANNOUNCING OUR 2024 MUSIC FOR SCHOOLS PRIZE WINNERS!

Taking place in the National Concert Hall on April 8th, the 2024 Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Finalists Concert was a wonderful event with some extraordinary performances by all thirteen school groups involved.

After the concert, adjudicators Zoë Conway, Liam Ó Maonlaí and Aideen Walton selected the six 2024 Music for Schools Competition Prize Winners:

PRIMARY SCHOOLS

First Prize
Knockanean National School, Ennis, Co. Clare
Piece: ‘Stepping Through the River of Sound’
Group: Knockanean Choir and Music Club

Second Prize
St. Teresa’s National School, Killoe, Co. Longford
Piece: ‘Music Moving Us in Many Ways’
Group: St. Teresa’s Killoe Performing Group

Third Prize
Gaelscoil Aonach Urmhumhan, Aonach Urmhumhan, Co. Thiobraid Árann
Piece: ‘Imithe Uainn ach Fós Linn’ (A Musical Legacy)
Group: Ceolfhoireann na Gaelscoile

POST-PRIMARY SCHOOLS

First Prize
Scoil Mhuire, Trim, Co. Meath
Piece: ‘Home Is Where the Music Is’
Group: Scoil Mhuire Performing Group

Second Prize
Loreto Secondary School, Balbriggan, Co. Dublin
Piece: ‘The Joy of Movement’
Group: LorBal Performance Group

Third Prize
St. Mary’s Secondary School, Edenderry, Co. Offaly
Piece: ‘Music Moves Us from Birth to Death in Times of Sadness and in Joy’
Group: SME

Another school won Music for Schools’ inaugural Standout Award:

STANDOUT AWARD

Scoil Bernadette, Montenotte, Co. Cork
Piece: ‘Bai Oh’
Group: Scoil Ber Samba Band

The prize-winning schools each received a trophy, a prize certificate and vouchers for musical instruments and equipment for their schools from Waltons Music:

First Prize: €2,000
Second Prize: €1,000
Third Prize: €500
Standout Award: €500

In addition, we are delighted to announce that Waltons Music has generously offered to reward the other Finalist schools with €200 vouchers!

Congratulations both to this year’s Prize Winners and to all of the Finalist schools!

John Mardirosian and Aideen Walton, Co-Directors
Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools

MUSIC FOR SCHOOLS COMPETITION FINALISTS CONCERT LIVE WEBCAST

We are delighted to announce that our 2024 Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Competition Finalists Concert on Monday, April 8th at 1 pm in the National Concert Hall will be LIVE WEBCAST by RTÉ lyric fm and can be viewed on the RTÉ lyric fm website at the link below.

Finalists Concerts are the culmination of each year's Music for Schools Competition, when twelve school music groups (six primary and six post-primary) perform before their peers and distinguished adjudicators. Six prize-winning schools (three primary and three post-primary) are announced at the end of the concert.

Prizes consist of trophies and certificate vouchers totalling €7,000 worth of musical instruments and equipment from Waltons Music Ireland, including two First Prizes of €2,000 each.

Although only limited number of guests can attend the 2024 Finalists Concert in person, this live webcast by RTÉ lyric fm, using the National Concert Hall’s state-of-the-art audiovisual equipment, can be viewed from anywhere in Ireland or around the world.

Gala Finalists Concert | Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools 2024 Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Competition - Gala Finalists Concert

2024 WALTONS RTÉ LYRIC FM MUSIC FOR SCHOOLS COMPETITION FINALIST VIDEOS NOW AVAILABLE

The twelve Finalist performing group videos (six primary and six post-primary), as well as our first Standout Entry video, are now available to view on the 2024 Competition web page and the Competition YouTube channel.

The web page also includes lists of Commended, Highly Commended and Very Highly Commended schools. (We received an unprecedented number of excellent entries in 2024, which led us to create a new Very Highly Commended category for performing groups that displayed exceptional promise.)

2024 Music for Schools Competition • Waltons New School of Music 2024 Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Competition A National Competition and Celebration of Music in Irish Schools This page includes: Entry videos and information about the twelve Finalist schools selected for the 2024 Competition. An entry video that won our first Standout Award. Lists of C...

2024 WALTONS RTÉ LYRIC FM MUSIC FOR SCHOOLS COMPETITION FINALISTS ANNOUNCED

There was a huge response from schools around the country when this year’s Competition was announced last December, and the closing date last Friday saw a deluge of primary, post-primary and special school entries flooding in from 19 different counties. Our first-round adjudicators were enormously impressed by the high standard of entries this year and the imagination, musicality and effort evident in each of them, and they had their work cut out for them in selecting just twelve groups (six primary and six post-primary) to perform in the Finalists Concert in the National Concert Hall on Monday, April 8th.

We thank all of the performers, teachers, principals and schools who worked so hard to put together some truly extraordinary Competition entries. You can all be very proud of your musical achievements, and if your school wasn’t selected as a Finalist this year, we do hope that the process has been a rewarding one and you will enter again next year.

PRIMARY SCHOOL FINALISTS
• Carrig National School, Nenagh, Co. Tipperary
• Corpus Christi Primary School, Moyross, Co. Limerick
• Gaelscoil Aonach Urmhumhan, Aonach Urmhumhan, Co. Thiobraid Árann
• Knockanean National School, Ennis, Co. Clare
• LurgyBrack National School, Letterkenny, Co. Donegal
• St. Teresa's National School, Killoe, Co. Longford

POST-PRIMARY SCHOOL FINALISTS
• East Glendalough School, Wicklow, Co. Wicklow
• Loreto Secondary School, Balbriggan, Co. Dublin
• Lucan Community College, Lucan, Co. Dublin
• Scoil Mhuire, Trim, Co. Meath
• St. Mary's Secondary School, Edenderry, Co. Offaly
• St. Mary’s Secondary School, Macroom, Co. Cork

The first-round adjudicators have also selected a standout entry to perform in the Finalist Concert – a group from Scoil Bernadette Special School, Montenotte, Co. Cork

In addition to the Finalists, the adjudicators have also singled out groups that were not selected but of particular merit as either Commended or Highly Commended. A list of these schools will be available on the Competition web page soon, and they will receive commendation certificates for all participants in acknowledgement of their achievements.

2024 Music for Schools Competition Finalists Announced • Waltons New School of Music We are delighted to announce the 2024 Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Competition Finalist schools!

NOW ENROLLING FOR THIRD TERM COURSES, WORKSHOPS & ENSEMBLES

We are now enrolling for a wide range of acclaimed group courses, workshops and ensembles taking place in our Third Term (April – June 2024).

Our Third Term offerings include:

• Introducing Courses for Beginners
• Courses for Intermediate Students
• Theory, Musicianship & Songwriting Courses
• Leaving Cert. Music Courses
• Music Technology Courses
• Pre-Instrumental (Early Years) Music Courses
• Ensembles

Now Enrolling for Third Term Courses, Workshops & Ensembles • Waltons New School of Music We are now enrolling for a wide range of acclaimed group courses, workshops and ensembles taking place in our Third Term (April – June 2024).

We are delighted to announce our 2024 Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Competition Finalists Concert Adjudicators, ZOË CONWAY and LIAM Ó MAONLAÍ!

Zoë is a renowned Irish fiddle / violin player and composer, equally at home in both traditional and classical styles. She has recorded several albums, performed around the world and collaborated with a diverse range of artists and groups, including Nick Cave, Dónal Lunny, Lisa Hannigan, Máirtín O’Connor, Lou Reed, Damien Rice, Rodrigo y Gabriela and Bill Whelan, among others.

Liam has been a musician all his life and performed and recorded both solo and in collaboration with numerous Irish and international musicians, including Bobby McFerrin, Toumani Diabaté, Tim Finn, Andy White and traditional musicians in America, Australia, Europe, India, Japan, Morocco and Scandinavia. With Fiachna Ó Braonáin, he formed The Hothouse Flowers in 1984, and they went on to record People, the most successful debut album in Irish history, as well touring and performing all over the world and recording five more albums.

Zoë and Liam will be joined as adjudicators on April 8th by Aideen Walton, Co-Director of the Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Competition.

2024 Music for Schools Competition Finalists Concert Adjudicators • Waltons New School of Music We’re delighted to announce our 2024 Waltons RTÉ lyric fm Music for Schools Competition Finalists Concert adjudicators – Zoë Conway and Liam Ó Maonlaí!

Course Spotlight
SONGWRITING WORKSHOP
Starts Wednesday, 31 January.

Whether you are new to songwriting and would like to take your music beyond the shower, or you have already written songs but would like to have a better grounding in the basics, the New School’s six-week online Songwriting Workshop, taught by the acclaimed performing artist, hit songwriter and composer Luan Parle, will help you to develop your creative ideas – in any musical style – and turn them into finished songs.

This online workshop can be taken by participants living anywhere in Ireland or around the world.

Songwriting Workshop classes are intended to be instructive, encouraging and collaborative. Here is some of what’s covered:

• Exercises to break ‘writer’s block’ and get the songwriting juices flowing.
• Examining Great Songs, new and old, and what makes them work so well.
• Collaborating and providing useful and supportive feedback for peers.
• Lyric Writing. What makes a great first line? What makes a great chorus? (The verses of the song are like climbing up a mountain. The chorus is the view from the top. When you get to the top, the view better be worth the climb!)
• Melody Writing. More than any other element, a great melody that can be sung alone without accompaniment is what makes a truly great song. And a ‘singable’ melody (that is, a melody that others can sing, not just the performer) is much more memorable.
• Hooks. A great ‘hook’ is that brief, irresistible bit of music that the listener will remember even after hearing your song only once.
• Finding a Groove. How to create a rhythmic sound that will make your music stand out.
• The Business of Songwriting, including publishing, royalties, song placement, etc.

Participants whose primary interest is lyric writing, music writing – or both – are welcome. Those who play an instrument or sing can incorporate it into their work. Music reading is not necessary to participate, and knowledge of a chordal instrument (guitar, piano, etc.) is helpful but not required.

‘This course gave me great confidence in songwriting, and to have the guidance of a professional songwriter was so helpful. The course helped me both lyrically and musically to realise my songwriting potential, and I am now constantly writing new material.’
– A. Bradley

‘The teacher’s laid back and informal approach, coupled with vast experience and knowledge of music, made the workshop very enjoyable for me, and I would be happy to recommend it to others. The workshop was just what I was looking for and gave me an excellent understanding of how to approach songwriting.’
– B. Curran

‘Waltons New School of Music and my excellent teacher gave me the opportunity both to learn and achieve something that I didn’t think was possible for me. Through combination of healthy challenge and empathetic guidance, I learnt and grew in ways that I didn’t think I would in such a short space of time. Thank you….’
– D. Duggan

‘I finished four songs and found my melodic voice, which I thought was impossible as I don’t play an instrument. I’d like to do a more advanced class now!’
– S. Kelly

Songwriting Workshop • Waltons New School of Music The New School’s acclaimed Songwriting Workshop will help you to develop your creative ideas and turn them into finished songs.