'MINI FLEADH' and Final Class of the Year 2009
28 March 2009
On Saturday 28th March, Portglenone CCE Branch held their Under age 'Mini Fleadh' event which is aimed at young musicians who are preparing for the upcoming County Antrim Fleadh in May. This years County Fleadh will be held in Ballycastle thus quite a few local branch musicians are going to be taking part.
The competition takes the format of the normal Fleadh Cheoil's, the only difference being that it is mainly for Under 12 musicians. The main priority of the event is to give these young and enthusiastic musicians the chance to perform in front of an audience and an adjudicator. There are a variety of awards to be won ranging from the Tin Whistle, Flute, Fiddle, Mandolin and Accordion competitions.
Many thanks to Donal Savage for adjudicating our mini fleadh and this year was no different to previous ones in that a few of the competitions were hotly contested for and Donal had to make a few difficult decisions before the final winners were selected.
The trophies were presented by Portglenone CCE Chairman, Eamonn Graham at the last branch class on Monday 30th March. Instead of the normal class, the evening took the shape of a concert in the hall of St Mary's Primary School, with each tutor and their students playing a few selected tunes which they have learned over the past year. The awards were as follows:
The Most Promising Musicians Award and the Ballinasloe Trophy was presented to James Lennon.
The Fr Felix McLaughlin Fiddle Cup for Under 10 was presented to Erin Henry.
The Portglenone CCE Tin Whistle Cup for Under 10 was presented to Harry Lennon.
Congratulations to all the musicians who took part and made the 'Mini Fleadh' and the last class of the year very enjoyable for everyone especially the very nervous musicians who overcame their fears and played brilliantly. Many thanks to local parish priest, Fr Aidan Keenan, for the use of the parish Loft where the 'Mini Fleadh' was held and to Mrs Milner, the Principal of St Mary's Primary School, for the use of the facilities over the year to hold the classes on Monday evenings. We look forward to their continued support next year.