‘Songs of the Scribe’ City of Culture concert

Pádraigín, Dónal and Macdara will tomorrow perform a special concert as part of the Derry City of Culture celebrations. The event, based around Pádraigín’s ‘Songs of the Scribe‘ will take place in St. Augustine’s Church in the city.

The site of the original monastic settlement of Colm Cille, St Augustine’s Church will be the venue for this unique musical celebration of the city’s founding father. On Songs of the Scribe, Pádraigín, traditional singer-in-residence at Queen’s University’s Seamus Heaney Centre for Poetry, delves deep into the history of our monastic tradition to dramatic effect. Inspired by ancient lyrics from the scribes and hermit poets of early Ireland and set to music in the traditional style on fiddles/violas with vocal overtones.

Songs of the Scribes has been praised by Seamus Heaney as ‘a uniquely delightful work, because of the beauty of the singing… because of the sweetness and sureness and clarity of the voice and voicing; because of the way the integrity of the verse line is respected; because of the singer’s at-homeness with the poems, in the music and in the modes.’

“Beautiful re-creation of the ancient enchanting world of song, nature, love and longing, interspersed with delicate and dazzling fiddle playing”
Dublin Writers Week review

“Truly captivating performances. Standing ovations all around”
Director of St. Gallen, 1400 celebrations, Switzerland

“Pádraigín Ní Uallacháin is one of those inner voyagers, an archaeologist of the spirit world, a keeper of tradition, a maker of what is new and will be enduring. There is something uncanny about her ability to sound beauty in her singing, to find the phrase, the art and sympathy that resounds in the attentive soul. These are songs to revive and cleanse the spirit, songs of pure joy.”
Theo Dorgan