Remember Limerick! An official ceremony and commemoration of the 330th anniversary of the Flight of the Wild Geese

Cuimhnigh ar Sarsfield: The Wild Geese Suite, composed by Dr. Francis Ward, premieres this Sunday

09/07/2021

This Sunday, July, 11th, Limerick’s King John’s Castle will host the premiere of Cuimhnigh ar Sarsfield: The Wild Geese Suite, a newly composed suite of music and dance, especially commissioned by the Limerick Bastille Day Wild Geese Festival Committee to mark the 330th anniversary of the Flight of the Wild Geese. It has been created collaboratively by composer Dr. Francis Ward and lyricists Dr. Mairéad Ni Bhriain and Dr. Orfhlaith Ní Bhriain.

A scholar of music education and ethnomusicology, Dr. Francis Ward is a lecturer in the School of Arts Education and Movement at DCU’s Institute of Education, and is an accomplished performer and composer of Irish traditional music and dance. He has performed worldwide as a piano player and dancer with a variety of internationally renowned productions including Riverdance. As a composer, Francis’ tunes have been recorded by traditional artists and particular recognition has been given to his compositions for Irish dance. In 2011, he was awarded the Marie Duffy Foundation Award for Excellence in Irish Dance Composition.

Dr. Mairéad Ní Bhriain is a scholar of French language, literature, and history as well as an avid writer of poetry in both Irish and French, and currently lectures at Mary Immaculate College in Limerick. She has also performed extensively both at home and abroad with shows and artists such as Riverdance, the Irish Harp Orchestra and Seán Keane. Dr. Orfhlaith Ní Bhriain is an ethnochoreologist at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick. She regularly delivers workshops and seminars internationally, and is a recognized expert in the Irish traditional music and dance world, featuring in many broadcasts and documentaries on radio and television as cultural commentator.

Composer Francis Ward recalls key elements of the creative process and the coming together of the various elements of the suite:

“The composition process took place over a period of three months and used various texts and historical accounts of Sarsfield’s life to construct a timeline of events which led ultimately to the Flight of the Wild Geese. Key historical markers were explored with Orfhlaith and Mairead who wrote the accompanying lyrics, and we set off on our creative journeys to represent the actions, moods and emotions of these events in the various art forms of music, dance and poetry. The composition was arranged for Irish traditional instruments, string quartet and percussion and represents a fusion of folk, classical and popular music styles.”

Arco String Quartet with composer Francis Ward (centre, back) pictured during the studio recording of Cuimhnigh ar Sarsfield: The Wild Geese Suite

A studio recording is also in motion to capture and preserve the unique legacy piece. Rehearsals have been underway with Francis working with Arco String Quartet to fine tune the interpretation of the written score, whilst Irish traditional musicians Niamh Dunne (fiddle), Sean Óg Graham (button accordion), Paul Harrigan (uilleann pipes) and Dermot Sheedy (percussion) have been exploring the composition’s contemporary take on tradition. Mairéad and Orfhlaith have also been mapping the poetic verse onto the music for the recording and world champion Zoe Griffin has added some percussive dance. The live performance features a slightly different lineup including renowned fiddler player Tara Breen, button accordion extraordinaire Conor Moriarty and also includes a live performance by a troupe of Irish dancers from Scoil Uí Ruairc

In parallel to the music composition and recording process, Scoil Uí Ruairc dancers have been working hard with Mairéad, Orfhlaith and Francis on newly choreographed dance routines which form part of the suite.

The premiere performance of Cuimhnigh ar Sarsfield: The Wild Geese Suite will take place in King John’s Castle, Limerick at 2pm on Sunday 11th July 2021 as part of 'Remember Limerick!', an official ceremony and commemoration of the 330th anniversary of the Flight of the Wild Geese.