News

7 March 2023

Our Organ Classes and associated Masterclass will take place on Thursday 27th April, commencing at 2.00pm.in St Patrick's RC Cathedral, Armagh. Our performers will have the opportunity to play the four-manual organ constructed in 1875 and rebuilt and enlarged in 1987. Please encourage all, who will value the opportunity to hear our young, up and coming organists play in this impressive setting, to come along and provide them with an appreciative audience.

6 December 2021

In the hope that government guidelines make it possible we are planning for a fully ‘in-person’ Feis in 2022. The 2022 Syllabuses for our Music and Speech & Drama (Open) Sections are now available for download. The Music Section is scheduled in two parts:  Part One Monday to Wednesday 14th – 16th FEBRUARY and Part Two Monday to Friday 25th – 30th April. The adjudicators are Donal McCrisken and Richard Yarr The Speech & Drama (Open) is scheduled for Monday t

5 May 2021

Our congratulations go to the Downey siblings, vocalist Aoife (17), and 14-year-old pianist Daire, who performed so impressively as finalists in the 2021 Northern Ireland Young Musician of the Year.  In the company of their other talented family members, they have been consistently successful performers - across several disciplines - at Newry Musical Feis for as long as they can remember.  In recent weeks Daire has won a number of Newry Feis 2021 overall awards including that for Most

3 December 2020

When Newry Musical Feis 2020 was launched on 14th February by Deputy Chair of Newry Mourne & Down District Council, Cllr. Terry Andrews, and Feis President Mrs Alma Brown, everything was in place for 44 days of performance in Music, Dance and Speech - a programme which was to carry through until the start of May.  As we all know, things changed profoundly just four weeks later as the first lockdown of the Covid-19 pandemic began. Determined to provide adjudicated performance opportunti

20 February 2020

We are delighted to hear that our regular performer Jack Reilly, Year 14 student in Kilkeel High School, and pupil of the EA Southern Music Service, has just learned that he has won a French Horn Scholarship to Guildhall School of Music.  Jack’s exceptional musicianship has already been widely recognised; he is Principal Horn in both the SUYO and the UYO, and was a finalist in the 2019 Northern Ireland Young Musician of the Year Competition.  He is performing in the first heat fo

10 February 2020

Young organist Eoin Cassidy, winner of Class 8C in the 2019 Newry Musical Feis Organ Competitions, performed his prize-winner’s recital in St Patrick’s Church of Ireland Cathedral, Armagh on Sunday 9th February 2020.  He performed with great maturity and delivered an excellent and varied programme to a very appreciative audience. Eoin’s programme: Récit de Cornet – François Couperin; Humoresque ‘L‘organo primitive – Pietro Yon; Prelud

21 October 2019

Special congratulations and very best wishes to former Newry Feis performer Jonny Reynolds who will be performing on Andrea Bocelli’s tour in Leeds First Direct Arena and Manchester Arena on 26/27th October with the Manchester Chamber Choir.

4 April 2019

Pictured in St Catherine’s Dominican church after the 11th annual Newry Musical Feis Organ Competition are the prize-winning candidates, all of whom are students of St Colman’s College, Newry. Eoin Cassidy, the winner of the Intermediate Class was awarded performance opportunities (recitals) in St Peter’s Cathedral, Belfast, St Anne’s Cathedral, Belfast and St Patrick’s Church of Ireland Cathedral, Armagh. The Organ Competition was adjudicated by Patrice Keegan, D

3 April 2019

We are delighted to hear about the most recent adventure in the life of our regular Feis performer Conor Mathers. We asked him to tell us about some of the things that have been happening as a result of his involvement in Music in his local area and, in particular, his range of performance opportunities at Newry Musical Feis: "I have had many wonderful experiences in Newry Feis as an individual performer and also as a member of a variety of music groups with St. Colman’s College and

28 March 2019

Mrs Alma Brown, our Feis President,  is the latest recipient of the Points of Light award, which recognises outstanding volunteers who are making a change in their community and inspiring others. Each day, someone, somewhere in the country is selected to receive the award to celebrate their remarkable achievements. In a personal letter to Alma, Prime Minister Theresa May said: "The continuing success of the ‘Newry Musical Feis’ is testament to your long-standing dedicatio