News

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

8 February 2019

Newry Musical Feis is delighted to announce that a THIRD performance opportunity awaits the winner of the 2019 Organ Solo (Open) – Class 8. David Stevens, Organist and Master of the Choristers in St Anne’s Cathedral, Belfast, has generously offered a performance opportunity on St Anne’s 70 stop, 4 manual, Harrison organ. It will take the form of a short (30 minute) recital preceding Choral Evensong on the third Sunday of the month, commencing at 3.00pm. This performance oppo

31 August 2018

We are delighted that our President, Mrs Alma Brown, has been included in the 2018 Happy List. It is very fitting that her lifelong commitment to volunteering in the arts has been rewarded in this way. The Happy List is compiled each year by The Independent newspaper and features 50 of the top volunteers in the UK... Alma is in very good company. https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/the-independent-happy-list-2018-trump-brexit-austerity-britain-a8503691.html 

26 July 2018

My name is Conor McGlone and I have been playing the organ since 2012.  For the past 5 years I have been participating in the Organ classes at Newry Musical Feis. As Northern Ireland’s only Organ competition it provides a great opportunity to perform and compete with others.  Each year the competition is held in St Catherine’s Church, Dominic Street, Newry. The organ in the church is a remarkable instrument for performance and I’ve looked forward to getting the chance

11 March 2017

James Murphy is the current organist and Church Music Outreach programme coordinator at the National Seminary of St. Patrick’s College, Maynooth.  A first class honours music graduate from Maynooth University, it was at St. Colman’s College, Newry that James was exposed to the organ as an instrument commencing studies under brother Colm Murphy.  During this time, James was given many opportunities as a soloist and accompanist which included works such as Haydn’s&

11 March 2017

Donal is 18 years old and has just completed his final year of studies at Eton College. Originally from Belfast, he joined St. Peter's Cathedral Schola Cantorum in 2008, studying piano and organ with director of music Nigel McClintock. By 2011 Donal had achieved grade 8 with distinction in piano, organ and voice. He attended Methodist College Belfast from 2010 to 2015, where he accompanied award-winning choirs, during which time he was the Organ Scholar in St George’s Parish Church Bel

11 March 2017

Bartosz Rafal Thiede or Bart, as he is known by most, was born in Poland but moved early in his life, with his family, to Northern Ireland. Bartosz was first educated at St. Colman’s College, Newry where he began his organ studies and sparked his love for choral music singing as a tenor with the Schola Cantorum Choir in Belfast. In 2013 Bartosz was awarded the sixth form music scholarship to attend Clifton College, Bristol. At Clifton College, he developed his organ playing technique f

11 March 2017

My name is Matthew Breen, and I was a prizewinner at the 2014 Newry Musical Feis. At present, I study at the Royal Irish Academy of Music, specialising in organ performance, whilst forging a career as a recitalist, church organist and choir director, accompanist and jazz pianist. When I competed in the Feis, I was a school student with a few years of organ lessons behind me. The competition was an excellent opportunity to test and improve my skills as a performer. I was required to present a ba