Choral Festival finishes on high note

THOUSANDS of singers and dozens of choirs travelled to Leeside over the last week for the 57th Cork International Choral Festival.

Headline concerts included performances by the Sirin Ensemble, a Russian choir who interpret 15th-16th century Russian folk music and Ommm, a young French quintet with a jazz background whose experimentation with acappella singing has led them to a new style they dub Vocal Trip Box.

The National Chamber Choir of Ireland returned with a concert featuring two world premieres, as well as the European premiere of a work by Pulitzer Prize-winning, US-Israeli composer Shulamit Ran.