Manx are a tour de force in Lorient!!
03 Sep 2014
Manx are a tour de force in Lorient!!
report by Ruth Keggin
This year, the Festival Interceltique de Lorient was hit by the biggest Manx delegation yet, where a multitude of Manx talent stormed the city and made sure that the Bretons wouldn’t forget us in a hurry. And rightly so: in 2015 the Isle of Man and Cornwall will celebrate their very own year at the Festival, which demonstrates the strength and recognition of Manx culture in recent years. With 800,000 festival goers over 10 days, this is a huge opportunity to display the culture of the Island.
The bands and artists who performed at the 2014 festival were (alphabetically): Mec Lir (feat. Davy Knowles); The Mollag Band; Norwegian-Manx Collaboration; Ny Fennee and the Ruth Keggin Quartet. The featured visual Manx artist was Nicola Dixon.
The Manx and the Cornish shared a prominent corner of the Quay des Indes – where you can find the pavilions of all the Celtic countries. The Manx dished out hundreds of servings of succulent queenies and Bushy’s beer while John ‘Dog’ Callister demonstrated the art of making Bumbee Cages to delighted Bretons. Undoubtedly the best area of the two pavilions was a shared stage. A full programme of free performances from all Manx and Cornish groups participating in the festival led to an electric atmosphere with thousands of people crowding round the tent, eager to hear vibrant live music.
The newly formed band Mec Lir (Greg Barry; Tomas Callister; David Kilgallon; Adam Rhodes) performed a multitude of gigs to unwaveringly enthusiastic crowds, the highlight surely being the Espace Bretagne where, I would estimate, a thousand audience members were whipped up into a frenzy by the energy and virtuosic playing of the group. They were joined by talented bluesman Davy Knowles for a number of tunes and songs. Christy De Haven and Dave Armstrong from DAM productions filmed some of the performances given by the Manx delegation and interviewed artists, and these will feature in the upcoming documentary ‘Island Bound’ funded by Island of Culture and Culture Vannin.
The Mollag Band played a number of gigs to very appreciative audiences; notably at the Espace Paroles, Palais de Congres and the Espace Marine. They were selling their new CD ‘Afloat’ with artwork by the wonderful Nicola Dixon.
Nicola’s exhibition showcased much of her new work, including a set of nine gorgeous original triskel paintings, each of them representing a line from the ‘Deer’s Cry’. The exhibition was displayed at the Hotel Gabriel. Watch video
here
The Norwegian-Manx Collaboration (Erlend Apneseth, Tomas Callister, Ruth Keggin, David Kilgallon and Margit Myhr) performed a special gig at the Palais de Congres. We performed our collaborative material to an audience of around 500 people, and Margit and Erlend were impressed by the Manx presence at the festival. Keep your eyes peeled for our reunion in Mannin this winter… that’s all I’ll say for now!
Ny Fennee always deliver polished, professional performances with flair and verve, and this year was no different. They performed for the Mayor of Lorient and performed twice at the colossal Espace Marine where they generated tumultuous applause.
On Thursday evening, I (Ruth Keggin) performed with my band in a ‘Femmes Gaeliques’ concert with Julie Fowlis and Mary Black to an audience of around 2,000 people. Five dancers from Ny Fennee joined me on stage for my final song and danced brilliant solo jigs – thanks girls for helping to make that experience so special! Watch video
here [1 min 30]
I was delighted to come third in the final of the Trophee Loic Raison on Saturday with my band, and it was wonderful to see Ny Fennee flying the Manx flags!
Lastly and most importantly, our huge thanks must go to Ealee Sheard. As the delegate for the Island, Ealee did a stellar job of organising everyone and was always smiling, even when things were incredibly busy and stressful! Ealee won the most promising delegate in a prize giving ceremony for the countries – a well-deserved honour. Jeant dy mie Ealee!
Hard-working pavilion staff promoted Manx produce and tourism – what a great team!!
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