2015 Waltons Music
for Schools Competition
A National Competition and Celebration
of Music in Irish Schools
This page includes:
- Entry videos and information about the twelve Finalist schools selected for the 2015 Competition.
- Lists of Commended and Highly Commended schools.
- Videos of the Finalists Concert on 11 May 2015 in the National Concert Hall.
- A list of the prizewinning schools.
- Two galleries, the first of the Finalist groups in rehearsal and the second of the groups in performance as well as prize presentations.
Primary School Finalists
The six Primary School Finalists, as well as Highly Commended and Commended schools, selected in the 2015 Waltons Music for Schools Competition. Schools are listed in alphabetical order, and Finalist school entry videos and profiles are below these.
Finalists
- Bunscoil Loreto, Gorey, Co. Wexford
- Craanford National School, Gorey, Co. Wexford
- Danescastle National School, Carrig on Bannow, Co. Wexford
- Gaelscoil an tSlí Dála, Ballaghmore, Co. Laois
- Lisheen National School, Skibbereen, Co. Cork
- Ss. Peter & Paul’s CBS, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary
Highly Commended
- Bunscoil Chríost Rí, Cork, Co. Cork
- Caherline National School (The Caherline Combo entry), Caherconlish, Co. Limerick
- Kilcoe National School, Skibbereen, Co. Cork
- Monaleen National School, Castleroy, Co. Limerick
- Scoil Chlochair Mhuire, Carrigtwohill, Co. Cork
Commended
- Belmullet Junior National School, Belmullet, Co. Mayo
- Caherline National School (Beoga Breise entry), Caherconlish, Co. Limerick
- Gaelscoil Aonach Urmhumhan, An tAonach, Co. Tipperary
- Gaelscoil de hIde, Mainistir Fhearmai, Co. Cork
- Newcestown National School, Bandon, Co. Cork
- Scoil Chearbhaill Uí Dhálaigh, Léim an Bhradáin, Co. Kildare
- Sisters of Charity National School, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary
- St. Ciarán’s National School, Dublin 15
- St. Colmcille’s National School, Errill, Co. Laois
- St. Declan’s National School, Ardmore, Co. Waterford
- St. Mary’s Primary School, Trim, Co. Meath
Bunscoil Loreto
Gorey, Co. Wexford
Entry
Title ‘Thank You for the Music’
Group Bunscoil Loreto Music Group • 45 members, Second – Sixth Class
• Niall Quillinan, Teacher/Conductor
About the School
Bunscoil Loreto (630 students) has a thriving whole‐school music programme in which children, teachers and parents are involved. All students learn tin whistle from Junior Infants to Sixth Class, through a special curriculum developed by the school, and violin is also taught to all students from Second to Fifth Class. Each year the school’s Parents Association purchases tin whistles for all Junior Infants, and the Board of Management has purchased sixty violins in order to allow every student the opportunity to play. In addition to instrumental teaching, the school has three choirs, a school orchestra and a traditional group. There is also a staff choir and traditional group, and teachers at Bunscoil Loreto are not only very involved in the school’s music programme but also in the wider community. Finally, in association with the Gorey/Ballygarrett branch of Comhaltas Ceoltoirí Éireann, the school hosts group practice sessions every week. Bunscoil Loreto planned to use a Waltons Music for Schools Competition prize to develop its instrument bank, particularly cellos.
Craanford National School
Gorey, Co. Wexford
Entry
Title ‘Let It Go Traditionally’
Group Let It Go group • 43 members, Junior Infants – Sixth Class
• Mandy O’Callaghan, Teacher/Piano • Sinéad Tobin, Teacher/Conductor
About the School
Craanford National School (162 students) offers music instruction in singing, percussion, tin whistle and recorder, taught by both a visiting music teacher and a group of traditional musicians from the local branch of Comhaltas Ceoltoirí Éireann. For ensembles the school has both a choir and a traditional music group. Although the local branch of Comhaltas provides some instruments, children’s instruments are generally supplied by parents. Craanford would like to develop its music programme by creating a school orchestra, and it planned to use a Music for Schools Competition prize to start an instrument bank for the orchestra.
Danescastle National School
Carrig on Bannow, Co. Wexford
Entry
Title ‘Gach Rud Trad’
Group Ceoltóirí Scoil Náisiúnta Chaisleán an Danair • 31 members, 3rd – 6th Class
About the School
Danescastle National School (184 students) offers a wide range of both curricular and extra-curricular music instruction. All students, from Junior Infants to Sixth Class, learn an Irish traditional instrument (the school has a number of céilí bands and grúpaí ceoil) as well as singing, lilting and whistling; there are two school choirs; and school musicals are a regular feature in the annual calendar. The school and Danescastle Music Group own a range of instruments and rent them to students at a nominal annual fee. And every Friday, past pupils who are now in secondary school or college come to the school in a voluntary capacity to assist both the current principal and retired principal by teaching instruments and supervising band and group practice. Danescastle would use a Waltons Music for Schools Competition prize for recording equipment, a drum kit and/or mandolins and banjos.
Gaelscoil an tSlí Dála
Ballaghmore, Co. Laois
Entry
Title ‘Ceol Tradisiúnya’
Group Na Sióga • 21 members, First – Sixth Class
About the School
Gaelscoil an tSlí Dála – a small, two-teacher school – provides students with a strong grounding in Irish traditional music, including tuition in singing, fiddle, banjo, bodhrán, accordion, concertina, tin whistle and flute. The tuition is provided by a parent/music teacher and Comhaltas Ceoltoirí Éireann member and is funded by school fund-raising and parent contributions. Music Generation Laois is currently providing both Irish harps and harp tuition to the school, which students receive during school each Friday. The school planned to use a Music for Schools Competition Prize to purchase a 34-string harp.
Lisheen National School
Skibbereen, Co. Cork
Entry
Title ‘Ceol na Mara’
Group Lisheen National School Music Group • 33 members, Second – Sixth Class
• Niamh McCarthy, Teacher/Piano
About the School
Lisheen National School (70 students) was a Finalist in the 2014 Waltons Music for Schools Competition. It has an all-school choir in which every pupil in the school participates, and which is continually expanding its repertoire and complexity of arrangements. The school also has a music group that meets weekly and includes any pupil from Second Class up who plays an instrument. Both groups cover a wide range of music genres. One of the teachers offers instrumental lessons after school, including guitar, tin whistle and ukulele group lessons, as well as individual piano lessons. The school has also recently set up an after-school music club open to all students, whether or not they play instruments, and free of charge. Lisheen planned to use a Music for Schools Competition prize to purchase instruments for students to try out in the school, with the goal of making music available to everyone, not just those who can afford it.
Ss. Peter & Paul’s CBS
Clonmel, Co. Tipperary
Entry
Title ‘Music Takes You Everywhere’
Group Ss. Peter & Paul’s CBS Senior Band • 45 members, First – Sixth Class
• Yvonne Moran, Teacher/Conductor
About the School
Ss. Peter & Paul’s CBS (307 students) has close links with Banna Chluain Meala, the local youth concert and marching band, and the principal, a former member of Banna Chluain Meala, also directs a thriving band programme at the school, with the assistance of the current Banna musical director. The programme includes a Junior Band that starts out with recorders and moves on to brass and reed instruments (from Third Class), an Intermediate Band and a Senior Band for Fifth and Sixth Class pupils. The school also has a busy choir and recently started a guitar group and a percussion group that meet during lunch breaks and are facilitated by past pupils currently in Transition Year. Ss. Peter & Paul’s is a DEIS school; its music provision is designed for the whole school community, and band members are supplied from an instrument bank that the school has accumulated over the years. Many of these instruments are currently nearing the end of their lifespan, and the school planned to use a Waltons Music for Schools Competition prize to purchase new ones.
Post-Primary School Finalists
The six Post-Primary School Finalists, as well as Highly Commended and Commended schools, selected in the 2015 Waltons Music for Schools Competition. Schools are listed in alphabetical order, and Finalist school entry videos and profiles are below these.
Finalists
- Castlecomer Community School, Castlecomer, Co. Kilkenny
- Castleknock College, Castleknock, Dublin 15
- Loreto Secondary School, Letterkenny, Co. Donegal
- Mercy Heights Secondary School, Skibbereen, Co. Cork
- Our Lady’s Secondary School, Castleblaney, Co. Monaghan
- Ursuline College, Finisklin Road, Co. Sligo
Highly Commended
- Boyne Community School, Trim, Co. Meath
- Coláiste Eanna, Ballyboden, Dublin 16
- Scoil Mhuire, Trim, Co. Meath
- St. Conleth’s Community College, Newbridge, Co. Kildare
- St. Kilian’s Deutsche Schule, Clonskeagh, Dublin 14
Commended
- Coláiste an Chraoibhín, Fermoy, Co. Cork
- Crescent College Comprehensive, Dooradoyle, Co. Limerick
- Loreto College, Cavan, Co. Cavan
- St. Ailbe’s Secondary School (Band entry), Tipperary, Co. Tipperary
- St. Fergal’s College, Rathdowney, Co. Laois
- St. Mary’s Knockbeg, Knockbeg, Co. Carlow
Castlecomer Community School
Castlecomer, Co. Kilkenny
Entry
Title ‘Worlds Apart – Threaded by Music’
Group Mianta Chaisleán an Chomair • 44 members, First – Sixth Year
About the School
Castlecomer Community School (579 students) offers curricular music to Leaving Cert. level as well as substantial extra-curricular music tuition during the school day in a range of instruments and music genres. The school has also forged links with a local recording studio, and it organises and funds the training of six students over the Easter Holiday; these students then act as sound engineers for school functions. Castlecomer has a thriving ensemble programme, including a school choir (First to Sixth Year), a trad group (also First to Sixth), a jazz band (with instruments provided by the school’s instrument bank), a Transition Year band, a Fifth Year band, a bodhrán group (in which participants play bodhráns they made themselves in Transition Year) and two recorder ensembles. The majority of Castlecomer’s students have limited experience with music prior to secondary school, and by reaching out to specialist music teachers and working with such organisations as the Association of Irish Choirs and the National Chamber Choir, the school is able to provide its students with a wealth of musical opportunities. Castlecomer planned to use a Music for Schools Competition prize to add more instruments to its instrument bank for students who couldn’t otherwise afford them.
Castleknock College
Castleknock, Dublin 15
Entry
Title ‘Let Music Do the Changing’
Group Castleknock College Pop Ensemble • 40 members, First – Sixth Year
About the School
In addition to curricular music to Leaving Cert. level, Castleknock College (585 students) has a strong tradition of extra-curricular music. As there is an emphasis on sport after school and at lunchtimes, musicians sacrifice early mornings and often Sunday afternoons to make time for rehearsals. The school has numerous music groups, including a School Choir, Barbershop Choir, Vocal Quartet, Soul Band, Concert Orchestra, Junior Band, First Year Band and Ukulele Ensemble. Inclusive music-making is an essential aspect of these; ensembles are run to accommodate all levels, and music is specially arranged to allow absolute beginners to perform with more experienced players. Being an active part of the local community is also an important aspect of the school ethos, and over the last year Castleknock music groups have performed at local hospitals, schools and charity events. This year the music programme has been focusing on music composition and songwriting, and several students were involved in the songwriting process that resulted in the school’s entry. Castleknock planned to use a Music for Schools Competition prize to get PA equipment, as its current equipment was temperamental and with limited sound quality.
Loreto Secondary School
Letterkenny, Co. Donegal
Entry
Title ‘Yours / The Nights / Fire to the Rain / Uptown Funk’
Group Transition Year Group • 36 members
About the School
Loreto Secondary School (980 students) offers music to Leaving Cert. level and has two music teachers, but other staff members with musical backgrounds contribute to the music education provision in the school by teaching music at lunchtimes. All First Year students take part in the School Choir, and membership is optional after that (the choir and Second to Sixth Year members). The school also offers singing, tin whistle and recorder tuition to students, funded by parent contributions. It is currently working with another local school on a Transition Year musical and hopes to make Transition Year musicals an annual event. Loreto planned to use a Music for Schools Competition prize to invest in and enhance its current music department, including purchasing new instruments.
Mercy Heights Secondary School
Skibbereen, Co. Cork
Entry
Title ‘6 Variations on 4 Chords’
Group Mercy Heights Music Ensemble • 39 members, First –Fifth Year
• Colette Brennan, Teacher/Conductor
About the School
Mercy Heights Secondary School (c. 400 students) offers music to Leaving Cert. level as well as tuition in tin whistle, guitar, drums and ukulele. The school also provides a range of ensemble possibilities for its students, including a choir, pop/rock groups, vocal groups, traditional groups and a folk group. It also has an arrangement with a CBS school that allows boys to attend senior cycle music classes at Mercy Heights. Informal concerts and pop/rock and traditional performances take place regularly in the school, as well as annual Transition Year musicals. Mercy Heights planned to use a Music for Schools Competition prize to purchase class-based instruments such as guitars and ukuleles, as well as microphones and amps for its bands and ensembles.
Our Lady’s Secondary School
Castleblayney, Co. Monaghan
Entry
Title ‘Musical Enlightenment’
Group Our Lady’s Performing Arts Group • 45 members, First – Sixth Year
• Cara Murray, Teacher/Conductor
About the School
Music is seen as more than a subject in Our Lady’s Secondary School (683 students), with a busy extra-curricular programme that occupies lunchtimes and includes choir, traditional music and dance practice, as well as instrumental jam sessions. Their traditional musicians and dancers represented Ireland in the International Eisteddfod in Wales and placed first, with two fourth places. A number of senior students from their Performing Arts Group voluntarily help run a local community group called Fusion that offers tuition in singing, acting and dancing for local children. The school would like to develop a ukulele orchestra as there is a lot of interest in the instrument and a number of musically accomplished students willing to help tutor others in a relaxed atmosphere. Our Lady’s planned to use a Music for Schools Competition prize to purchase ukuleles for the school, as well as music equipment for their special needs unit.
Ursuline College
Finisklin Road, Co. Sligo
Entry
Title ‘Up Ceol Funk’
Group Funky Monkeys • 45 members, First – Fifth Year
• Emer Prendergast, Teacher/Conductor
About the School
In addition to curricular music, Ursuline College (713 students) makes a huge range of music activities and ensembles available to its students, including no less than eleven choirs, an Irish traditional group, a harp ensemble and a pop/trad group. While parents pay for some of the private instrumental tuition, ensemble tuition is provided by the music teachers at no cost, and last year guitar lessons were supplemented by Music Generation Sligo so that students paid only a nominal fee. The school also promotes peer mentoring, particularly within their pop/trad group. The school’s ethos is to foster the idea of participation in music, and every student is provided with the opportunity to benefit from its many advantages, including teamwork skills, discipline, self-expression and creativity. Ursuline would use a Waltons Music for Schools Competition prize to make more instruments available to students, particularly ukuleles and cajóns.
Finalists Concert
Videos, in concert order, of the twelve school music groups performing in the Waltons Music for Schools Competition 2015 Finalists Concert in the National Concert Hall on 11 May 2015.
See the Concert Programme.
Lisheen National School
Skibbereen, Co. Cork
Title ‘Ceol na Mara’
Group Lisheen National School Music Group • 33 members, Second – Sixth Class
• Niamh McCarthy, Teacher/Piano
Loreto Secondary School
Letterkenny, Co. Donegal
Title ‘Yours / The Nights / Fire to the Rain / Uptown Funk’
Group Transition Year Group • 36 members
Gaelscoil an tSlí Dála
Ballaghmore, Co. Laois
Title ‘Ceol Tradisiúnya’
Group Na Sióga • 21 members, First – Sixth Class
Castlecomer Community School
Castlecomer, Co. Kilkenny
Title ‘Worlds Apart – Threaded by Music’
Group Mianta Chaisleán an Chomair • 44 members, First – Sixth Year
• Karena Dowling-Dunny, Teacher/Conductor
Bunscoil Loreto
Gorey, Co. Wexford
Title ‘Thank You for the Music’
Group Bunscoil Loreto Music Group • 45 members, Second – Sixth Class
• Niall Quillinan, Teacher/Conductor
Our Lady’s Secondary School
Castleblayney, Co. Monaghan
Title ‘Musical Enlightenment’
Group Our Lady’s Performing Arts Group • 45 members, First – Sixth Year
• Cara Murray, Teacher/Conductor
Craanford National School
Gorey, Co. Wexford
Title ‘Let It Go Traditionally’
Group Let It Go group • 43 members, Junior Infants – Sixth Class
• Mandy O’Callaghan, Teacher/Piano • Sinéad Tobin, Teacher/Conductor
Ursuline College
Finisklin Road, Co. Sligo
Title ‘Up Ceol Funk’
Group Funky Monkeys • 45 members, First – Fifth Year
• Emer Prendergast, Teacher/Conductor
Ss. Peter & Paul’s CBS
Clonmel, Co. Tipperary
Title ‘Music Takes You Everywhere’
Group Ss. Peter & Paul’s CBS Senior Band • 45 members, First – Sixth Class
• Yvonne Moran, Teacher/Conductor
Mercy Heights Secondary School
Skibbereen, Co. Cork
Title ‘6 Variations on 4 Chords’
Group Mercy Heights Music Ensemble • 39 members, First –Fifth Year
• Colette Brennan, Teacher/Conductor
Danescastle National School
Carrig on Bannow, Co. Wexford
Title ‘Gach Rud Trad’
Group Ceoltóirí Scoil Náisiúnta Chaisleán an Danair • 31 members, 3rd – 6th Class
Castleknock College
Castleknock, Dublin 15
Title ‘Let Music Do the Changing’
Group Castleknock College Pop Ensemble • 40 members, First – Sixth Year
Prize Winners
The six prize-winning music groups – three primary and three post-primary – selected by the 2015 Finalists Concert adjudicators David Brophy and Ellen Cranitch.
Primary Schools
First Prize
Ss. Peter & Paul’s CBS, Clonmel, Co. Tipperary
Title ‘Music Takes You Everywhere’
Group Ss. Peter & Paul’s CBS Senior Band
Second Prize
Craanford National School, Gorey, Co. Wexford
Title ‘Let It Go Traditionally’
Group Let It Go
Third Prize
Bunscoil Loreto, Gorey, Co. Wexford
Title ‘Thank You for the Music’
Group Bunscoil Loreto Music Group
Post-Primary Schools
First Prize
Castleknock College, Castleknock, Dublin 15
Title ‘Let Music Do the Changing’
Group Castleknock College Pop Ensemble
Second Prize
Mercy Heights Secondary School, Skibbereen, Co. Cork
Title ‘6 Variations on 4 Chords’
Group Mercy Heights Music Ensemble
Third Prize
Our Lady’s Secondary School, Castleblayney, Co. Monaghan
Title ‘Musical Enlightenment’
Group Our Lady’s Performing Arts Group
A selection of photographs of the twelve school music groups rehearsing for their performances in the 2015 Finalists Concert. (All photographs by Seán Laoide-Kemp.)
Performance photographs, in concert order, of the twelve school music groups performing in the 2015 Finalists Concert, as well as photos of prize presentations for the six winning schools. (All photographs by Seán Laoide-Kemp.)
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