SYDNEY, N.S. — Big ticket sales and big community support has resulted in another successful Celtic Colours International Music Festival.
Out of 49 shows produced by Celtic Colours, 44 were sold out. Executive director Mike MacSween estimates ticket sales will be the same or better than last year, which was 22,107.
“We had a great response from people who were definitely excited to be here and be a part of it,” said MacSween.
The festival ran for nine days, and featured festival concerts and community events at different venues around Cape Breton, with more than 2,000 festival volunteers.
The theme this year was “connected,” with shows like Inverness to Inverness mixing artists from Scotland and artists from Cape Breton.
“My hope was to try and connect musicians from certain places in Scotland or Ireland, and have those musicians play in that namesake over here,” explained Celtic Colours artistic director Dawn Beaton.
“I tried to have them connected geographically and musically.”
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Voices of the Naomhóg at the Alexander Graham Bell Museum in Baddeck was one event Beaton feels truly captured the connected theme. Inspired by Irish musician Breanndán Ó Beaglaoich’s 2017 journey in a traditional Irish rowboat (naomhóg) from Ireland to Spain, Beaton put together a group of musicians who made two naomhógs in Baddeck and rowed them to Iona. Concerts were performed in both places with the boats on display. One was also on display at the closing concert Saturday at Centre 200.
“Essentially we connected the two places by virtue of a row Wednesday morning. Something completely different in terms of an artistic expression this year,” Beaton said.
MacSween also praised the support the festival gets from the community both through attendance and through volunteering.
“These folks are doing this out of the goodness of their hearts. They’re doing it out of a sense pride for the island,” said MacSween.
“To me that is always the highlight for the festival and this year was no exception. People did it with smiles on their faces. We are pretty darn hospitable and that’s pretty evident in the response we get from people, especially new timers.”
