Cois Cladaigh are pleased to announce the successful conclusion to the first part of their ambitious 25th Birthday celebrations: their 2007 Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir’s Irish tour has drawn to a close.

The EPCC’s musical odyssey took the virtuosi and adventurous choral singers from the extraordinary setting of the medieval Ballintubber Abbey for their inaugural concert, to the crisp and newly renovated Augustinian Church in Galway to Dublin’s famous Pro-Cathedral and finally on to St Peter’s Church of Ireland, Drogheda. With considerable coverage in local and national media the attendance of more than 2000 people was secured well in advance, with ticket demand driven by a fascination with the choir’s famed technique as well as with EPCC’s unique relationship with Arvo Pärt and his extraordinary Kanon Pokajanen.

Each performance received the ultimate indication of approval: a standing ovation from enthusiastic audiences. In the words of the Irish Times’s music critic, Michael Dervan, “The performance [of the Kanon] was a tour de force of choral art. Kaljuste and the choir created and sustained an effect that was as elemental as the slow movement of clouds... brought a delighted audience to its feet”. Referring to the Drogheda performance, he states, “the choir’s adaptability... within the programme as a whole was exemplary”.

In addition to acknowledging the warmth with which audiences greeted EPCC, Cois Cladaigh would also like to take this opportunity to thank those sponsors who gave generous and whole-hearted support to the project. Without their considerable help, this series of extremely significant and well-received concerts would not have happened.

Following Cois Cladaigh’s tour to Estonia at the end of October, the Galway-based choir look forward to their own Christmas concert on December 8th 2007 in St. Nicholas’s Collegiate Church, Galway.