The Gardiner Street Gospel Choir is a
Gospel music choir based in the
Jesuit Saint Francis Xavier Church on
Gardiner Street in
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
,
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
. The award-winning choir is made up of volunteers who perform at services, and on other stages around Ireland.
History
The choir was founded in 2000 by
Trinity College Trinity College may refer to:
Australia
* Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales
* Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...
music graduate Kevin Kelly and Edmond Grace SJ.
Beginning with a smaller group, as of 2011, there were 40 voices backed by 8 musicians.
As of 2020, the musical director was Cathy McEvoy.
Over the years, the group have played in a number of venues, including
Vicar Street
Vicar Street is a concert, performing arts centre and events venue in Dublin, Ireland. Located on Thomas Street, Dublin 8, Vicar Street has capacity for 1,050 people for seated performances and 1,500 people for standing gigs. The venue is own ...
, the
National Concert Hall
The National Concert Hall (NCH) (An Ceoláras Náisiúnta) is a national cultural institution, sometimes described as "the home of music in Ireland". It comprises the actual concert hall operation, which in various chambers hosts over 1,000 ...
, the
Olympia Theatre, the
Phoenix Park
The Phoenix Park ( ga, Páirc an Fhionnuisce) is a large urban park in Dublin, Ireland, lying west of the city centre, north of the River Liffey. Its perimeter wall encloses of recreational space. It includes large areas of grassland and tre ...
, at the Dublin City Soul Festival, at the women's prison, the
Dóchas Centre
The Dóchas Centre (Irish: ''lárionad le Dóchas'') is a closed, medium security prison, for females aged 18 years and over, located in Mountjoy Prison in Dublin, Ireland. It is also the committal prison for females committed on remand or sente ...
, and for the
Dublin Docklands
Dublin Docklands ( ga, Ceantar Dugaí Átha Cliath) is an area of the city of Dublin, Ireland, on both sides of the River Liffey, roughly from Talbot Memorial Bridge eastwards to the 3Arena. It mainly falls within the city's D01 and D02 ...
Authority. In May 2008, the choir performed at
Irish Aid's 'Africa Day' in
Dublin Castle
Dublin Castle ( ga, Caisleán Bhaile Átha Cliath) is a former Motte-and-bailey castle and current Irish government complex and conference centre. It was chosen for its position at the highest point of central Dublin.
Until 1922 it was the s ...
, where they collaborated with
Kíla
Kíla is a 1987 Irish folk music/ world music group from the Irish language secondary school, Coláiste Eóin in County Dublin.
Band History
Kíla began in 1987 in the secondary in Coláiste Eoin, in the first year they busked nearly every wee ...
.
Recordings and prizes
The choir is accompanied by some instruments, including keyboard, guitar, percussion and brass.
The music played includes gospel and contemporary, including pieces by
U2 and
Bob Marley
Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981; baptised in 1980 as Berhane Selassie) was a Jamaican singer, musician, and songwriter. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, his musical career was marked by fusing elements o ...
as well as traditional gospel.
In 2002, Gardiner Street Gospel Choir made radio and television appearances and launched a CD named ''One Love''.
[P45.net – The gig at God's gaff](_blank)
This CD was recorded live at a concert in the O'Reilly Hall, at
Belvedere College, Dublin.
Twice since its foundation, the choir has won the top Gospel Choir prize at the annual Festival of the Association of Irish Musical Societies (AIMS).
They subsequently won the Gospel Choir competition at the AIMS choral festival in
New Ross.
In 2003,
Luka Bloom
Luka Bloom (born Kevin Barry Moore; 23 May 1955) is an Irish folk singer-songwriter. He is the younger brother of folk singer Christy Moore.
Early life
Kevin Barry Moore was born on 23 May 1955 in Newbridge, County Kildare, Ireland. His par ...
performed with the choir,
and the choir provided backing vocals for two tracks on his ''Eleven Songs'' album.
They were recorded in the Ignatian Room, at the back of Gardiner Street Church.
The choir have recorded with
Juliet Turner, and also sang live on
RTÉ's "In Concert" series,
[ ] and the group has appeared on
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...
television.
See also
*
Saint Francis Xavier Church, Dublin
Saint Francis Xavier Church, popularly known as Gardiner Street Church, is a Catholic church on Upper Gardiner Street near Mountjoy Square in Dublin, Ireland. The church is run by the Jesuits.
History
Designed by Father Bartholomew Esmonde S ...
References
External links
Gardiner Street Gospel Choir’s Official Website
{{Authority control
Gospel music groups
Irish choirs
Musical groups established in 2000