Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann (; meaning "Society of the musicians of Ireland") is the primary Irish organisation dedicated to the promotion of the

music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...

song A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...

dance Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

and the

language Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed language, signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing syste ...

of Ireland. The organisation was founded in 1951 and has promoted Irish music and culture among the

Irish people The Irish ( or ''Na hÉireannaigh'') are an ethnic group and nation native to the island of Ireland, who share a common ancestry, history and Culture of Ireland, culture. There have been humans in Ireland for about 33,000 years, and it has be ...

and the

Irish diaspora The Irish diaspora () refers to ethnic Irish people and their descendants who live outside the island of Ireland. The phenomenon of migration from Ireland is recorded since the Early Middle Ages,Flechner, Roy; Meeder, Sven (2017). The Irish ...

. Its current Director General is Senator Labhrás Ó Murchú. Today it has more than 400 branches worldwide, in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Canada, Mexico, France, Spain, Germany, Hungary, Luxembourg, Russia, Australia and New Zealand.

History

Comhaltas was founded in 1951 in

Mullingar Mullingar ( ; ) is the county town of County Westmeath in Ireland. It is the third most populous town in the Midland Region, Ireland, Midland Region, with a population of 22,667 in the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census. The Counties of M ...

County Westmeath County Westmeath (; or simply ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It formed part of the historic Kingdom of ...

by a group of traditional pipers who felt that the Irish musical

tradition A tradition is a system of beliefs or behaviors (folk custom) passed down within a group of people or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common e ...

was in decline; it was initially named Cumann Ceoltóirí na hÉireann, changing to its present name in 1952.

Comhaltas around the World

Great Britain

Six years after the creation of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann, in 1957, Comhaltas na Breataine or Comhaltas in Britain was established. The first branch outside of Ireland was based in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

where a many

Irish immigrants The Irish diaspora () refers to ethnic Irish people and their descendants who live outside the island of Ireland. The phenomenon of migration from Ireland is recorded since the Early Middle Ages,Flechner, Roy; Meeder, Sven (2017). The Irish ...

settled during the 50s and 60s. As of 2024, it now hosts over 24 branches across England, Scotland and Wales.

Centres

*Áras an Mhuilinn, Mullingar. *Brú Ború, Cashel. *Brú na Sí, Youghal. *Clasaċ, Clontarf. *Cnoc na Gaoithe, Tulla. *Cois na hAbhna, Ennis. *Cultúrlann na hÉireann, Headquarters, Monkstown. *Dún Uladh, Omagh. *Dún na Sí, Moate. *Kilrush Regional Outreach Centre. *Meitheal an Íarthar/Ceoláras Coleman/Regional Resource Centre, Gurteen. *Morrison Teach Cheoil, Riverstown. *Oriel Centre (Dundalk Gaol). *

Activities

Comhaltas is responsible for organising the annual national Irish music festival and competition called the ''

Fleadh Cheoil The Fleadh Cheoil (), or "music festival" in English, is an annual Ireland, Irish arts festival and competition run by Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann (Irish pronunciation: Help:IPA/Irish, [ˈkoːl̪ˠt̪ˠəsˠ ˈcoːl̪ˠt̪ˠoːɾʲiː ˈeːɾ ...

''. Comhaltas has published a magazine called ''Treoir'' relating to Irish traditional music since 1970.Treoir
Trinity College Dublin Library

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann Music organisations based in the Republic of Ireland 1951 establishments in Ireland Folk music organizations Irish-language education Musical groups established in 1951 Seanad nominating bodies 1950s in Irish music 1960s in Irish music 1970s in Irish music 1980s in Irish music 1990s in Irish music 2000s in Irish music 2010s in Irish music 2020s in Irish music