Report on the Harping Tradition in Ireland

Kathleen Loughnane, Máire Ní Chathasaigh, Anne-Marie O’Farrell,
Tríona Marshall, Dearbhail Finnegan, Kim Fleming and Cormac
De Barra – some of the tutors and performers at An Chúirt
Chruitireachta 2011. Photo by Kieran Cummins
Cairde na Cruite is a voluntary society with a committee of nine that is supplemented
by other volunteers. There is no paid administrator and no payment for the several
months spent organising the festival, although those who teach and perform at An
Chúirt Chruitireachta are remunerated.
The Arts Council provides annual funding to An Chúirt Chruitireachta under the festivals
and events scheme (€11,500 in 2013 and 2014, reduced from €14,000 in 2012 and
€13,500 in 2011). An Chúirt Chruitireachta has also received some funding from Louth
County Council (€500 in 2014).
Cairde na Cruite has achieved a remarkable amount over the 54 years of its existence,
with very modest state support. Its role in the renaissance in Irish harp playing has
been critical and the result of a substantial effort by volunteers over several decades.
Its programming is inclusive and ambitious and An Chúirt Chruitireachta has imbued
generations of young musicians with a passion for Irish harping, and a commitment
to safeguarding and developing that tradition.
On its current level of Arts Council support, Cairde na Cruite can not address the many
challenges that face the development of Irish harping – or take advantage of the many
opportunities for development that are there – and its low funding level is therefore an
issue of concern. Core annual funding for the organisation is essential if Irish harping is
to continue to grow.
This will be discussed further in the Recommendations section.
Cairde na Cruite’s future plans can be summarised as follows:
• investing in the marketing and promotion of An Chúirt Chruitireachta for its
thirtieth anniversary in 2015;
• developing its publication programme with the publication of Sounding Harps 5,
and promotion of its publications to date;
• developing a database of teachers;
• developing and promoting its harp-rental scheme;
• maintaining its programme of spring and winter concerts;
• developing a plan for creating an international harp centre in Dublin.
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