Galway TradFest by Music Generation Galway County returns for another year!
Dates for your diary 13th – 16th, November 2025
Galway TradFest, an initiative by Music Generation Galway County, will take place across Galway from Thursday 13th – Sunday 16th, November 2025.
The event will feature concerts, masterclasses in music, song and dance, a festival session trail, instrument taster sessions, theatre, showcase opportunities and a range of Irish traditional music activities which will give Galway’s children and young people unparalleled access to high-level Irish traditional music opportunities at home in Galway.
While Galway is known the world over for its creative community and its noted exponents of Irish traditional music, song and dance, unlike many other counties it didn’t host an internationally recognised annual traditional music festival that embraces the County nor an extensive traditional music masterclass series until the advent of Galway TradFest 2024.
Following the success of the inaugural Galway TradFest and its educational programme GEATA in 2024, Music Generation Galway County is delighted to announce that the festival will occur again during November 2025.
These initiatives will be produced once again with support from a variety of Music Generation Galway County’s funding partners.
The name ’GEATA’(gate/gateway) symbolises that what is planned, through high-level masterclasses, mentoring, instrument taster sessions, performances, theatre and other programme activities, will represent a gateway to access and opportunity for children and young people at home in Galway.
A 7-member youth committee was formed to lead-out on the delivery of the programme of events in 2025.
Galway TradFest will comprise an eclectic concert programme featuring some of Ireland’s leading exponents of traditional music, song and dance. Concerts at a variety of venues will include performances from Lúnasa, Beoga, Séamus & Caoimhe Uí Fhlatharta, Fergal Scahill & Ryan Molloy, Piaras Ó Lorcáin, Tara Breen, Padraig Rynne & Jim Murray, Project Smok and Clare Sands.
A very special event called The Devil’s in the Dance Hall -a new largescale interactive dance theatre experience by Edwina Guckian will be produced in Loughrea. The event will feature Edwina Guckian and her team of dancers performing alongside Cathy Jordan, Ryan Molloy, Stephen Doherty, David Doocey, Matt Berrill, Jim Higgins, Conor Caldwell, Bronagh Graham, Ben Castle and many more special guests.
On the morning of November 17th more than 17 of Ireland’s best known Irish traditional performers and tutors will deliver masterclasses to children and young people at Coláiste Bhaile Chláir in Galway’s Gaeltacht region. This comprehensive range of masterclasses includes tutors such as ALDOC’s Alan Doherty (Flute), Tara Breen (The Chieftains, Stockton’s Wing) on fiddle, a sean nós singing workshop with Piaras Ó Lorcáin, TG4’s Cathal Ó Curráin also mentoring on fiddle, alongside TG4 Gradam Ceoil Winners Ryan Molloy (accompaniment) & Sharon Howley (cello). Beoga’s Liam Bradley will provide a masterclass on accompanying trad music while the band’s accordionist Damien McKee will deliver a masterclass on the bosca ceoil, with multi-instrumentalist Stephen Doherty from Foxford, Co Mayo visiting to give a masterclass on the best session tunes for young performers to know. Other tutors include Mícheál Ó Raghallaigh & Zoran Donohue (concertina), Holly Geraghty (harp), Cillian Doheny (Banjo), and Katelyn Corrigan (bodhrán). Workshops on Dance will be delivered by the renowned sean nós dancers Edwina Guckian and Emma O’ Sullivan alongside Oireachtas na Samhna 2025 winner Becky Ní Éallaithe. Other dance tutors Christy Mac Gearailt and Ann Gibbons will deliver dance workshops in set & Céilí dance. Maureen Browne will oversee a Music for All class for young enthusiasts with special needs.
Full details of these masterclasses are available at www.galwaytradfest.ie.
All of the above will operate in parallel with the Galway TradFest Session Trail, Theatrical performances in Ballinasloe and Clifden with Ceol Connected and Taster Sessions and Workshops across the County. A Livefeed Trad Special showcase concert will provide an opportunity for young bands & soloists to perform in front of their peers.
Events as part of Galway TradFest and its educational programme (GEATA) will be produced with support from a variety of Music Generation Galway County’s funding partners including Galway and Roscommon Education and Training Board (GRETB, lead partner), Galway County Council, the Department of Education and Youth, U2, The Ireland Funds, the Arts Council/An Comhairle Ealaíon, Ealaín na Gaeltachta’s Cuisle programme, Creative Ireland’s Local Creative Youth Partnership, Galway Culture Company, Foróige, Tusla/CYPSC, Involve, Youth Work Ireland (Galway) and Forum Connemara CLG amongst others.
Artistic Director of Galway TradFest is Music Generation Galway County’s Music Development officer, Eric Cunningham:
“As part of our strategic plans to ensure the best outcomes for Galway’s children and young people where performance music education is concerned, we needed to address the fact that when it came to our Irish traditional arts, all too often too many of Galway’s young performers had to travel outside the County to access high-level tuition. With the advent of Galway TradFest and GEATA in 2024 and the success of these initiatives, this has changed. We are once again looking forward to hosting a programme full of opportunities, where Galway’s young people will get to learn from visiting tutors and practitioners and indeed engage at home in Galway with young visiting performers with shared interests. Without the invaluable support of multiple partners, our Youth Committee and Lead Programmer Eamon Murray, these new initiatives simply wouldn’t be possible.”
Music Generation is a national partnership programme whose mission is to create inspiring experiences for children and young people through music. Music Generation Galway County delivers programmes to more than 5,000 students across Galway County on a continuing basis.
Galway TradFest will take place at multiple locations across Galway from November 13th to November 16th, 2025.
Full details for all of the above to include, venues, ticket bookings, dates and times are available on www.galwaytradfest.ie and follow @galwaytradfest on social media channels, Facebook, X, Instagram and Youtube.
Photo:
Members of Galway TradFest (2025) Youth Committee:
Photographed (left to right):
Dylan Kitt, Emma Roche, Caoimhe McGrath, Ella O' Connor, Nicole Mc Loughlin & Ronán Fulton. Absent from the photo, Caitríona Ní Mhathúna.
What is Music Generation?
Music Generation is a national partnership programme whose mission is to create inspiring experiences for children and young people through music.
Together, the team at Music Generation strives to transform children and young people’s lives by giving them opportunities to create, play and perform music in their own communities and on their own terms.
Initiated by its parent company, Music Network, Music Generation is now Ireland’s national music education programme, co-funded by U2, The Ireland Funds, the Department of Education and Skills and Local Music Education Partnerships.
Galway and Roscommon Education and Training Board is the lead partner of Music Generation Galway County. Additional support is provided by a number of other local partners including Galway County Council, Ealaín na Gaeltachta Teo, Galway Culture Company, the Local Creative Youth Partnership, Galway Rural Development, Foróige, University of Galway, Tusla/CYPSC, Youth Work Ireland, Involve and Forum Connemara.
Matched funding is provided by the Department of Education through Music Generation’s National Office.
Cllr. Michael ‘Moegie’ Maher (Chairperson of GRETB and Music Generation Galway County’s Advisory Group):
“Galway and Roscommon Education and Training Board and Galway County Council are lead partners of Music Generation Galway County and we are delighted to support the work being undertaken by Eric Cunningham and his team where this festival is concerned. In addition, as Chairperson of Music Generation Galway County’s Local Music Education Partnership, through ongoing partnership meetings I understand fully the impact that Music Generation is making in the lives of children and young people across the County and this latest development will only serve to enhance the hugely positive work being undertaken. There are also many added benefits to this particular venture, including the fact that it will attract visitors to Galway during the winter months. ”
Freda Nic Giolla Chatháin, Oifigeach Forbartha Ealaíon don Óige, Ealaín na Gaeltachta
Ealaín na Gaeltachta is delighted to be working in partnership with Music Generation Galway County on the youth programme Geata, an integral part of Galway Tradfest which will take place this November. We are thrilled that the majority of the workshops and masterclasses will take place in the Language Panning Area of Baile Chláir, and that other events will be staged in the Conamara Gaeltacht. This is a great opportunity for young Gaeltacht artists to attend high quality events in their own locality, to learn from the masters, as well as to initiate new musical friendships with their peers from around the county.
It is through such partnerships that we strengthen the sector in general, and the young people can avail of more opportunities. We welcome wholeheartedly this initiative, we wish the organisers – Music Generation Galway County – every success, and most importantly, we hope that the young people benefit from it all and have a great time!
