'The Plurabelles' is a girls' chamber choir with members aged between 12 and 24 years, based in Dublin, Ireland. The group grew from a number of singing students who were already experienced soloists, instrumentalists, and members of duet and trio ensembles. The group first came together to form the "Risdale Singers" in 2016, rehearsing in an historic monastery in South Dublin and performing their first concert as an ensemble in June 2016.
In 2017, the girls set their sights on travelling abroad. The group was renamed "The Plurabelles", referencing James Joyce's character "Anna Livia Plurabelle", who represents the river Liffey in Finnegan's Wake. While preparing for a major trip to South Africa, the girls participated in a week-long singing camp, recorded for Lyric FM's "Choirs for Christmas", and headlined a Unicef event to mark the 25th anniversary of Ireland's ratification of the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child, in addition to regular concert performances, national competitions and singing exams. In 2018, the choir won the Youth Choirs section of the inaugural Clontarf Choral Festival, before heading on their travels in the summer, when they represented Ireland in the Open Competition of the Interkultur World Choir Games, in Tshwane, South Africa. The girls brought home a 'Silver' Award from the Youth Choirs Competition, as well as participating in a Friendship Concert, Vocal Workshop, and an unforgettable Safari experience. In 2019, the choir competed in the Limerick Choral Festival, winning the Sacred Music and Youth Choirs Section, as well as being awarded "Choir of the Year" by the Festival, out of 55 participating choirs. Plans to return to the World Choir Games in July 2020 were interrupted by the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, and the girls activities were paused for much of the following two years. The choir reformed in October 2022, returning to the concert platform in December, and working with composer Fiona Linnane who has written a new commission especially for the choir. They returned to the competitive circuit in March 2023 at the Dublin Feis Ceoil, winning 2nd place in the Youth Choir competition with a score of 91 marks. Upcoming events include our annual Summer Camp on the third week of August, followed by a trip to the Derry International Choir Festival in October 2023. We are again looking forward to travelling internationally with a trip to the 'Golden Voices of Barcelona' International Choir Festival and Competition in July 2024, and to the European Choir Games in Denmark in 2025. The choir is under the musical direction of Áine Mulvey MMus PhD, and works regularly with accompanists Lorna Horan, Maire Mannion and Liz Hilliard. Their repertoire includes arrangements of Irish and international folksongs, classical and contemporary art songs, sacred music, jazz, gospel and popular songs. Rehearsals take the form of whole day workshops outside of the academic term, ie., a summer camp, and shorter workshops during mid-term, Christmas and Easter breaks. The choir is currently looking to expand its numbers to 25, and will be holding auditions for interested girls in May and June 2023. Interested singers can apply for an audition slot at the link below |