Learning & Participation
The West Wicklow Festival is proud to present a diverse programme of school workshops, masterclasses, family concerts and outdoor and indoor musical activities!
Our educational mission is to provide music education and quality musical experiences to people from all backgrounds. Our programme includes family concerts, school visits, masterclasses, our Rising Stars concerts, and our Composition Competition, which is run in partnership with the Contemporary Music Centre.
A highlight of the 2025 Education Programme was the enchanting new festival commission ‘Farmyard Carnival’, conceived by Artistic Director Fiachra Garvey, who invited award-winning Irish children’s poet Lucinda Jacob (recipient of the 2023 Irish Children’s Book of the Year Award) and British composer Paul Rissmann (prize-winner at the British Composer Awards) to collaborate in the creation of this new work. Farmyard Carnival was performed by festival director Fiachra Garvey, fellow pianist Soo-Jung Ann and the Irish Chamber Orchestra, in what was an enriching and fun musical experience for all the family!
We're very excited for our 2026 May festival, which will feature an Opera Magic family concert, introducing young children and families to the magical world of Opera. You can find out more and book tickets here.
It is a strong part of our educational mission to bring music to young people in an accessible and enjoyable way, and we are very much looking forward to delivering this concert and sharing this music with the local community!
We are currently planning a collaboration with the stunning June Blake’s Garden, which will bring some of our Rising Star musicians and local guest artists for a pop-up performance and biodiversity talk for local children to coincide with Biodiversity Week and our upcoming May festival. We are in the process of seeking funding in order to deliver this exciting project, which would add to our portfolio of regular masterclasses and school workshops.
Education and Outreach is an integral part of our festival mission and we are so grateful to everyone who has contributed to making it such a vibrant and viable part of our artistic programme.
