Competitors across a range of instruments first take part in their own County Fleadh. Should they be selected in the first three places in their county Fleadh, they may then be forwarded to take part in the provincial Fleadh, of which there are 4 – Connacht, Ulster, Leinster and Munster.
The participants compete at their Provincial Fleadh and the best of these musicians then qualify for Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann and the honour of competing at the highest level against your peers.
The competitions themselves cater for solo as well as groups of musicians and across a large number of instruments and age groups. There are 4 age groups, U12, 12-15, U18 and O18, and instruments range from fiddle and flute to more unusual categories like melodeon and mouth organ. There is also a category for singing and spoken word and several of the instruments and singing competitions also have slow air sections.
All of the information on who is competing at the Connacht Fleadh, and the times and venues, are posted on the Connacht Fleadh website, and you can also purchase a copy of the Fleadh Clár which provides this and lots of other information and interesting articles.
Visit www.connachtfleadh.ie/competitions for details.
