POLITICIANS MAY have fiddled while Ireland burned but today, as the country braces itself for the toughest budget in living memory, Corkonians will wake to the sound of some other musical instruments wafting over the city from the famed Shandon Steeple.
Harpist Ruth McDonnell and uilleann piper and tin whistle player Máire De Cógáin will treat the citizens of Cork to a 30-minute concert from the tower of St Anne’s Church in Shandon in the heart of the north side to try and spread some pre-budget cheer.
The duo will begin their concert at 8am; it is their contribution to Positively Cork, a campaign to try and promote a vibrant image of the Republic’s second city through the economic doom and gloom that permeates everywhere.
“We expect budget day to herald the beginning of a new austerity regime,” Ms McDonnell said. “The process will be a painful one but we hope to sound a call to hope and courage, reminding the people that neither bad bankers nor bad governance can snuff out the spirit of the Irish.
“We just want to say we are down, but we’re not out. We have a wonderful tradition of music, literature and the arts in this country and, when times look somewhat bleak, we should remember how much more there is to us than mere financial forecasts.”
According to Deirdre Seery of Positively Cork, Ms McDonnell and Ms De Cógáin are just two of many people on Leeside who have responded to the campaign which was set up to improve the city, even during the recession.
“We cannot solve the global or national financial crises,” Ms Seery added.
“We hear so much negativity that we can lose our perspective, yet we know there are wonderful things happening locally. That is why we will make 2011 Positively Cork Year.
“We believe that Cork is a great place to live, invest in and visit – and it can be even better,” she added.
“We set up Positively Cork so that people like our musicians can use their skills and energies to inspire others.”
The Shandon performance can be viewed on a YouTube clip at www.positivelycork.ie or www.ucc.ie Video Hub.
People both in Ireland and abroad are invited to respond by posting YouTube clips of themselves performing music, dance or poetry on the Positively Cork website.