AFTER two years absence the famous Fishguard Folk Festival is back and happy to be home again! From Friday 27 through to Sunday 29 May many different venues in the town will offer a wonderful variety of music, song and dance – as well as the popular and notorious “Fishguard Pirates and Smugglers walk” (Sunday AM).

Organisers say that this is one of the best small town traditional folk music festivals in the UK and nearly all the events are free! Look out for the festival’s colour programme which gives details of times and venues or see the Fishguard Folk Festival website for information on performers and artists. The official opening will be held in the town square on Saturday morning at 10.30 am.

The Herald understands that there will be sessions in several different locations with a variety of music including jigs, reels, sea shanties and much more. There is a twmpath/ceilidh (Friday evening) as well as dancing and workshops throughout the weekend.

Organisers said: “This year we welcome a wonderful variety of performers including Alaw, who have been described as a “Welsh supergroup”, the Shackleton Trio and the Jackie Oates Trio who have concerts in Theatre Gwaun.

“In addition look out for our own Pembrokeshire group Broadoak who have a new show “Birdsongs” for this festival. Andrew McKay and Carol Etherton are accomplished singers and instrumentalists from the Gower peninsular.

“Harriet Earis is a Celtic harpist specialising in Irish, Welsh and Scottish music. While the harpist Chloe Mathraru is from Scotland. We also welcome the Cherrystones from the borders, Nick Scott on Uilean pipes, John Tose a Preselli piper, Heb Enw Morris dancers and there is so much more!

“Do come and join us and we are sure you will have a wonderful weekend!”

VIVA LA DIVA, the top live music night of the Summer is coming to the Lewis Lloyd Home ground of Narberth RFC on Sunday, June 26.

Being just 48 hours after the year’s ‘longest day’ you can understand why many are calling it a ‘Midsummer Night’s Dream’ of live music!

Featuring internationally renowned tributes to three Global Superstars, the show will feature X Factor finalist Nicola Marie as Amy Winehouse, the talented Jayne Middleton as Annie Lennox, and Nicola Marie as Shania Twain. All three acts will be accompanied by a live band.

The evening will kick off with an appearance by top local Pembrokeshire ‘House of Fun’ Ska and Two-Tone Tribute Band ‘Sorted’, who will be performing as an 8-piece band.

Gates open at 5pm, with music playing up until 11pm, with a full bar and hot food facilities being on offer.

This is a charity event in aid of MIND Pembrokeshire and other Rotary supported charities and good causes.

The event is being promoted by Narberth & Whitland Rotary and Narberth RFC

Tickets are already proving in great demand, with a great discount offer for 4 or more tickets available online at the Rotary Website www.nwrotary.co.uk and also at Narberth RFC Clubhouse. They accept both card and cash.

Individual tickets can also be bought (cash only) at Rock ‘n Rolla Boutique, Narberth, Dales Music Shop, Tenby, Milford Haven Travel and James Music Studio, Nott Square, Carmarthen.

You don’t want to miss out on this great event.

TICKETS go on sale today (Monday 16 May) for this year’s Fishguard and West Wales International Music Festival concerts. The full programme is available to view on the Festival website www.fishguardmusicfestival.com and features the largest number of performances in the Festival’s history extending over three weeks in August and September.

The events will be staged at thirteen venues across Pembrokeshire from 20 August to 10 September, with a launch concert by the National Youth Brass Band of Wales at St David’s Cathedral on 5th August.

Artists performing at this year’s festival include Dame Sarah Conolly who appears as soloist with the Orchestra of Welsh National Opera, and Welsh pianist Llŷr Williams. There will be song recitals by renowned Welsh soprano Rebecca Evans with pianist Andrew Matthews-Owen, and tenor Stuart Jackson with Jocelyn Freeman. Chamber music concerts include performances by the Sacconi Quartet, Peter Donohoe, Harriet Mackenzie and Morgan Szymanski. The European Union Chamber Orchestra and WNO Chamber Orchestra make welcome return visits, and The Marian Consort performs ‘Music from the Sistine Chapel’ at St David’s Cathedral as well as taking part in the ‘Saints and Stones’ tour of historic churches and chapels. Folk group Vrȉ will perform alongside Pedair, and Khamira will close the Festival on Saturday September 10th with a fusion of Welsh and Indian music at the Merlin Theatre, Haverfordwest.

Tickets will be on sale from 9.00am on Monday 16th of May and can be booked via the Festival website at www.fishguardmusicfestival.com

Gillian Green MBE, Artistic Director of the Fishguard and West Wales Music Festival, said: “I am very excited about the variety of events in this year’s Festival which comprise a feast of world-class music covering six centuries as well as new commissions by Welsh composers Nathan James Dearden and Geraint Lewis. Pembrokeshire will greet musicians from across the UK, Mexico and India and there will be a talk by Professor Michael Spitzer whose book The Musical Human was a recent Radio 4 ‘Book of the Week’.