And the winner is... Methodist College, Belfast!

At the Ulster Hall Belfast this evening (15 November) Methodist College, Belfast were crowned the winners of the Co-operation Ireland All-Island School Choir Competition. Broadcast live on RTÉ ONE, the choir’s recital of ‘A boy and a girl’ by Eric Whitacre and ‘Factum est silentium’ by Howard Goodall saw them win over the other three school choir finalists –The Kings Hospital, Dublin, Saint Mary’s College, Derry and Presentation Secondary School, Kilkenny. The judging panel, comprising Dr Angela Feeney, Seamus Crimmins, Mark Duley and Dr Geoffrey Spratt said that their performance of two contrasting pieces was stunning and very sensual. The choir was presented with their £4000 cheque and trophy by Pat Doherty, Chairman of Titanic Quarter Ltd, sponsors of the event. The competition was also assisted by the Reconciliation Fund from of the Department of Foreign Affairs. With 80 school expressing an interest in the choirs, 20 choirs schools made it through to four regional heats which were held in Belfast, Dublin, Sligo and Cork. The winners from each of these heats performed in the final. Peter Sheridan, Chief Executive said “I congratulate everyone this evening on their magnificent efforts. Singing live in the Ulster Hall is one thing but knowing there are hundreds of thousands of people watching on TV is an daunting task for anyone but the four choirs excelled. However there can be only one winner, so I heartily congratulate ‘Methody’ on their outstanding performance. “I thank all our sponsors, Titanic Quarter Limited, RTÉ, the Department of Foreign Affairs without whom we could not have organised such a showpiece event. I thank all the judges who have been so committed to this competition, from judging all of the enteries to imparting their advice and encouragement to all the choirs. I also thank our staff, who have worked tirelessly to making the event a success. “I hope that this event becomes a regular competition in our calendar. It encourages young people to come together, make new friends and participate in something that they enjoy and that gives other people pleasure. The interest in this, it inaugural year, has been phenomenal so next year we expect even more schools to take up the challenge.” A selection of photos from the final can be seen in our image gallery.