A competition to choose a song in Cornish to represent Cornwall at the Pan Celtic Festival in Ireland in April will be held at the Penventon Hotel, Redruth, on Friday, January 30.

Organisers say there was a lot of interest in the competition from Cornish musicians and the impressive line-up on the night will represent a range of Cornish talent.

This includes:

  • The Changing Room – a folk / roots band from Looe enjoying national airplay.
  • Jo Tagney and Liz Davis – St Austell harpist accompanied by vocalist performing a song by Mike Hartland.
  • Goslowes – a band from Pool performing original music with a Celtic vibe.
  • The Grenaways – a band “in the folk music genre” with a range of influences.
  • Mike O’Connor and Barbara Griggs – Nationally known folk artists with a long history of performance and recording.
  • Salt and Sky – fiddle duo bringing a fresh sound to Cornish music with their energetic reworking of traditional sons and tunes and original material.
  • Leanna Stacey – a singer / songwriter from Camborne.

While the judges deliberate, Cornish songwriter Kezia will entertain the audience.

All entries to the Pan Celtic Song Contest must be sung in the celtic language of the country they represent, and MAGA, the Cornish Language Partnership, offered help with writing lyrics in Cornish to people who were interested in entering a song to the competition.

“This is an important competition to select Cornwall’s talent to represent us on the international stage,” said councillor Julian German, Cornwall Council portfolio holder for economy and culture.

“Cornwall has performed well at the Pan Celtic Festival in recent years and we hope this run of success will continue.”

Places are limited, but early bookers can get tickets for £6 from Eventbrite (http://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/kan-rag-kernow-tickets-15179817242).