Cultural partnership between UL and Silkroad

The launch of the new cultural partnership between UL and Silkroad, the global musical ensemble founded by cellist and cultural ambassador Yo-Yo Ma took place on Thursday, September 8 at Harvard University in Boston, US, with a series of workshops exploring the stories and songs of Irish railroad workers, followed by a performance featuring artists from Silkroad and UL. Silkroad is the global musical ensemble founded by cellist and cultural ambassador Yo-Yo Ma. The artistic and educational collaboration will provide UL students with the unique opportunity to participate in the creation of a new theatre work exploring the history, cultures, and music of the immigrant communities who built the American Transcontinental Railroad. The resulting piece will be a crucial component of The American Railroad, Silkroad’s multi-year concert, educational, and commissioning series led by Artistic Director Rhiannon Giddens, the Grammy-award winning musician who is artist-in-residence at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance at UL. We look forward to an array of artistic and educational activities—including master classes, workshops, artistic retreats, and performances—that will broaden the newly-established collaboration in the coming months. Sincere thanks to all involved in this initiative, as it was truly a wonderful experience to bring this partnership to fruition.  A special thank you is due to UL Global, especially Niamh Kavanagh; Irish World Academy students Aisling Parslow, Nora Costelloe, Margaret Nally and Aoife Griffin; and Dr Niall Keegan, who directed the UL performance. For more, see silkroad.org.