OVER THE next two weeks, 4,000 young people will nervously take to the stage to sing and play and afterwards will be waiting anxiously for the verdict of the panel of expert judges.
It may lack the glamour of television talent shows X-Factorand You're a Starbut the 112th Feis Ceoil which began in Ballsbridge, in Dublin, yesterday does seem to matter to the young classical music hopefuls taking part. However, the future of the venerable competition is in doubt.
From the gilded 19th-century pipes of St Bartholomew's Church organ, the loud and vigorous sound of competitors in the Stanford Cup seemed to cut through the still air of the place of devotion, where some of the competitions are taking place.
"You don't usually get to play such loud music in a church," says Kevin O'Sullivan, who is studying music in Trinity College, Dublin.
The Feis Ceoil is far better than all the other competitions in Ireland because of the standard of the examiners, he believes.
Judges come mainly from outside the country and are only allowed to judge every five years for reasons of fairness.
Irish soprano Virginia Kerr says the feedback is invaluable in helping improve her students at the Royal Irish Academy.
One of those pupils was among the 44 soloists who sang Still the Lark Finds Reposein yesterday's Music Lover's Cup. The young female soloists have been practising this extremely high and quivering song for many months.
Elaine Walsh, a student of primary school teaching from Stradbally, Co Laois, was there. She gets her voice trained every week as a hobby and says the Feis Ceol is a great opportunity.
"There are not many places you can sing songs - especially songs like these," she says.
A cacophony of nervous chatter and pockets of Gregorian chant filled the entrance area at the RDS main hall yesterday as a post-primary school choir waited to perform.
The 55 students from Rockwell College had travelled by bus through the snow from Cashel, Co Tipperary.
The first- to sixth-year students included many from Spain, Germany, Mexico and Jordan.
"We have been practising two to three evenings a week since October. It is a big undertaking," says music teacher Peter Raferty.
The future of the event - Europe's oldest and largest classical music competition - is in doubt because of the lack of a title sponsor.
After 22 years, Siemens has concluded its sponsorship of the event and organisers have not yet found a replacement.
"It would be a total tragedy if the feis ceoil no longer went on," says Virginia Kerr.
"I won the competition as did so many great Irish musicians including John McCormack and James Joyce."
