THE story of bees travelling across the Irish Sea has inspired new work from two virtuosos who will be performing together at a music festival in St Asaph.

Welsh harpist and composer Catrin Finch and award-winning Irish violinist Aoife Ní Bhríain will take centre stage at the North Wales International Music Festival (NWIMF) at a concert at St Asaph Cathedral on Friday, September 29.

The duo will be among the star attractions at this year’s festival that’s on from September 15 to 30.

The festival’s artistic director, Ann Atkinson, who is stepping down from her role after this year’s event, said: "Catrin has appeared many times at the festival.

“Each performance has been truly memorable and that is why I was keen to invite her back for what will be my last North Wales International Music Festival as artistic director.

“She and Aoife will perform pieces from their forthcoming debut album, Double You, which features a collection of new compositions that draw inspiration from various genres, taking listeners on a captivating journey on the wings of the bees across the Irish Sea and inspired by the cultures of their home countries.

“Running through their stories – as individual creatives, remarkable women, and now as an inspirational duo – are universal themes of identity, self-belief and the courage to find yourself and follow your own path.”

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Catrin and Aoife first linked up for an online festival during the COVID-19 pandemic and discovered a professional and personal affinity.

Aoife added: "Traditional music is really all about collaboration, it's like a musical conversation, we're chatting through the music about all the things we've played before and what we're about to play next.

"We're drawing on all the influences we have, our worlds are just kind of colliding and we're creating this new language out of it."

Born in Dublin, to a family of musicians, Aoife Ní Bhriain has established herself as one of the most versatile musicians of her generation and has played with a host of leading orchestras, including the Royal Philharmonic and the Royal Chamber Orchestra.

Catrin hails from Llanon, south of Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, and studied harp with Elinor Bennett from an early age.

During the 1990s, she won several competitions for young harpists including the Nansi Richards Prize and the Blue Riband at the National Eisteddfod.

The theme of the festival this year is “horizons”, as the festival moves into a new era and the closing concert, on Saturday, September 30, will take the form of a farewell to Ann.

It will feature the NEW Sinfonia, the NEW Voices Community Choir and soloists Lisa Dafydd and Dafydd Jones.

Also taking part will be Ann, an accomplished mezzo-soprano, and her husband Kevin Sharp, baritone.