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Cath
Connelly has been playing the Celtic harp professionally since
1998. She is
now considered one of Australia's leading Celtic harpers, with her
career flourishing since claiming 3rd prize (Seniors Division) in
the 2004 Turlough O'Carolan Harp Competition, Nobber, County Meath,
Ireland. These days Cath is very much in demand for concerts,
weddings, conferences and workshops throughout
Australia.
Cath has produced five gorgeous albums over
the past six years, composing and arranging her own harp music as
part of a rich, collaborative process with Greg Hunt and other
skilled and sensitive musicians. To find out more about Cath's
music, clickhere.
She is well known for performances that invite
audiences to engage in quiet reflection and a deeper sense of
being. In true Celtic fashion, Cath also incorporates storytelling
into engaging concerts that span Irish folklore, Celtic tradition,
music and spirituality. Her music is deeply grounded in the
Celtic tradition, with its potential to dwell in that liminal space
between the known and the unknown. It is here that Cath’s music
melds contemporary spirituality with the ancient Celtic harp
tradition.
When not
performing, composing or teaching the Celtic harp, Cath leads
workshops and seminars on spirituality. In 2008,
she completed her Master of Arts thesis in Spirituality through the
Melbourne College of Divinity. Cath's thesis topic explored the
mythic figure of Brigid and her representations as Celtic Saint and
as Goddess. As a result of her thesis research, Cath, like Brigid,
finds herself dwelling within a "Christian" spiritual context
whilst simultaneously engaging with various creative "secular" and
earth-based spiritualities.
During 2008 Cath also completed a four-year
Spiritual Direction course offered by the Living Well Centre in
East Melbourne. Consequently, Cath is now a qualified
Spiritual Director. She is also one of the founding members of
Still
Centre,
an initiative in spirituality through the Anglican Diocese of
Melbourne. The Centre offers retreats and quiet days.
Contact Cath for details.
The completion of
Cath's thesis and other studies has freed up some time for playing
in her vegetable garden on the outskirts of Melbourne. If you ever
wander around Victoria's Dandenong Ranges, you might just catch
Cath in her gumboots in the backyard, composting, raising chooks
and harvesting pumpkins!
Contact details :
email cathy@cathy.com.au | 