A new suite by harper and composer Michael Rooney at the Barbican in London, a tour of Australia by traditional group Moxie, and a collaboration between the Royal Irish Academy of Music, Guildhall School of Music and Drama and The Juilliard School will all feature in Culture Ireland’s 2016 International Programme, titled I Am Ireland.

Announced by Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht Aodhán Ó Riordáin TD at the weekend, the multi-art-form programme, costing over two million euro, will include a range of music and operatic performances in the UK, USA, Australia and Canada.

Among the traditional music highlights are performances by Moxie in Melbourne, Victoria and Sydney in March, Téada and We Banjo 3 on tour in the US, Michael Rooney’s Macalla 1916 performed by Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann in March, a tour of the States by Ré, and a performance in Quebec of the music and dance show Sokalo, which recently premiered at The Dock.

Classical and operatic highlights include a performance of Donnacha Dennehy and Enda Walsh’s The Last Hotel in New York, a collaboration between the Irish Youth Chamber Choir and Toronto Youth Choir in Toronto, a new opera based on Joyce’s The Dead by The Performance Corporation in Montreal and Pittsburgh, and a collaboration between the Royal Irish Academy of Music and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, and between the RIAM and The Juilliard School in New York.

There will also be a performance by philosopher Richard Kearney and multi-media artist Sheila Gallagher titled Twinsome Minds: Retelling 1916 that will tour internationally, concerts and masterclasses at the Wigmore Hall to celebrate the contribution of Irish singers and musicians to Great Britain, a special concert at the Royal Festival Hall in London in April, an Irish arts festival at the London Irish Centre in June, a concert by Camille O’Sullivan in New York, and a music and poetry performance titled Exile at the Playhouse theatre in Melbourne in February.

Minister of State Ó Ríordáin commented:

It is for our artists and their talents that Ireland is known globally. Ireland has been home to many creative geniuses whose work is applauded worldwide … As we commemorate the centenary of this momentous time in our nation’s history, I am delighted that promoting our artists overseas, through Culture Ireland, plays such a prominent role in our Ireland 2016 programme.

For full details about the range of events, visit www.cultureireland.ie/iamireland or view the programme below.