“Thank you to every one of you for engaging with us in a positive manner. An unforgettable experience. We had a blast!”
A Belfast flute band said it has been “completely overwhelmed” by the response to their performance at the Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann.
The Shankill Road Defenders Flute Band performed on the Gig Rig stage outside Belfast City Hall on the last day of the eight-day festival, on Sunday, August 9.
Despite the rain, the band said they received a “thunderous” reception, which left them feeling like “rock stars.” In the days since, they have gained thousands of followers on social media, and hundreds of thousands of people have viewed clips of their performances.
In a post on their Facebook page, the band said: “Now that the dust has settled, and we’ve had time to reflect on the weekend. We would like to congratulate the Belfast Bands Forum on what has been a historic 8 days at The Fleadh for all the member bands.
“We would like to congratulate all the forum bands and members who took part and made it such a success for the forum, and for representing our culture in such a dignified manner.
“A big thank you to Darren Leighton, Chairman of the Belfast Bands Forum, and Maurice Brown for the work they put in behind the scenes. And a big congratulations to Maurice on his Bardic award – very well deserved. Also to Cllr Sarah Bunting and former Belfast Lord Mayor Tracy Kelly for the work they do with the Bands Forum.
“A massive thank you to Comhaltas, the organisers, for giving us the opportunity to showcase our music and culture, and for the warmth with which we were received.”
The flute band said they have been “completely overwhelmed” as after their final performance on Sunday, their Facebook page jumped from 12,000 to 14,000 followers within a number of hours.
They added: Hundreds of thousands have viewed clips of our performances, with over 15,000 reactions, over 1,000 comments and over 400 shares to date, and our inbox has been inundated with messages of congratulations and well wishes.
“It’s quite surreal – we have had comments and messages from every corner of the Republic of Ireland and, here at home, and from the most unlikeliest of places, namely the Falls Road.
“We never imagined the impact our performance on the Gig Rig in particular would have had. We set out to represent our community and culture and to simply do what we love to do, and that’s play our music and entertain a crowd.
“When we stepped out of City Hall to a thunderous reception, we felt like rock stars, and again, leaving the stage back into City Hall, it was cranked up a another notch.
“Thank you to every one of you for engaging with us in a positive manner. An unforgettable experience. We had a blast!”
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