 Artists, or was that way off the mark? Le foyer des artistes, we les hommes. That was really good. No, no, no, it sounds much better coming from you. Anyway, how are you? Well, I'm very well. And thank you very much for inviting me onto the program. I suppose a lot of your listeners will be wondering why the hell did I actually call this thing Le foyer des artistes? And I suppose language is really a very important part of culture. We know that also, you know, it's amazing here with Rhode Island even though a small percentage of people speak Irish, that's important. We preserve language for future generations. And, you know, with the European identity of our people, certainly I who live in Switzerland, we have four national languages, you know, Italian, French, German and Romanche. So I wanted to choose something that was a little bit of inspiration for young people in the word foyer is really it's actually quite Irish because it means fire. It means hearth. It's that welcoming thing. You know, you go into every establishment. There's that big roaring fire. It's a welcoming point where people gather to come together and it's not spirit of, you know, a grip of an ensemble of musicians who come together really with the energy that they all have to create magic and to be able to share it in a community. And so when I was thinking, where am I going to launch this? I thought no better place than in the fantastic St Columns Hall. Yeah, in the center of this magnificent wall to the city of Derry in Derry. Yeah. And St Columns Hall. What does St Columns Hall mean to you? Oh, it means an awful lot because when I was a boy, I sung there like many, many other people throughout the Northwest. I saw my first big show first opera there. I saw a piece called The Rick's Burgers by Stravinsky, which made an enormous impact on me because I remember the experience of going into the hall through those big doors and seeing all the you know, the the the gold and red velvet and thinking what is amazing theatrical experience. So, you know, it means a lot to me. And I mean, I've been away for a long period of time. And I know the hall had all fallen into a state of disrepair, which was it was quite sad. But then I just before COVID had read about the restoration of the hall that it's now in a trust and has received a significant amount of investment from the Heritage Lottery Fund. And amazingly, up until the point just the day before our first concert, the hall was put back to really a magnificent state. And the whole floor had been revealed and it just looked magnificent. And I was delighted for the first time to be able to share a concert with the people throughout the city. Some people have never been to a concert like this before and also to enjoy the reaction to it, because people have are still to this day talking about that concert and the subsequent concerts, which we have done. Yeah, well, you've done a number of concerts there now. So to be back in the sort of restored renovated and columns and doing what you do best, you know, how does it feel? And what sort of a venue is it to present a concert in? It feels magnificent to finally be able to make my own home city part of my story, because you get to a certain point in life and you, of course, you have wonderful experiences. But as I look towards the future and I think what will be my biggest legacy, I think, you know, the here is an enormous opportunity to be able to use my experience and all the the wonderful people I've met throughout the world and to be able to plug this into the place where I come from and share the beauty of of Dairy and also of Donegal, which is also, you know, a very important part of my story because it's basically where I grew up and to share that with every everybody throughout the world. And Dairy and the Northwest is at a very exciting moment in its history. I think this is the most exciting moment because, you know, there are many tech companies who are moving into Dairy and we are so lucky to have the support of the biggest companies in Dairy. For example, you know, Challenge Curve, Learning Pool and especially Alchemy Technology. And John Harkin, who is the founder and CEO of Alchemy Technology, has now become our chairman. So that's really, really exciting for us. But about the whole also, I mean, there it could be no better place to launch Lafoye des Artistes because it's the spirit of St. Colombe. Colombe is the figure really is the story, which also binds Dairy and Donegal together. You know, it's that ancient story about shared cultural heritage, about the, you know, about Irish people having this story for over 2000 years, about making culture, travelling around the world without fear and sharing it with other people. And it's also the story really, which links Ireland and Switzerland incidentally to because I'm not sure if people know, but there is even a city in Switzerland called St. Gallen, which was founded by the Irish Monk Gallus, who was a contemporary of St. Colombe. So that is an ancient story, but it's a modern story, too, because that legacy of St. Colombe continues to this day and people will know if they visit a Trinity College in Dublin that the Book of Kells, which is visited by thousands of people every day from all over the world, was made by Colombe monks. So it's that legacy, which is, I think, such an important part of our own heritage and also for young children to understand that, too. And it's it's weird. It's really a new chapter in that story, which we're opening. OK, you mentioned there and some of the big tech companies that have supported this and another supporter has been Yamaha and they've done it in a unique way. Absolutely. I mean, this is something beyond my wildest dreams. I mean, a new one to be able to have this big vision and to get it off its feet is hard enough in itself. I mean, I've been, as I say, very lucky to have had the support of all the tech companies in Derry also must say a special word thanks to the Derry City Institute Council, who have also given headline funding from day one. Also the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, Fleming Steel also. But yes, the the Yamaha story, what I wanted to do in our second concert, which was to find an award, which would would really would celebrate a couple of young musicians who are starting off in their careers because musicians, they don't just play instruments. They have a gift which will be which they will, you know, they'll go out into the world to travel around the world and this gift will be shared with other people. They will change the lives of other people throughout the course of their lives. And so this is really part of the programming. And so again, a continuation of the Columban story. But when I spoke to, you know, my contacts with Yamaha and through the story with Manchester in the UK and everything, they absolutely loved this. They loved the Columban story, the uniqueness of it. And they said they absolutely wanted to support. So they in February, they brought their newest piano, the CFX 2000, which 2010, which has been endorsed by the London Symphony Orchestra. They brought from London on over in the ferry, right? Not to Dublin, not to Belfast. Transporting it over to St Colombs Hall. And it was absolutely fantastic. And of course, the winner of that prize comes back now at another important time of shared cultural heritage, the Feast Day of St Colomba in June. And it will come back for the performance again. We'll come back from London on the ferry to St Colombs Hall with its own technician and it's an absolutely fantastic story. And I know that Yamaha have already said that they are invested in this story long term as we plan to the future and very exciting collaborations with other institutions which exist within the city and across the county of Derry and Donegal to support young musicians. I mean, I've been also in Derry this week at the Derry Feast, which is another important cultural institution. I mean, so much to people throughout the Northwest. And I've been absolutely delighted to hear the wealth of talent which exists throughout this region, including so many young pianists and instrumentals from Donegal. They were absolutely fantastic. And so what we are doing in St Colombs Hall is not just about Derry, it's about this entire region and sharing with the whole entire world the beauty of this region. I should say also just a special word of thanks to Tourism Ireland, Europe, who have supported us from the very beginning to be able to tell the story and also share the beauty of the place in which we live. So you've been sort of in residence in St Colombs and you've had access to this fantastic Yamaha piano. It's all fallen into place for you. I mean, it's all... Well, I'm sure there's been a lot of graft and hard work, but it just sounds now like it fell into place for you at the right time. Absolutely. I think the timing is absolutely perfect. And I suppose had it not been for COVID, I know that it's been a very stressful time for everybody. You know, it's been a challenging time. But had I not had the moment to stop and think carefully about where I should launch this, perhaps it might not have happened. So in my case, it has been fortuitous because I've had the opportunity to think about, oh, this is an amazing hall. This is the hall, the people that mean so much to everybody. And also, it's designed with acoustic properties in mind. It really is an amazing venue for live music. And that's absolutely fantastic. And the hall is slowly but surely going towards a state of complete restoration. And I'm delighted that Lafoye de Zartiste is part of that story. And I have a very big vision and a lot of stories to tell. So I'm looking forward to in these coming months and years to rolling out the plans. Tell us a little bit about your story, Switzerland and living there for 12 years working around Europe. How did you end up in Switzerland? Well, I suppose if you pull it back again right to the very beginning, I mean, the passion for singing and the great culture there is in this part of the world for singing. I mean, as a young pianist, I, of course, I fell in love with the singing and all the opportunities I had. And of course, I was quickly then taken on with the scholarship to, first of all, in Manchester and then to the Royal Academy of Music in London. And I met all the right people. And I was, again, very lucky to have people who supported me and encouraged me. And then I got places in Apprentice at the, I applied for places in Apprentice at the Zurich Opera House, which is really one of the best in the world. It's right in the center of Europe. It's a very wealthy opera house in Switzerland and has a real wealthy culture because throughout the entire history, it has played an important part of people traveling or seeking refuge and all that. So it means it's a fascinating place. And I got a full-time job there as a pianist and assistant conductor. And then that just led to more and more opportunities. So Switzerland's been a fantastically generous country to me and it's also a very important part of my story. But the nice thing is that there's a fantastic bond of the Celtic history between Switzerland and Ireland. And that's a story which I want to tell also as we move forward. Whatever about the story and whatever about the, I suppose, the background, it's ultimately, it comes down to the music. And I get the impression that you just love playing your music and bringing it to the masses, bringing it to crowds and playing it and bringing other people into this collective to play great music for people to enjoy. Absolutely. I mean, that's absolutely my passion. It's my vocation in life, like so many other musicians. And it's up to people like us also, but to communicate to everybody that there's nothing, this is elite music. Music is elite because as is football is elite because it has to be good. When people go to a football match, they want to see good players, you know? But the football match is for everybody. That's the most important thing. And I say to everybody, what we're doing at St. Com's Hall is elite because it's the best players in the world, but they're coming to this hall because to play with Lafayette's artists because they want to share the music with everybody. So this is for absolutely for everybody. And I want to share it with, not just with people throughout the Northwest, through Ireland, but throughout the entire world because we already have an audience of near on 14,000 viewers. Brilliant, brilliant. Well, listen, there's been three concerts, as I mentioned, to date. There is one more coming up in June, and I thought it was on the 9th. It's actually on the 13th of June and it's called the Midsummer Concert and tickets are still available for this. This will be the culmination of your residency in the hall. So tell us what people can expect at that. Well, it's very exciting because of the winner of this Concerto Awards from February, who is not only will he have the opportunity to play also in an engagement in Spain, which will be coming up November, but he'll come back to St Colombs Hall on the 13th of June to play Mozart's 9th Piano Concerto. So people will have the opportunity to hear this incredible piano, the CFX nine foot concert grand piano with Lafayette's artist in a spectacular program. And that will be the conclusion of our season. OK, well, that's coming up on the 13th of June and people can get more information online. Where what you can buy tickets on at Lafayette's artist.com online. And yeah, so you've got to our website. It's only a couple of clicks away. OK, brilliant. It's been a pleasure and the best to look with the rest of your residency and also the big concert in June. And thank you very much for coming in. Thank you very much.