The hard-working musicians of chamber orchestra Camerata Ireland have barely had time to draw breath this month, following a number of exciting international festival dates.

Fresh from a prestigious gig in the Library of Congress as part of the Rediscover Northern Ireland programme, the energetic young orchestra has travelled from Kilkenny to Finland and back to Dublin, ahead of one of the most hotly anticipated festivals of the year at Clandeboye, Co Down.

Led by founder member, international Belfast-born pianist Barry Douglas, the orchestra came close to selling out the magnificent 1,000-seater mediaeval abbey in Finland that hosts the Naantali Festival every year.

It was invited to perform two opening concerts at the renowned classical music festival after they impressed festival director and cello soloist Arto Noras at the Manchester International Piano Festival in 2005.

And the second of the two opening concerts performed by the Irish chamber orchestra has been recorded for radio and is due to air within the next few weeks.

The orchestra has since played the State Apartments at Dublin Castle as a part of the Festival of Great Irish Houses, winning rave reviews for its performance of works by Mozart, Shostakovich, Elgar and Tchaikovsky.

Michael Dervan from the Irish Times commented: "I don't think I've heard a live performance of this work that was as riotous or as persuasive."

Next on the agenda is the week-long Clandeboye Festival from August 19 to 25 in the courtyard of the Clandeboye Estate outside Bangor. Those lined up include horn player Richard Watkins, clarinetist Michel Lethiec, cellist Andres Diaz and violinist Chee Yun.

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