The Cork International Choral Festival is coming to Cork once again and is being held on Wednesday, April 30 until Sunday, May 4, in Cork's City Hall.

A total of 85 performances will be made over the 5 day annual festival where each participant will perform in a number of concerts, performances and competitions such as the Fleischmann International Trophy Competition.

The festival - which was founded in 1954 – attracts, approximately, around 5,000 participants including 500 adult, school and youth choirs as well as amateur choirs from 22 countries around the world. The festival welcomes a variety of choirs from these countries for a number of different performances including a programme of gala concerts, school concerts and national and international competition.

From these choirs, the most outstanding amateur choirs are chosen to compete in the prestigious Fleischmann International Trophy Competition. These selected choirs also take part in a number of non-competitive festival events.

This year a total of 15 choirs are participating for this prestigious award, including "University of Alberta Madrigal Singers", from Canada, "The University of Alabama at Birmingham Concert Choir", from USA and "Cois Cladaigh", from Ireland.

Gala concerts are held throughout the festival with a wide range of different musical talents from around the globe. Opening the gala concerts is Touché, a capella jazz ensemble hailing from Denmark. Following Touché's performance throughout the weekend will be Canadian choir Musica Intima on Thursday, May 1st both held in the City Hall.

Throughout the weekend a number of national competitions will take place in City Hall and St Finbarr's Cathedral. These competitions will begin on Thursday, May 1st in City Hall at 12pm with the section one primary schools competition and at 2pm with the section three mixed post-primary schools.

Following both competitions on Friday, May 2nd will be section 2 equal voice post-primary schools session one at 10 am, which will lead into session two and session three at 12.30pm and 3.15pm all being held in City Hall. Moving into Saturday May 3, the premiere national competition will take place at 10am, again in City Hall.