The good ship GEM sails over the sea on a journey of discovery.  Its sail bears a single semi-breve, indicating that our musical adventure looks to the past.  As a symbol, the boat implies journeying, exploration & trade -  all very important in the story of Galway Early Music.

The ‘sea’ on which the sailing boat finds itself is a weave of two sets of five curved lines. The five lines are of course musical staff. Notation and such have been omitted to keep the symbol simple and memorable. A sea of music is deep, mysterious and bountiful, as well as timeless.

The overall shape also evokes a hanging banner further reinforcing historical association.

The full logo with text includes both the English and Irish names of our organisation.  Galway is in the west of Ireland, the gateway to the Connemara Gaeltacht and a city not only of English speakers, but of Irish speakers and a multitude of other languages.  

One of our goals is to promote the music of medieval, renaissance and baroque Ireland as part of European Culture. The areas of research and performance of this repertoire has exploded in the last ten years, we aim to reflect this in our programmes.

And in journeying afar in our musical boat, we also enjoy highlighting the musical links between Europe and other parts of the world, such as the Middle East.

Who ever thought a little logo could carry so much!

Thank you to Jason of KARVE design who worked with us so patiently.  What an excellently well-crafted design!