Minister Catherine Martin hopes to see pilot live music events taking place in June

Catherine Martin TD, Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, has stated that pilot live music events could take place as early as June.

Speaking on RTÉ News on Monday – as cultural institutions, galleries, museums and libraries around the country reopened – the Minister said that she hoped to see these live events go ahead in "July [at the] latest", but also stated that she'd "be more ambitious than that."

"I’d like to see some live music events – test events – take place in June," she resumed. "These venues and performers have been stopped by the pandemic from earning a living, and we have missed performance. So I’m determined to make that happen as soon as possible."

Her comments follow the success of pilot live music events around the world. In Liverpool earlier this month, thousands of clubbers attended a Covid-19 safety pilot event in Liverpool. The city also hosted a live gig trial in Sefton Park, headlined by Blossoms. The events formed part of the national Events Research Programme. Although data from the pilot events has yet to be analysed, Matthew Ashton, Director of Public Health for Liverpool, has said that he is "confident" about the success of the trial, according to the BBC.

Read our special feature on the impact of Covid-19 on the Irish music industry here.