Arts person, occasional trombonist, sunday cyclist, gardener, techie person, dad, and amateur photographer
Almost-daily ramblings, photos and links
Last night I went to a superb concert of mostly Kevin Volans’ music given by the Crash Ensemble at the Project Arts Centre. The concert was a great success and included three pieces by Kevin, one of which was a new work specially written for Crash.
The other three composers programmed were chosen by Volans - Jonathan Nangle, Simon O’Connor and Jennifer Walshe - each very different but all having studied with Volans.
Every time I go to a Crash concert, I always come away thinking how far Irish composition has come in the past 10 years or so. Last night was no exception. The sheer diversity, energy and commitment of the composers and performers gives me much hope for the future of music in this country. Ireland really has produced something very unique, and it’s partly thanks to people like Kevin Volans, who has given so much to this younger generation of Irish composers, that we have reached this point.
Here’s a clip from an interview I did with Volans in 2007. You can find out more about Volans here.
And here’s a clip of one of Jennifer Walshe’s pieces: