What Even is Irish Contemporary Music?

  • Emily Anderson Concert Hall, NUI Galway
  • 09 March 2019 at 7pm
  • €15/€10

What even is Irish Contemporary Music? Is it supposed to sound like that? What are these composers thinking? These are just some of the questions most people ask on first hearing new music. And not knowing the answers can make this kind of music daunting and unappealing. On Saturday 9 March at 7pm in the Emily Anderson Concert Hall, the Galway ConTempo Quartet, with pianist Aileen Cahill answer these questions and more, giving the audience the chance to discover the beauty and wonder hidden beneath the sounds, textures and tensions of contemporary music.

The concert follows two days of workshops that ConTempo, Aileen Cahill and Education Consultant Kim Fallen Bailey will have presented to Leaving Cert students on the Gerald Barry Piano Quartet No. 1, a set work on the leaving cert syllabus. This piece of music is often one of the most challenging elements of syllabus for both students and teachers. With the Galway Music Residency’s tailored workshop, students and teachers have the opportunity to take apart the work with live musicians and understand its complexities and how to approach it ahead of the June examinations. Some spaces are still available for the workshop on 9 March at 3:30pm. Contact info@thegalwaymusicresidency.ie or 091-586706 to book your place.

However, there is no need to have attended the workshops in order to enjoy and benefit from this lively event, which is open to the public. As well as Gerald Barry’s full Piano Quartet No. 1, works by living Irish composers Ian Wilson, Jane O’Leary, Deirdre McKay, Greg Caffrey and Frank Corcoran will be presented in easily digestible chunks. Listening points will be provided by the musicians to give the audience a fuller experience. If you have ever been curious about contemporary music, or you want to learn more, this evening of contemporary musical tapas is for you.

Tickets available on eventbrite or on the door. Students and teachers who have participated in a workshop can attend the concert for free.The Emily Anderson Concert Hall has no step-free access.



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