Music Generation Clare presents The Irish Concertina Orchestra featuring The Irish Chamber Orchestra, Cormac McCarthy and ZoDoMo (Zoe Conway, Máirtín O’Connor and Dónal Lunny)
** Live recording**
Join Music Generation Clare’s Irish Concertina Orchestra with special guests for an evening of extraordinary music.
The Irish Concertina Orchestra
Discover the extraordinary sonic beauty of the Irish Concertina Orchestra weaving melodies through harmony progressions, with bass lines and rhythm concreting beautiful compositions that are challenging and curious to the ear.
Under the guidance of musical director Dr. Tim Collins, the Irish Concertina Orchestra will perform a number of pieces which they have been working on over the past 7 months. With 43 of the best young concertina players coming from Co. Clare and surrounding counties, they have worked with Tim Collins, Sinead Mulqueen, Cillian King and Conor O’Loughlin on commissioned compositions by Zoe Conway, Máirtín O’Connor, Dónal Lunny and Tim Collins.
Joining the Irish Concertina Orchestra on the night will be the Irish Chamber Orchestra conducted by Cormac McCarthy, ZoDoMo and Cormac McCarthy (piano).
The Irish Chamber Orchestra
The Irish Chamber Orchestra is Ireland’s most dynamic ensemble. Mixing traditional repertoire with new commissions and collaborating with everyone from DJs to dance companies, the ICO pushes the boundaries of what a chamber orchestra can do. These days, you are as likely to find them at the Electric Picnic as Mozartfest, but wherever we perform, the ICO delivers world-class concerts feted for their energy and style.
Cormac McCarthy – Piano and conductor
Cormac McCarthy is a pianist, composer, arranger and conductor from Cork, Ireland. Noted for a diverse stylistic palette, and equally at home in a variety of genres, his music is said to “defy categorisation” (Lyric FM). In 2010, having completed his Master’s degree in composition at the MTU Cork School of Music, Cormac received the prestigious Bill Whelan International Music Bursary, an award earmarked for young Irish composers studying abroad. He spent a number of years living in Chicago, where he completed a Masters in Jazz Studies at DePaul University.
His compositions and arrangements have been performed and recorded by artists including Phil Woods, Jeff Hamilton, Mick Flannery, Martin Hayes, Andrea Corr, Niamh Regan, Dana Masters, Jack O’Rourke, The DePaul Jazz Ensemble, The RTÉ Concert Orchestra, The Irish Chamber Orchestra, The New Irish Jazz Orchestra and the Cork Opera House Concert Orchestra. A new string quartet commissioned by the National String Quartet Foundation was premiered in Autumn 2021.
As a pianist, he has performed extensively at concert venues, clubs and festivals throughout Europe and the US. As a conductor, he has led the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and the Cork Opera House Concert Orchestra.
Cormac continues to be in demand as a composer, arranger and orchestrator in tandem with maintaining an active performance schedule. He lectures in piano, arranging and composition at the MTU Cork School of Music, and is director of the Cork School of Music Jazz Big Band.
ZoDoMo
Described by critics as a “trad music supergroup”, ZoDoMo is the latest highly acclaimed traditional Irish group to step into the limelight. The trio features three of Ireland’s eminent musicians, Zoë Conway, one of the country’s most gifted virtuoso musicians who is equally at home in both traditional Irish and classical styles. Dónal Lunny, popularly regarded as having been central to the renaissance of Irish music over the last three decades and Máirtín O’Connor, a master musician whose dexterity and innovation has won him worldwide acclaim.
“(ZoDoMo) achieves the near impossible: capturing the energy of a live performance in studio, fuelled by a heady (and deliciously unpredictable) mix of traditional and spikily original tunes, along with a smattering of covers. The title tells it like it is: In Full Sail – Faoi Lán Seol is a magical snapshot of three musicians flying fast and high on the momentum they have conjured with apparent effortless ease.” Irish Times
Credits:
Produced by Pádraig Rynne & Music Generation Clare
Musician Educators:
- Dr. Tim Collins (musical director)
- Cillian King
- Sinéad Mulqueen
- Conor O’Loughlin
Composers:
- Tim Collins
- ZoDoMo
- Cormac McCarthy (orchestration)
The Irish Concertina Orchestra ’22:
Áine Clancy, Anna Howard, Aoibheann Cosgrove, Aoife Dullea, Cadhla O’Keefe, Cailean Rynne, Caitlin Hanniffy, Caleb Mahony, Caoilainn McNamara, Caoimhe Murphy, Caoimhe Roughan, Déithín Ní Fhátharta, Edel Cusack, Eimhear Flannery, Emma Cullinane, Emma Flynn, Emma Louise Kenny, Eoghan Breslin, Isabelle Daly, Jenny Williams, Kate Howard, Kate Lavin, Kate Walsh, Lauren Duffy, Leona O’Rourke, Lía O’Donoghue, Lucy Pinsent, Marie Flynn, Mark McMahon, Mary Hanrahan, Neasa Nic Dhonncha
Nicole McLaughlin, Oisin Gallagher, Orlaith Barry, Orlaith Hinchy, Rachel Mahony, Rianagh Murphy, Ríona Hely, Roisin Duffy, Sarah Browne, Sarah Sheehan, Sinead Cooney
