Pat O’Kelly   Brainchild of the ubiquitous John O’Conor, the Dublin International Piano Competition celebrated its 30th birthday last month with the 11th of its triennial events held at both the RDS and National Concert Hall. The 2018 competition, with its €15,000 first prize, together with a series of recitals in Ireland and overseas including…

Pat O’Kelly   The NCH’s 2017/18 International Concert Series is coming to a close. One programme remains on  June 12 – the first visit here of the Würth Philharmonic with Russian-born violinist Maxim Vengerov as both soloist and conductor. The principal works are Max Bruch’s evergreen 1st Concerto and Shostakovich’s 10th Symphony, which almost tops…

Pat O’Kelly   In September 2016 the National Concert Hall, RTÉ and Bord na Móna devised a celebration of music spanning the previous century. Entitled Composing the Island, it was a bold endeavour but, maybe at the end of its three-week run, one had become somewhat saturated and I remember suffering, what I call, musical…

Pat O’Kelly   Described as ‘unpredictable’ and ‘anarchic’ as well as having ‘expressive intensity’, it may not be surprising to find Gerald Barry’s compositions have something of a controversial streak in them. Born in Clarecastle in Co. Clare in 1952, Barry’s introduction to music came from hearing Handel’s opera Xerxes on the radio. He was…

Pat O’Kelly   Hopefully Friday, April 13, 2018 will prove an auspicious date for Irish National Opera when the curtain rises on its inaugural production – Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro. The première’s venue is fittingly Wexford’s National Opera House after which the company moves to Dublin’s Gaiety Theatre where the enchanting piece has performances…

Pat O’Kelly   Despite visiting Leipzig last year during its annual Bach Festival, my musical encounters centred not on Johann Sebastian but on Claudio Monteverdi, as the event also celebrated the Italian master’s 450th anniversary through his proto-opera Orfeo and magnificent Vespers of the Blessed Virgin. The St Nicholas Lutheran Church provided the resplendent ecumenical…

Pat O’Kelly   I was regaled at the National Concert Hall recently by two award-winning young pianists – Alexander Bernstein and Fiachra Garvey, both former pupils of John O’Conor at the RIAM. Accompanied with spontaneous aplomb by the RTÉ NSO, they conveyed the wit and charm of Francis Poulenc’s effervescent Concerto for Two Pianos written…

Pat O’Kelly   With conductor Fergus Sheil active as both artistic director of Wide Open Opera and Opera Theatre Company, it seemed a natural progression both companies would merge. And so they did. Formed last year, with generous beneficence from the Arts Council, the new company was launched under the banner of Irish National Opera.…

Pat O’Kelly   Next week the RTÉ NSO celebrates its 70th birthday with its concert at the NCH on Friday, February 16. Directed by former principal conductor Gerhard Markson, music by Wagner, Prokofiev and Deirdre Gribben brings soprano Orla Boylan and pianist Finghin Collins as soloists. But there had been a Radio Éireann Orchestra prior…

Pat O’Kelly   Among a number of anniversaries, this year commemorates two distinct and unrelated centenaries – Estonian Independence and the birth of the US composer/conductor Leonard Bernstein. Both events are being highlighted at the National Concert Hall next week through the return of the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir (EPCC) on January 31 and the…