Album and Concert Reviews
'Out of the Ordinary/As an nGnách', a new opera by Finola Merivale and Jody O’Neill experienced through virtual reality, is currently running as part of the Dublin Fringe Festival. Adrian Smith reviews.
'The Main Stage', a new music show on RTÉ One, ran for six episodes from July until August this summer and featured artists such as Cormac Begley, Denise Chaila, The Scratch and Tolü Makay. Andrea Cleary reviews.
Irish composer Finola Merivale's debut album 'Tús', winner of the National Concert Hall/Sounding the Feminists Music Recording Award, features five works performed by New York chamber music ensemble Desdemona. Brendan Finan reviews.
The Department of Energy, the record label founded by Dan Callanan, has recently released 'May Day (Landscape Mixtape)' featuring 63 tracks from over 40 artists, exploring the theme of local resistance to corporate and state violence. Don O'Mahony reviews.
Celebrating ten years, Kirkos ensemble hosted their festival '10' in Dublin in July, featuring new work from Susan Geaney, Sebastian Adams, Jonathan Nangle, Áine Mallon and Robbie Blake. James Camien McGuiggan reviews.
David Bremner's chamber opera 'Slow Recognition' was premiered at Unit 44 in Dublin last week. Brendan Finan reviews.
A new album on the Diatribe label features South African pianist Jill Richards performing six of Kevin Volans' études, while the composer plays a number of works by Liszt. Mark Fitzgerald reviews.
'Chimp', the new solo album from violinist and singer Diamanda La Berge Dramm, is a collection of avant pop with words by Steven J. Fowler. Brendan Finan reviews.
Returning for its first live festival since 2019, the West Cork Chamber Music Festival took place from 24 June to 3 July with over 100 concerts. James Camien McGuiggan attended for three days and reviews a number of events.
The Body & Soul festival returned on 17–19 June with a reduced capacity and a line-up including CMAT, Róisín Murphy, Pillow Queens and Jon Hopkins. Andrea Cleary reviews.
