Author Archive

Upcoming concerts:

23rd November 2011 – Kevin Barry Room, National Concert Hall ‘Wirewalk’ for Viola, ‘Cello and Piano.

7th January 2012 – Orchestra of St.Pauls, Covent Garden. New work ‘Vienna Vignettes’.

21st January 2012 – Aldworth Philharmonic Orchestra, Reading. ‘Sumer is icumen in’ Variations.

Solfa’s piece ‘Dear, Dirty Dublin’ is to receive another performance by ‘The G-Project’ (Genevieve Wilkins, Percussion, and Gabriella Swallow, ‘Cello) this coming Thursday, 13th October at The Forge Arts Venue, Camden.

The piece was written especially for the duo and received its premiere in April 2010. Information on the concert and on Gabi and Genevieve is available here: http://www.concert-diary.com/concert/271908886/G-Project

Solfa is set to Musically Direct a short one-act Musical, ‘Innisfree’ at Waterloo East Theatre, from 29th September to 1st October 2011. Innisfree is written by Gillian Pencavel with original music by Caroline Wigmore. http://tinyurl.com/6hmxu79

Key Perfect Launch

I found this on YouTube the other day. It’s me and two other young composers playing our piano miniatures, as published in the ‘Key Perfect’ books for miniature pianists.

Last night was the premiere of ‘Six Vignettes’ at the Recital Hall, RCM. The musicians were: Will Oinn (Oboe), Victoria Stephenson (Violin) and Lydia Scadding (Piano).

the Contemporary-Music-in-Action project promotes collaboration between composers and performers at an advanced level, and involves a year-long partnership between ensemble/soloist and composer. We have a few meetings, workshops and a flurry of emails to organise both the piece and the rehearsal process.  Essentially, we create a work together. For my piece, there was no improvisational aspect – it was conventionally notated and planned, but the players contributed textural ideas, extended techniques, multiphonics, etc, which helped to enhance the work.

Six-Vignettes is a six-movement work, which I expected to be about 12 minutes in performance. In reality it was about 14’30, due to pauses and slight adjustments in-between movements (pianist uses inside-piano techniques for movements II and V for example). I had worried about the length of the work, but the fact that each movement is concise and varied (1-2 minutes in duration), made the piece easier to digest both aurally and from a performance perspective. I had quite positive feedback afterwards; strangely the favoured movement was the third, moto-perpetuo movement, which I had considered the weakest. I am actually just about pleased with the first and last movements, mainly because of the rhythmic drive which is essential to both. That said, the first movement did create some ensemble issues due to a rhythmic subtraction principle I developed, but with some rehearsal the players did amazingly. I will put one or two of the movements up on soundcloud or on here when I get the recording back.

ICC Concert, Quiet Music Ensemble at the Kevin Barry Room, National Concert Hall.

“The most defined, and the most strikingly-crafted piece of the evening was Solfa Carlile’s Standing Chill, a duo for ‘Cello (Ilse de Ziah) and Saxophone (Seán MacErlaine) in which a seemingly traditional, quasi-modal harmonic language brims with tension between the materials allocated to the two instruments”.

– Martin Adams,  The Irish Times. (April 2011)

Solfa has been announced as the winner of the Orchestra of St.Paul’s Composition Competition, 2011. Her piece, ‘The Copper Faye’ will be performed by members of the orchestra on Sunday 19th June at St.Paul’s Church, Covent Garden.

Information about the Orchestra and their concert diary can be found at: http://www.orchestraofstpauls.org/

Opal for eight female voices, which received its premiere in June at the NCH, is having another performance by SoundSet, a new ensemble founded by Laura Kilty and Emma O’Halloran. Details of the concert below:

CMC presents two Christmas Concerts with new vocal group SoundSet on 15 December

The Contemporary Music Centre is delighted to celebrate the Christmas season with two concerts featuring SoundSet, an innovative new ensemble, on 15 December 2010. Both concerts will take place in the Centre’s new platform for performance space on the ground floor of its building in Fishamble Street. Entitled Winter Variations the concerts feature a selection of contemporary Christmas carols by Irish and International composers.

Irish composers Anne Marie O’Farrell, Jane O’Leary and Nick Roth have all written new works specifically for the ensemble and the occasion. Irish composers Stephen Gardner, Piers Hellawell and Solfa Carlile also feature. A call for contemporary carols by the Contemporary Music Centre, through its international networks, has resulted in an international carol by Pawel Lukaszewski of Poland.

SoundSet, under the direction of Laura Kilty and Emma O’Halloran, aims to put on high quality concerts which feature repertoire from a huge variety of musical genres – contemporary, electronic, Renaissance, Baroque and anything well-written and exciting!

“The Contemporary Music Centre is very pleased to provide SoundSet with their first performance opportunity and for SoundSet to be the first ensemble to perform in the Centre’s new platform for performance. We hope this is a sign of many future collaborations for our new space and continuing opportunities for Irish composers to have their work performed” says Karen Hennessy, Promotion Manager, The Contemporary Music Centre.

The first performance on 15 December is at lunchtime, 1pm – 2pm. It is open to the general public and free of charge. Booking is recommended as space is limited. To book tel: 01 6731922 or email info@cmc.ie The second performance is for friends, colleagues and supporters of the Contemporary Music Centre and takes place 6pm – 7pm, followed by a reception.

Programme – Winter Variations

Opal Solfa Carlile

The Mahogany Tree (premiere) Stephen Gardner

Emerodde Piers Hellawell

Two Christmas Motets (Irish premiere) Pawel Lukaszewski

A Winter’s Prayer (premiere) Anne-Marie O’Farrell

Ding, Dong (premiere) Jane O’Leary

Maoz Tsur (premiere) Nick Roth

Solfa has completed a fifteen-minute work for members of the Aldworth Philharmonic Orchestra, Reading. The piece, ‘Phantom Isle Suite’ will be performed on 22nd of January at the Public Hall, Reading. More ino available on the Aldworth Philharmonic website: http://www.aldworthphilharmonic.org.uk/

Solfa’s piano piece ‘Elidor’s Capture’ has been published by the ‘Simplified Music Notation’ initiative and the Creative Arts Trust. Solfa will perform her piece at the launch on Friday 12th at the Conservatoire in Blackheath, which takes place at 6.30pm. Details in the following link:

http://www.simplifiedmusicnotation.org/spweb/launchdetails.php

and also via the website: http://www.simplifiedmusicnotation.org/