Author Archive

‘Dystopia’ will be performed by Kirkos Ensemble at St Patrick’s Festival, at the Chocolate Factory, Dublin, on March 20th.  More information about the event here.

Things have been quiet for the past couple of months as I’ve been somewhat preoccupied with doctoral study.  I’m looking forward to getting back into writing after a break.  I’ve recently been commissioned to compose four new pieces – three as part of a larger choral commission (more news to come) and one, a short piece for duo Illumina, based in London.  The duo piece is for trumpet and organ.  Having only written once previously for organ (and not in great detail), I will have to undertake some research into writing for the instrument.  I”ve not been very active in the Twittersphere lately, apart from some occasional re-tweets, but I will do my best to be disciplined and make note of exciting events to come.

Solfa has been commissioned to write a new piece for London-based Illumina, Ellie Lovegrove (trumpet) and Richard Moore (organ).  Information about the duo and their upcoming concerts, along with audio samples, available here.

Solfa’s chamber opera The Exile, written in collaboration with librettist Gillian Pencavel, is being workshopped by opera company Helios Collective, to be performed at the Arts Theatre on Friday 13th November at 2:30pm.  This is part of the Formations Project, in which three short operas were chosen to be rehearsed and presented  in masterclasses over a two-week period.  More information on the project is available here.

Solfa is producing a score for solo ‘cello to accompany ‘Victory’ – a new theatre work produced by the Nightingale Collective and written by Madicken Malm.  Information on the play here

The piece ‘Dear, Dirty Dublin‘, for ‘Cello and percussion, composed and first performed in 2010 will receive another performance by the G Project on Thursday, March 5th at a non-classical event at the Cafe Royal, London.  Details of the event here.

Also on March 7th, Solfa’s ‘Two Joyce Songs‘ for SATB choir will be premiered at the Forte Festival in Cork, Ireland, along with the third performance of ‘Is Mairg an Te gan Cheol’ (2012).

On Monday 8th December, the London Russian Ballet School performed a concert at Cadogan Hall, featuring Solfa’s orchestral arrangements, including Act II of Adam’s Giselle, and a new orchestration for ‘Humoresque’ by Gela Charkviani.

On 24th January, the orchestral version of ‘Little River’ will be performed by the Oxford Sinfonia at the church of St Mary the Virgin in Oxford.  Tickets and info here.

Solo flute piece ‘Dystopia’ will receive another performance by William Dowdall in Dublin on Thursday November 20th, at a concert presented by the Association of Irish Composers.  The concert, ‘The Irish Canon’, also features pieces by Patrick Connolly, Rhona Clarke, Raymond Deane and others.  Details here.

A video featuring clips from an earlier performance of ‘Dystopia’, and the flautist in discussion with composer Ian Wilson is visible here.

On Friday 31st October, a song by Solfa Carlile and Gillian Pencavel, ‘Rastlose Liebe’ (a setting based on a new translation of the original Goethe text, by Pencavel) will be performed in Oxford as part of the Lieder Festival, at 1.10pm in the Hollywell Music Room.  Details of the concert can be found here.

The following week, Solfa’s piece ‘Little River’ will feature as part of the ‘Art, Science and the Thirsty World’ conference in Ithaca, New York.  Together with conductor and fellow composer Cayenna Ponchione, Solfa will give a presentation on the piece at Cornell University, following a performance on the evening of the 7th November at 8pm.  Details of the event here.

Solfa’s piece ‘Upon the Rose’, premiered by the Irish National Chamber Choir last year, is now published by Choralies and available for purchase from their website here.  The sheet music includes a French translation of the text, which is by Joseph Mary Plunkett.