EVENTS CALENDAR

2018 – 2019
As we begin the exciting countdown to our International Visiting Artists, all musicians of
175th Anniversary in 2023, I take great pleasure world renown, over five concerts.
and pride in presenting our 2018/19 calendar
of events, which visibly places our students In recent years, the RIAM has carved a very
and staff on the performance platform, and special niche in Ireland’s opera world. Working
reinforces our passionate commitment to in collaboration with strategic partners
nurturing and developing talent and ambition. including The Lir, the Abbey Theatre and IADT,
Dún Laoghaire, our wide-ranging operatic
This year we have made a concerted effort to repertoire has included a world première,
increase the representation of women in our first Irish performances of operas by living
programme of events. In November we salute composers, in addition to a huge array of
the trailblazing French Boulanger sisters on chamber operas and operatic gems. Our
the 100th anniversary of the untimely death annual productions have provided a hugely
of Lili, and mark the significant contribution of valuable training ground for countless numbers
two extraordinary pedagogues, cellist Aisling of young singers, who now represent us on
Drury Byrne and the late Deirdre Doyle, over the world stage, and have provided our loyal
two concerts in January and February. We audiences with a unique preview of the next
highlight an array of music written by women generation of operatic stars. In January 2019,
in the seventeenth century at St Ann’s in we are proud to break more new ground by
March, and present music by some of Ireland’s presenting the Irish première of Stephen
finest compositional voices in Sounding McNeff’s Banished, an adaptation of Steve
Out at Seanad Éireann, an intimate event in Gooch’s play, Female Transport, to a libretto by
the Seanad Chamber this November, which Olivia Fuchs in the potent, historical setting of
marks the centenary of women’s suffrage. Dublin’s Kilmainham Gaol Museum.
For the third year running, we mount an opera
by a woman - on this occasion Francesca We toast our Local Centre Examination
Caccini’s Alcina, the first known opera by a System, which is 125 years young in 2019, with
female composer, and present our now annual a very special family concert at the National
Saluting the Feminists day of concerts, talks Gallery of Ireland in February. This important
and panel discussions on the impact women examination system can count such household
have had and continue to have on the Irish names as singer Sinéad O’Connor and BAFTA
musical landscape. We have also made a firm winner Andrew Scott as former participants,
commitment to include music by at least one demonstrating the value and importance
female composer in each of our 11:11 coffee of this education trail and the Academy’s
morning concerts. This is the real start of important impact and influence nationally.
our journey to place women – composers,
I would finally like to draw your attention to a
performers and pedagogues – centre stage in
new initiative, First50Free (F50F), which affords
our programming output in the years ahead.
our audiences the opportunity to experience 12
Following the hugely successful inaugural of our high profile concerts free of charge. Full
series of the RIAM/NGI International Visiting details are on page 57!
Artists Series, presented in partnership with
I look forward to meeting many of you on our
our neighbours, the National Gallery of Ireland,
musical journey this season and sincerely
we are delighted to return to the magnificent
hope you enjoy our rich output of concerts,
Shaw Room for a second series this season.
masterclasses, touring, and education and
Once again, Irish audiences will experience
outreach projects.
performances by exceptional artists as we
celebrate the Academy’s impressive roster of Ciara Higgins Head of Artistic Programming
2

Piano Masterclass Culture Night

11 21
with John O’Conor
SEP SEP
Date Tuesday, 11th September Date Friday, 21st September
Time 10.00 am to 1.00 pm Time 5.00 pm to 11.00 pm
Venue RIAM Venue RIAM
Admission Free Admission Free
The celebrated Irish pianist, John O’Conor, Calling all Culture Vultures to help us
opens the Academy’s 2018/19 International put the oom into oom pah pah during our
Masterclass Programme, giving the first in a annual feast of music-making on Culture
series of public masterclasses this season in Night.
his role as an International Visiting Artist of This year our musical menu features a
the RIAM. birds-eye view of the Academy’s hugely
popular pre-instrumental course, a number
In addition to his duties as Chair of the Piano
of instrument try-out sessions for eager
Division at Shenandoah University in Virginia,
musical beavers, and live music aplenty
he is a faculty member at the Glenn Gould
provided by some of our finest emerging
School of the Royal Conservatory of Music young talents and seasoned stars.
in Toronto and Visiting Professor at Showa
Join us in our home on Westland Row for a
University in Japan. He is also in constant
fun, informal and highly-engaging evening
demand for his teaching prowess at the major
of entertainment guaranteed to send young
music institutions worldwide including The
and old home with a musical spring in their
Juilliard School, the Central Conservatory of step!
Music in Beijing, the Paris Conservatoire, and
the Royal Academy of Music and the Guildhall
School of Music in London.

An exceptional opportunity for members of

the public to witness a master teacher at
work throughout the 2018/2019 academic
year.

Soprano Florence Chong

Photograph Mark Stedman
3
4

Pianist Tiffany Qiu

Photograph Colm Hogan
 5

Centre Stage
23
at Killruddery
SEP
Date Sunday, 23rd September
Time 3.00 pm
Venue The Orangery, Killruddery
Admission €12 and €5 (children)
The Orangery of Killruddery House and
Gardens provides the picturesque backdrop
for a concert firmly placing talented RIAM
musicians centre stage this autumn.
Following the success of their début
performance last September, musicians from
the RIAM Young Scholar Programme return
to the magical surroundings of Killruddery for
some more musical fireworks!
A chance for audiences to enjoy a veritable
feast of music performed by some of
tomorrow’s brightest musical stars.

Presented in collaboration with Killruddery

6

5/12/ A Highly Opinionated

19/26 History of Opera
OCT
Date Friday, 5th, 12th, 19th and 26th October
Time 11.00 am
Venue R
 IAM
Admission €120
Opera appreciation with a difference!

This autumn the Academy invites

audiences to explore and experience the
magical world of opera through the mildly
jaundiced eyes of Anka (mezzo-soprano,
Liz Ryan) with Deborah Kelleher, her long-
time piano accompanist and “enabler”.

Over the six-week series, Anka, a singer of

no note at all, presents her own distinct
and hugely biased views on a range of
operatic topics from the sublime to the
ridiculous. Alongside her reminiscences,
Anka and Deborah will present popular
excerpts from operas by Mozart, Puccini,
Bizet, Verdi, Handel, Purcell, Gluck and
Saint-Saëns. Emerging young singers from
the RIAM - Anka’s hated competition - will
join our diva, who promises to sing herself
- if the fee is high enough or there are
handsome men of marriageable age in
the audience!
Week One Opera’s Neurotics – the
Coloratura and Castrato
(Anka’s Professional Diagnosis)
Week Two Mozart...... I Knew Him Well
(from Anka’s Memoirs)
Week Three Torment and Retribution
(A day in the life of Anka)
Week Four Must the Women Die in Opera?
(Anka’s Alternative Endings)
Week Five Lust, Longing and Libido
(Anka Bares All)
Week Six In Search of the Divine
(Anka Looks Within)
Tea/Coffee and tasty bites served from Mezzo-soprano Liz Ryan
10.30 am. Photograph Paddy Tighe
 7

Natural Trumpet
11
Masterclass with
OCT Killyan Bannister

Date Thursday, 11th October

Time 6.00 pm
Venue RIAM
Admission Free

The RIAM’s 2018/19 International

Masterclass Programme fully takes flight in
October with four master musicians coming
to work with gifted students of Ireland’s
oldest music institution. Trumpeter Killyan
Bannister starts the proceedings with an
evening event featuring gifted trumpet
players. A rare opportunity for brass
players and audiences alike to witness an
acknowledged exponent of the natural
trumpet in musical action.

Open House
13 Pianist John O’Conor
Photograph Gary Jordan
OCT
Date Saturday, 13th October
Piano Masterclass
Time 2.00 pm, 3.00 pm and 4.00 pm 16
with John O’Conor
Venue RIAM OCT

Admission Free
Date Tuesday, 16th October
The RIAM is proud to participate in Open Time 10.00 am to 1.00 pm
House Dublin, Ireland’s largest architecture
Venue RIAM
festival, which extends an annual invitation
Admission Free
to all to explore their city and experience
buildings of outstanding architectural merit. Piano maestro John O’Conor returns for a
The Academy is delighted to welcome Open morning masterclass with talented pianists of
House visitors to its premises on Westland the RIAM Keyboard Faculty.
Row on October 13th for three intimate
tours of its magnificent Georgian Rooms,
followed by a series of short musical
performances by some of our finest young
talents in the Academy’s recently renovated
Organ Room.
8

Ondine: Ravel
18
and Beyond
OCT
Date Thursday, 18th October
Time 6.00 pm
Venue National Gallery of Ireland
Admission €8/€5 & F50F
Sylvia O’Brien, soprano
William Dowdall, flute
Keith Pascoe, violin
Alex Petcu, percussion
Isabelle O’Connell, piano
Maurice Ravel Ondine
Claude Debussy Syrinx
Germaine Tailleferre Berceuse
Lili Boulanger Nocturne and Cortège
Maurice Ravel Trois Poèmes de Stéphane
Mallarmé
Olivier Messiaen: Trois Mélodies
Toru Takemitsu Itinerant for Solo Flute
Kaija Saariaho Changing Light
Siobhán Cleary Ondine (Irish première)
In the closing weeks of the National Gallery
of Ireland’s exhibition ‘Roderic O’Conor
and the Moderns’, the RIAM proud to
present a concert, curated by composer
Siobhán Cleary and pianist Isabelle
O’Connell, which takes inspiration from
Ondine, a landmark work for solo piano by
a contemporary of O’Conor’s in France,
Maurice Ravel.
Ondine: Ravel and Beyond, offers Irish
audiences an opportunity to hear a rich
palette of chamber works written in the
decade following the first performance
of the composer’s tour de force in 1908,
in addition to more recent works similarly
inspired by composers Kaija Saariaho, Toru
Takemitsu and Irish composer Siobhán
Cleary.
Presented in partnership with the
National Gallery of Ireland and funded
by an Arts Council Project Award
9
10

Vocal Masterclass 24 RIAM

19
with Brenda Hurley Guest Lecture Series
OCT OCT
Date Friday, 19th October Date Wednesday, 24th October
Time 10.00 am to 1.00 pm Time 1.00 pm
Venue RIAM Venue RIAM
Admission Free Admission Free
A passionate advocate of young singers, The Academy’s annual Guest Lecture
Brenda Hurley, Director of the International Series, proudly welcomes eminent
Opera Studio in Zurich, is acknowledged international performers, scholars and
as one of the leading vocal coaches of her musicologists to present on a wide range of
generation. subjects.
Having worked for training programmes at Bryce Morrison, one of the world’s leading
the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, authorities on piano repertoire and
the National Opera Studio, London, the performance, opens the 2018/19 series with
Young Artists Training Programme, Tokyo, a fascinating insight into one of Australia’s
Opera Studio Nederland, Amsterdam most dazzling musical talents, Eileen Joyce,
and Salzburg’s Young Singers Project, a top-ranking concert pianist, recording
she brings the breadth of her exceptional and broadcasting artist, fashion icon and
experience to Irish and international movie star of the mid-twentieth century.
singing students of the RIAM’s Vocal
Faculty over a series of visits during the
2018/19 academic year.

Piano Masterclasses
23
with Bryce Morrison
OCT
Date Tuesday, 23rd October
Time 5.00 pm to 8.00 pm
Venue RIAM
Admission Free

A visiting Professor at Birmingham

Conservatoire, Chetham’s School of Music
and the Royal Northern College of Music,
Bryce Morrison has also taught at London’s
Royal Academy of Music, Royal College of
Music, Guildhall School of Music and Drama
and Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music
and Dance. On the masterclass front, he
has travelled worldwide to share his musical
knowledge with pianists in the US, Japan,
South Africa, Singapore, Australia and
throughout Europe. Invaluable eperience he
now shares with pianists at the Academy.
 11

RIAM Philharmonia
25
OCT
Date Thursday, 25th October
Time 1.00 pm
Venue Freemasons’ Hall
Admission Admission €12/€8 & F50F
RIAM Philharmonia
Michel Galante, conductor
Haydn Symphony No 104 in D major,
Hob I:104
Liszt/Adams La Lugubre Gondola
Ligeti Concert Românesc
Having welcomed such distinguished
conductors as Kenneth Montgomery
and Jonas Alber in recent years, the
RIAM Philharmonia looks forward to
working under the baton of the American
conductor/composer Michel Galante for its
first performance in the 2018/19 season.
John Adams evocative arrangement of
one of Liszt’s late piano compositions
features alongside Haydn’s final symphony,
the crowning achievement of his
symphonic output, and Ligeti’s Concert
Românesc, a work inspired by the
composer’s musical memories from his
childhood in Romania.

Supported by the John Pollard

Foundation

RIAM Philharmonia
Photograph Colm Hogan
12

A Highly Opinionated 4/11/ RIAM

2/9
History of Opera 18/25 High Achiever Awards
NOV NOV
Date Friday, 2nd and 9th November Date Sunday, 4th, 11th, 18th
Time 11.00 am and 25th November
Venue RIAM Time 3.00 pm
Admission €120 Venue Various
Anka and Deborah continue their operatic Admission Free
journey in the company of singers from the
Academy. This month they invite audiences Recognising the wealth of talent
to join them in their search of the Divine throughout the country, the RIAM
with some lust and longing to boot! established an innovative Community
Arts programme, the RIAM High
Achiever Awards, in 2000 to celebrate
Conference of the SMEI
2/3 the educational value and priceless
NOV experience of live public performance in the
Community. The Awards programme has
Date Friday, 2nd and Saturday grown from strength to strength and now
annually salutes the wealth of talent in our
3rd November
communities, through a series of regional
Time Various concerts held each autumn.
Venue RIAM Dublin Concert and Awards Ceremony
Pavilion Theatre, Dún Laoghaire
The RIAM is delighted to welcome
delegates to Dublin for the Society for Sunday, 4th November at 3.00 pm
Music Education in Ireland’s 8th Annual Munster Concert and Awards Ceremony
event, an engaging conference which brings
ICO Studio, University of Limerick
together early years practitioners, primary
Sunday, 11th November at 3.00 pm
and post-primary teachers, community
musicians, researchers and instrumental Connacht/Ulster Concert and Awards
and vocal teachers to explore a broad range Ceremony
of topics. Placing the emphasis on music
Hawk’s Well Theatre, Sligo
education, the conference features paper
Sunday, 18th November at 3.00 pm
presentations, workshops, performances
and keynote presentations by Professor Leinster Concert and Awards Ceremony
Susan Hallam of the Institute of Education, VISUAL, Carlow
University College London, and composer Sunday, 25th November at 3.00 pm
and conductor Brian Irvine.
 13

High Achievers Elise O’Brien

Photograph Mark Stedman
14

Violin Masterclasses
5/6
with Daniel Rowland
NOV
Date Monday, 5th and Tuesday,
6th November
Time 2.00 pm to 9.00 pm (5th November)
and 9.00 am to 4.00 pm (6th November)
Venue RIAM
Admission Free

Recognised on the international scene

as a highly charismatic, colourful and
adventurous performer, violinist Daniel
Rowland pays the first of two visits in his
capacity as an International Visiting Artist
of the RIAM to work with students in violin
performance and chamber music.

Oboe and Chamber Music

6/7/8 Masterclasses with Chiara
NOV Staibano and Alessandro
Baccini
Date Tuesday, 6th, Wednesday, 7th and
Thursday, 8th November
Time 3.00 pm to 9.00 pm
Venue R
 IAM
Admission Free

As individuals and as a duo, Chiara Staibano

and Alessandro Baccini have given numerous
masterclasses throughout Europe in both
oboe and chamber music. Both professors
at the Istituto Statale Superiore di Studio
Musicali e Coreutici “G Braga” in Teramo,
they will spend three days giving oboe and
chamber music masterclasses to musicians
from the Academy this winter.
 15

Piano Duet-athon Sinae Lee Piano Recital

11 13
NOV NOV
Date Sunday, 11th November Date Tuesday, 13th November

Time 12.00 Noon to 5.00 pm Time 7.00 pm

Venue RIAM Venue RIAM

Admission Free but donations appreciated Admission €8/€5 & F50F

Mozart 6 Variations in A major, K137
Piano duets a-plenty are on the bill of fare
Bach-Kempff Siciliano from Flute Sonata
this November when staff, students past
No 2, BWV 1031
and present, and special guests of the Bach-Busoni Nun komm der Heiden
RIAM Keyboard Faculty roll out reams of Heiland, BWV 659
duo repertoire on site at Westland Row. Bach-Busoni Nun freut euch, lieben
Join seasoned musicians and evolving Christen, BWV 734
musical talent as they raise funds for the Schumann-Liszt Frühlingsnacht
RIAM Student Scholarship Programme Wagner-Liszt Liebestod from Tristan und
during this fun-filled event. Isolde
Brahms Variations and Fugue on a Theme
by Handel, op 24
Based in Glasgow, South Korean-born
Sinae Lee leads a busy life as a soloist,
chamber musician and lecturer, frequently
appearing in concert in New York, St
Petersburg, Riga, London, Edinburgh and
Glasgow, as well as cities in her native
Korea such as Seoul, Suwon and Busan.
For her recital at the Academy, she
presents an engaging programme of
musical transcriptions and variations.

Piano Masterclass
14
with Sinae Lee
NOV
Date Wednesday, 14th November
Time 10.00 am to 4.00 pm
Venue RIAM
Admission Free.
A lecturer in the Department of Keyboard
and Collaborative Piano at the Royal
Conservatoire of Scotland, Sinae Lee
brings her wide-ranging experience as
both a performer and pedagogue to the
Academy.
16

Soprano Sylvia O’Brien

 17

Third Level Open Day Junior String Quartet

17 24
Project with the RTÉ
NOV NOV Contempo Quartet

Date Saturday, 17th November Date Saturday, 24th November

Time 3.00 pm to 5.00 pm Time 4.00 pm to 7.00 pm
Venue RIAM Venue RIAM
Admission Free Admission Free
Jam-packed with performances, The RIAM is delighted that the dynamic
workshops, tours and information sessions, RTÉ Contempo Quartet returns to work
the annual RIAM Third Level Open Day
with the next generation of string quartets.
affords aspiring full-time students of
Ahead of a public performance by these
Ireland’s oldest music conservatoire
a valuable opportunity to explore the aspiring young string quartets at 6.00 pm,
diverse offering of full-time courses and the exuberant members of RTÉ’s Quartet-
experience the vibrant musical life at the in-Residence will work with a selection of
Academy. quartets from the RIAM’s Junior School in
a public masterclass, following an intensive
Sounding Out at Seanad period of coaching by members of the
23 Quartet and other string experts.
Éireann
NOV Presented in association with RTÉ
Orchestras, Quartet and Choirs
Date Friday, 23rd November
Time 7.00 pm Boulanger Day
25
Venue Seanad Chamber, Leinster House NOV
Admission Free
Date Sunday, 25th November
The Academy is proud to work with the
Time 12.00 Noon to 5.00 pm
National Museum of Ireland and the
Houses of the Oireachtas in marking the Venue RIAM
centenary of women’s suffrage with a very
Admission €12 (day ticket) €5 per session
special event in the Seanad Chamber, which
celebrates the legacy of women composers & F50F
and highlights the next generation of Paris was a magnet for female creativity
female composers from Ireland. in the early twentieth century with sisters
Nadia and Lili Boulanger taking their rightful
To book your place at this very special
event contact educationarch@museum.ie place on the world’s artistic stage. Having
or telephone 01 6486334 marked the 100th anniversary of the
death of Claude Debussy, one of France’s
Presented in partnership with the National greatest musical artists earlier this year, the
Museum of Ireland in collaboration with RIAM proudly salutes his compatriot and
the Houses of the Oireachtas peer, Lili Boulanger, who also died in 1918.
On November 25th, an array of musicians
from the Academy will commemorate
the centenary of this great musician’s
untimely death, celebrate the music of these
fascinating sisters and highlight some of
their musical influences.
18

Cello Masterclass with

28
Natalie Clein
NOV
Date Wednesday, 28th November
Time 2.00 pm to 4.30 pm
Venue RIAM
Admission Free

The dynamic English cellist Natalie Clein,

who counts Sir Mark Elder, Sir Roger
Norrington, Leonard Slatkin and Heinrich
Schiff amongst the conductors she has
worked with, pays her first visit to the
RIAM this autumn. Talented cello students
of the Academy’s String Department can
look forward to expert advice and tuition
from this exceptional musician ahead of
her performances with soprano Claire
Booth and pianist Julius Drake presented
by Music Network.

Presented in partnership with Music

Network

Cellist Nathalie Clein

Photograph Neda Navaee
 19

Musical Performance
30
and the Brain
NOV
Date Friday, 30th November
Time 10.00 am to 5.00 pm
Venue RIAM
Admission Free

A fascinating one-day symposium

investigating the neurophysiology of
musicianship and specifically posing the
question - what are the benefits of music
on the brain? A panel of international
expects from Ireland, the United Kingdom
and Germany will discuss musician’s
dystonia, related aspects of musician’s
health and the neurological characteristics
involved in skilled musical performance.
This innovative symposium relates to
research currently being carried out by
the Royal Irish Academy of Music, Trinity
College, the University of Dublin and
University College Dublin.

Irené Sandford Award

30
for Singers
NOV
Date Friday, 30th November
Time 7.00 pm
Venue RIAM
Admission Free

Boasting a roster of distinguished laureates

including Claudia Boyle, Naomi O’Connell
and Gavan Ring, the Iréne Sandford Award
for Singers is an exciting opportunity to
hear some of Ireland’s finest emerging
singers compete for this coveted title.
Commemorating this much-loved singer
and former Head of Vocal Studies at the
RIAM, the award of €2,000 is generously
donated by her husband, Billy Reid.
20

Vocal Masterclass Flute Masterclasses with

3 4/5
with Sam McElroy Sir James Galway
DEC DEC
Date M
 onday, 3rd December, Date Tuesday, 4th and
Time 10.00 am to 1.00 pm Wednesday 5th, December
Venue RIAM Time 10.30 am to 3.30 pm
Admission Free Venue RIAM
Admission Free
Baritone Sam McElroy, imparts his
knowledge, advice and wide-ranging
The living legend of the flute, Sir James
experience to singers and pianists of
Galway, is acknowledged as both the
the Academy in what is bound to be a
supreme interpreter of the classical flute
captivating morning masterclass on
repertoire and a consummate entertainer
performing Schubert Lieder.
whose appeal crosses all musical
boundaries. In his capacity as a RIAM
Vocal Masterclass International Visiting Artist, Sir James
5
with Ann Murray visits the Academy to share his wisdom
DEC and experience both on- and off-stage
with the musical generation of
Date W
 ednesday, 5th December tomorrow.
Time 10.00 am to 1.00 pm
RIAM/NGI International
Venue RIAM 7
Visiting Artists and
Admission Free DEC Friends Series

The Academy presents the first of three Date Friday, 7th December
public masterclasses by of one of Ireland’s
Time 1.05 pm
most exceptional and accomplished
musical ambassadors, Ann Murray. Venue National Gallery of Ireland

Her international operatic engagements Admission €20, €15 and €10 & F50F
have taken her to Hamburg, Dresden,
Cologne, Berlin, Munich, Paris, Zurich, The globally renowned flautist Sir James
Brussels, Amsterdam, Milan, Vienna, Galway opens the RIAM/NGI International
Salzburg, Chicago Lyric Opera, Los Angeles Visiting Artists and Friends Series in his
Opera and the Metropolitan Opera, New own inimitable style with a feast of flute
York, and in concert she has worked playing featuring staff, students and his
with the world’s great orchestras and partner in life and music, Lady Jeanne
collaborated with countless distinguished Galway. A modern musical master, whose
musicians in recital. virtuosity on the flute is equalled only by his
limitless ambitions and vision, his concert is
An invaluable experience for young singers. a must for flute aficionados!

Presented in partnership with the National

Gallery of Ireland
 21

Sir James and Lady Galway

Photograph Paul Cox
22

RIAM Performing Groups

9
Christmas Concert
DEC
Date Sunday, 9th December
Time 4.00 pm
Venue O’Reilly Theatre, Belvedere College
Admission €12.50/€7.50 (concessions)

Get ready to hear those sleigh bells ringing

as Santa is not the only one coming to
Dublin town! The RIAM Performing Groups
usher in Christmas 2018 with a programme
of festive favourites guaranteed to send
the young and young at heart home full of
the spirit of the Season.

Featuring the RIAM Choirs, Junior Strings,

Junior Wind Ensemble, Recorder Ensemble
and Intermediate Orchestra on stage of
the O’Reilly Theatre, Belvedere College.

A perfect way to welcome the most

magical of time of the year!
23
24

Piano Masterclasses John Pollard Bursary

11/12 12
with Roy Howat for Young Violinists
DEC DEC
Date Tuesday, 11th and Date Wednesday, 12th December
Wednesday, 12th December Time 7.00 pm
Time 10.00 am to 5.30 pm Venue RIAM
Venue RIAM Admission Free
Admission Free
An exciting bursary for emerging string
Roy Howat is internationally recognised as players at the Academy, the John Pollard
both pianist and scholar whose concerts, Award for Young Violinists, seeks to support
broadcasts and lectures regularly take him and nurture a musician with huge potential
worldwide. He holds the posts of Keyboard and innate musicianship. A chance for
Research Fellow at London’s Royal audiences to hear the musical stars of
Academy of Music and Research Fellow tomorrow.
at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in
Glasgow. Sound-Beits at
14
Russborough
Following a highly successful visit to the
Academy in 2014, he returns for a two-
DEC
day visit to work with talented students of
the RIAM’s Keyboard Faculty and deliver Date Friday, 14th December
a lecture as part of the RIAM’s 2018/19
Time 12.00 Noon to 3.00 pm
Guest Lecture Series.
Venue Russborough House
RIAM Guest Admission €30
12
Lecture Series
DEC The Palladian grandeur of Russborough
House, home to the Beit Family for over
Date Wednesday, 12th December 50 years, provides the perfect backdrop
for a musical day spent in the company
Time 1.00 pm of musicians from the RIAM Historical
Venue RIAM Performance Department. Having
previously performed in the splendour of
Admission Free both the National Gallery of Ireland and
Dublin’s Freemason’s Hall, these spirited
Particularly known for his lively lectures musicians look forward to performing
and masterclasses, which he has given in another fine historic space, the
worldwide at venues including The Juilliard magnificently refurbished Russborough
and Eastman Schools, Roy Howat extends House. Under the directorship of Claire
his visit to the Academy to give a lecture Duff and featuring the RIAM’s Head of
on ‘Rediscovering Chopin’s “Études for the Historical Performance, David Adams, the
new Peters Complete Chopin”. visit by these vibrant musicians features
a musical tour and pop-up performances
from 12.00 noon, and culminates in an
hour-long concert featuring lively vocal and
instrumental music by Handel, Vivaldi and
Muffat.
Presented in partnership with the Alfred
Beit Foundation and supported by the
John Pollard Foundation.
 25

Russborough House
Photograph xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The Music Room, Russborough House
©Russborough House
26

Pianist John O’Conor

Photograph Hugh O’Conor
 27

Opera Lab the world. Following a memorable and

14
electric collaboration with members of
DEC the Academy Chamber Ensemble in the
inaugural RIAM/NGI International Visiting
Date Friday 14th December Series last season, he once again shares
the stage with some of Ireland’s finest
Time 6.00 pm
musicians, all members of the Academy’s
Venue RIAM distinguished Teaching Staff.
Admission Free
Presented in partnership with the National
A fascinating project – Opera Lab - will Gallery of Ireland
see composer-librettist pairings create
5-10 minute chamber operas specifically Piano Masterclass with
18
for RIAM singers and instrumentalists John O’Conor
this December. Audiences will experience DEC
first-hand the burgeoning talent of
student composers, librettists, singers Date Tuesday, 18th December
and instrumentalists during this public Time 10.00 am to 1.00 pm
event, the culmination of an intensive
Venue RIAM
week of opera composition workshops
led by composer Stephen McNeff, whose Admission Free
opera commissions include work for the
The Academy is once again delighted to
Royal Opera and Welsh National Opera.
welcome RIAM Fellow and International
An opportunity to witness this dynamic
Visiting Artist, John O’Conor, one
composer at work ahead of the Irish
of Ireland’s most exceptional and
première of his opera Banished in January
accomplished artists to work with some
2019.
of its finest emerging pianists.

RIAM/NGI International Extend – Composition

16 18
Visiting Artists and Friends Workshop
DEC Series DEC
Date Sunday 16th December Date Tuesday, 18th December
Time 2.00 pm Time 6.00 pm
Venue National Gallery of Ireland Venue RIAM
Admission €20, €15 and €10 & F50F Admission Free

One of Ireland’s finest musical Led and mentored by composer Sebastian

ambassadors, John O’Conor, has garnered Adams, talented students on the BA in
great critical acclaim for his masterly Music Performance degree course at
playing for over 40 years. Having studied the Academy present music by some of
in his native Dublin, in Vienna with Dieter Ireland’s most exciting compositional
Weber, and with the legendary Wilhelm voices from the Irish Composers
Kempff, his unanimous First Prize at the Collective.
International Beethoven Piano Competition
in Vienna in 1973 opened the door to a
career that has brought him all around
28

Kirkos at the Academy NGI/IVA International

5 11
Visiting Artists and Friends
JAN JAN Series

Date Saturday, 5th January Date Friday, 11th January

Time 7.00 pm Time 1.05 pm
Venue RIAM Venue National Gallery of Ireland
Admission €10/€7 Admission €8/€5 & F50F
Innovative new music ensemble Kirkos turn Interweaving roles as pianist and award-
the Academy into a veritable playground, winning broadcaster with equal aplomb, Iain
presenting a radical explosion of Burnside is also a master programmer with
simultaneously unfolding sonic and artistic an instinct for the telling juxtaposition. His
events. Work by the most daring of artists previous work for the RIAM, Ten Thousand
will blend with those from the bleeding Miles Away and Drums and Guns, has
edge of Ireland’s experimental scene. been described as “a triumph of ambition”
(The Sunday Business Post) and “a stirring
New experiences guaranteed!
program outside of the usual” (Voce di
meche).
RIAM Guest Lecture Series
9 This year, RIAM International Visiting Artist
JAN Iain Burnside and singers from the RIAM
Vocal Faculty take inspiration from the rich
Date Wednesday, 9th January collection of the National Gallery of Ireland
in a programme that draws parallels between
Time 1.00 pm
the notes on the page and canvasses hanging
Venue RIAM on the hallowed walls of this exceptional
Admission Free national museum.

Violinist Katharina Uhde and her father Presented in partnership with the National
Michael visit the Academy for the first time to Gallery of Ireland
deliver a lecture entitled ‘Joachim in Ireland’.

Having recently presented the first modern

performance of a lost score by the legendary
violinist Joseph Joachim, their fascinating
insight into arguably one of world’s greatest
violinists of all times, and his visits to Ireland,
will no doubt be of interest to audiences.
 29

National Gallery of Ireland

Photograph Roy Hewson
30

13/15/
Stephen McNeff’s
16/18/19 Banished (Irish première)
JAN
Date 13th (Preview), 15th, 16th, 18th and
19th January
Time 7.30 pm
Venue Kilmainham Gaol Museum
Admission €25/€18, €18/€15 (Preview)

Caitriona McLaughlin, director

Andrew Synnott, conductor

The Royal Irish Academy of Music is proud

to present the Irish première of Stephen
McNeff’s Banished, an adaptation of
Steve Gooch’s play, Female Transport, to
a libretto by Olivia Fuchs. Putting young
women firmly centre-stage, this brave new
work tells the compelling story of women
who were transported to Australia in the
last years of the eighteenth and early
nineteenth centuries and their survival
against all odds on a long, arduous and
dangerous passage to the other side of
the world.
Kilmainham Gaol, now one of the largest
unoccupied prisons in Europe, is the
extraordinary site-specific setting for this
captivating new work. Whilst the building
symbolises the tradition of militant and
constitutional nationalism for many, the
Gaol’s own special history as a depot for
convicts before they were transported to
Australia, makes it a particularly poignant
location in which to present McNeff’s new
opera to Irish audiences.

Presented in partnership with the Office

of Public Works and Kilmainham Gaol
Museum and in collaboration with Design
for Stage and Screen, IADT Dún Laoghaire.

Detail of a sculpture in the forecourt of MACq 01 on the Hobart Waterfront by Rowan Gillespie
honouring the convict women transported to Van Diemen’s Land and the children who sailed with them.
31
32

September
11 Piano Masterclass with John O’Conor
21 Culture Night
23 Centre Stage at Killruddery

October
5, 12, 19, 26 A Highly Opinionated History of Opera
11 Natural Trumpet Masterclass with Killyan Bannister
13 Open House
16 Piano Masterclass with John O’Conor
18 Ondine: Ravel and Beyond
19 Vocal Masterclass with Brenda Hurley
23 Piano Masterclass with Bryce Morrison
24 Guest Lecture by Bryce Morrison
25 RIAM Philharmonia and Michel Galante

November
2, 9 A Highly Opinionated History of Opera
2, 3 Society for Music Education in Ireland Annual Conference
4, 11, 18, 25 RIAM High Achiever Awards
5, 6 Violin Masterclasses with Daniel Rowland
6, 7, 8 Oboe and Chamber Music Masterclasses with Chiara Staibano and
Alessandro Baccini
11 Piano Duet-athon
13 Sinae Lee Piano Recital
14 Piano Masterclass with Sinae Lee
17 Third Level Open Day
23 Sounding Out at Seanad Éireann
24 Junior String Quartet Project with the RTÉ Contempo Quartet
25 Boulanger Day
28 Cello Masterclass with Natalie Clein
30 Musical Performance and the Brain
30 Irené Sandford Award for Singers

December
3 Vocal Masterclass with Sam McElroy
4, 5 Flute Masterclasses with Sir James Galway
5 Vocal Masterclass with Ann Murray
7 RIAM/NGI International Visiting Artists and Friends Series
9 RIAM Performing Groups Christmas Concert
11, 12 Piano Masterclasses with Roy Howat
12 Guest Lecture by Roy Howat
12 John Pollard Bursary for Young Violinists
14 Sound-Beits at Russborough
14 Opera Lab
16 RIAM/NGI International Visiting Artists and Friends Series
18 Piano Masterclass with John O’Conor
18 Extend – Composition Workshop
 33

January
5 Kirkos at the Academy
9 Guest Lecture by Katharina Uhde and Michael Uhde
11 RIAM/NGI International Visiting Artists and Friends Series
13, 15, 16, 18, 19 Stephen McNeff’s Banished
18, 25 11:11 Concert Series
18, 25 The Perfect Playlist
26 In Celebration of Aisling
27 These are a Few of our Favourite Things
30 Vocal Masterclass with Ann Murray

February
1, 8, 15, 22 11:11 Concert Series
1,8, 15, 22 The Perfect Playlist
3 Local Centre 125 Celebration Concert
6 Guest Lecture by Michael Lee
17 Xuefei Yang and GuitaRIAM
18 Guitar Masterclass with Xuefei Yang
19 Piano Masterclass with John O’Conor
19-22 PianoFest
23 In Celebration of Deirdre
25 Bassoon Masterclass with Peter Whelan

March
1, 8, 15, 22 11:11 Concert Series
1, 8, 15, 22 The Perfect Playlist
2 RIAMSO and RIAMIO at Christ Church
7, 14, 21, 28 March at St Ann’s
7 RIAM Philharmonia and Gerhard Markson
12 Maura Dowdall Award
13 Guest Lecture by Nicole Panizza
15 Opera Snapshots at the Academy
30 Patrick Rafter and the RIAM Young Scholars
31 RIAM/NGI International Visiting Artists and Friends Series

April
1 Guitar Masterclass with Xuefei Yang
3 Guest Lecture by Rachel Cowgill
11 Amplify Research Day
14 My First Concert
14 Director’s Choice
16 Drumming at the RIAM
17 RIAM Young Scholar’s Concert
24 Piano Masterclass with John O’Conor
24 Lucien and Maura Teissier Scholarship
28 RIAM/NGI International Visiting Artists and Friends Series

May
8 Guitar Masterclass with Xuefei Yang
16 RIAM Philharmonia and Gerhard Markson
17 Saluting the Feminists
17, 18 Francesca Caccini’s Alcina
19 RIAM Performing Groups Concert
30 Vocal Masterclass with Ann Murray
34

11:11 Concert Series In Celebration of Aisling

18/25 26
JAN JAN
Date Friday, 18th and 25th January Date Saturday, 26th January
Time 11.00 am Time 7.00 pm
Venue RIAM Venue RIAM
Admission €5 including tea/coffee and Admission €15/€10
tasty bite-size treats from 10.30 am On this very special occasion RIAM staff,
A chance to beat the winter blues with 11 students, alumni and musical guests
coffee morning concerts at 11.00 am in the celebrate a much-loved colleague and
intimate setting of the Academy’s Organ friend in concert. A life force in Ireland’s
Room. A chance for audiences to savour music world, cellist Aisling Drury Byrne’s
some of Ireland’s finest emerging talents association with the Royal Irish Academy
- the musical stars of tomorrow - with the of Music spans an incredible six decades.
special added blend of guest appearances A distinguished alumna and a devoted and
by RIAM staff and alumni. much respected teacher, her past students
include well-known chamber musicians,
Friday mornings have never tasted so good!
principal cellists and competition winners.

The Perfect Playlist

18/25
Vocal Masterclass with
JAN 30
Ann Murray
JAN
Date Friday 18th and 25th January
Time 11.45 am Date Wednesday, 30th January

Venue RIAM Time 10.00 am to 1.00 pm

Admission €110 for 11 week course or Venue RIAM

€12 per session Admission Free
Back by popular demand! RIAM International Visiting Artist, Ann
Murray FRIAM, returns to share her
Join 11 personalities from different walks
exceptional experience both on- and off-
of life in conversation with the Academy’s
stage with the Academy’s current stable of
Head of Artistic Programming, Ciara
talented singing students. Boasting a truly
Higgins, during which they will reveal
world-class operatic, oratorio and Lieder
musical works that hold special meaning
career spanning five decades, the breadth
to them.
of her knowledge and expertise is bound
Perfect Playlist audiences are invited to to inspire all attending the second of three
arrive for the 11:11 concert that precedes public masterclasses by this exceptional
each session with coffee/tea and tasty artist.
bites served from 10.30 am.
 35

These are a Few of our

27
Favourite Things
JAN
Date Sunday, 27th January
Time 6.00 pm
Venue National Concert Hall
Admission €12.50/€7.50
We can’t promise blue satin sashes,
raindrops on roses or crisp apple strudel...
but as the silver white winter is melting into
spring, we can guarantee a lively and fun
evening of music-making on stage at the
National Concert Hall.
Join over 300 musicians from the
Academy’s Junior School for a veritable
feast of their favourite musical things and
very probably some of your own too!
36

1/8/ 11:11 Concert Series Local Centre 125

15/22 3

FEB FEB
Date Fridays, 1st, 8th, 15th and 22nd Date Sunday, 3rd February
February Time 2.00 pm
Time 11.00 am Venue National Gallery of Ireland
Venue RIAM Admission Free
Admission €5 including tea/coffee and Although physically based in Dublin, the
tasty bite-size treats RIAM nevertheless impacts significantly
around the country through its nationwide
1/8/ The Perfect Playlist Local Centre Examination System which
15/22 engages with over 40,000 music and
FEB drama students, as well as their families
and teachers every year. Through this
Date Fridays, 1st, 8th, 15th and 22nd examination system, the Academy has
February visited the length and breadth of Ireland
Time 11.45 am for 125 years, inspiring countless numbers
of music and drama students by providing
Venue RIAM
a valuable yardstick in arts education.
Admission €110 for 11 week course or
This very special concert at the National
€12 per session
Gallery of Ireland toasts the wealth of
young talent in our country today
6 RIAM Guest and welcomes back some of the most
Lecture Series
FEB distinguished alumni of the Local Centre
Examination System on its 125th birthday!
Date Wednesday, 6th February Presented in partnership with the
Time 1.00 pm National Gallery of Ireland
Venue RIAM
Admission Free

The Academy welcomes Dr Michael Lee

for the February instalment of the 2018/19
RIAM Guest Lecture Series. In addition
to his palpable interest in performance
research, he is also an arts presenter,
hosting feature programmes, opera
broadcasts and concerts for RTÉ lyric fm,
and lectures at Trinity College Dublin.

Pianist Sheba Chen

Photograph Photocall Ireland
37
38

Xuefei Yang and

17
GuitaRIAM
FEB
Date Sunday, 17th February
Time 3.00 pm
Venue Freemasons’ Hall
Admission €20, €15 and €10

Widely-recognised as one of the world’s

greatest advocates of her instrument,
Xuefei Yang’s own path to international
success is an inspirational one. Born
following the Cultural Revolution, she
was the first guitarist in China to enter
a music school and the first to launch
an international performing career. Her
international success has led her to be
invited to play in more than 50 countries
at numerous prestigious venues, and she is
frequently invited to play with the world’s
leading orchestras and collaborate with
such distinguished artists as Ian Bostridge,
Xuefei Yang and members of GuitaRIAM
Rosalind Plowright and Sir James Galway. Photograph Mark Stedman

In the first of two concerts this season, she

rings in the Year of the Pig with the vibrant
20-strong GuitaRIAM in a programme that
celebrates the richness of her instrument,
her home country and music from Ireland
Piano Masterclass with
19
John O’Conor
FEB
Guitar Masterclass
18
with Xuefei Yang
FEB Date Tuesday, 19th February
Time 10.00 am to 1.00 pm
Date Monday, 18th February Venue RIAM
Time 10.00am to 1.00 pm Admission Free
Venue RIAM
Another opportunity for pianists
Admission Free and audiences to experience RIAM
As a RIAM International Visiting Artist, International Visiting Artist, John O’Conor,
Chinese guitar sensation Xuefei Yang takes in masterclass.
time out from her exceptionally busy career
as a soloist, chamber musician and concerto
soloist to work with talented guitarists over
the course of three visits this year.
 39

In Celebration of Deirdre
23
FEB
Date Saturday 23nd, February
Time 7.00 pm
Venue RIAM
Admission €20, €15 and €10

Academy staff, students, alumni and

musical guests salute the late Deirdre
Doyle, former Head of Keyboard at the
RIAM and the indefatigable director of
Dublin Masterclasses. A devoted and
distinguished teacher at the Academy
for four decades, her valuable and
lasting legacy will be celebrated by a rich
representation from the piano world in
a concert that also pays tribute to her
extraordinary spirit and love of life.

Bassoon Masterclass
25
with Peter Whelan
FEB
Date Monday, 25th February
Time 6.00 pm to 9.00 pm
PianoFest
19/22 Venue RIAM

FEB Admission Free

Peter Whelan is among the most exciting

Date Tuesday 19th to Friday, 22nd February and versatile exponents of historical
performance of his generation, with
Time Various
a remarkable career as a conductor,
Venue RIAM keyboardist and solo bassoonist. He is
Admission Free Artistic Director of the Irish Baroque
Orchestra and founding Artistic Director
A week-long feast of piano playing at the of Ensemble Marsyas. Passionately
RIAM as students of the Academy compete committed to the development of the
in numerous competitions across all ages next generation of performing musicians,
and repertoire. Peter is a professor at the Guildhall School
of Music and Drama, the Royal Northern
College of Music and at the Royal Scottish
Conservatoire. The Academy is proud to
welcome back this distinguished alumnus
to work in masterclass with bassoon
students.
40

In addition to a delightful potpourri of

1/8/15 11:11 Concert Series
22/29 music played by the RIAMIO, audiences at
Christ Church can also look forward to a
MAR performance of Shostakovich’s colourful
Date Fridays, 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd First Symphony delivered with spirited
and 29th March aplomb by the young musicians of the
RIAMSO.
Time 11.00 am
Venue RIAM Presented in association with Christ
Church Cathedral
Admission €5 including tea/coffee and
tasty bite-size treats
7 March at St Ann’s

1/8/15 The Perfect Playlist

MAR
22/29
MAR Date Thursday, 7th March

Date Fridays, 1st, 8th, 15th, 22nd Time 1.15 pm

and 29th March Venue St Ann’s Church, Dawson Street

Time 11.45 am Admission Free

Venue RIAM RIAM Chorale

Admission €110 for 11 week course or Blánaid Murphy, director
€12 per session A Georgian jewel in the crown of Dawson
Street, St Ann’s Church is the elegant
2 RIAM Symphony and backdrop for a new lunchtime series –
Intermediate Orchestras
MAR at Christ Church
March at St Ann’s – featuring musicians
from the RIAM

Music by Michael Tippett and Benjamin

Date Saturday, 2nd March Britten, two of the great pillars of British
Time 8.00 pm music in the twentieth century, opens the
Venue Christ Church Cathedral series on March 7th. Rejoice in the Lamb,
one of Benjamin Britten’s great sacred
Admission €12/€7 masterpieces, and the Five Negro Spirituals
RIAM Symphony Orchestra from Tippett’s life-enhancing A Child of our
Time are performed by the RIAM Chorale
RIAM Intermediate Orchestra
under the baton of its director, Blánaid
James Cavanagh, conductor
Murphy. A rousing start to a new concert
The exuberant members of the RIAM series in the heart of Dublin City presented
Intermediate and Symphony Orchestras by the Academy and St Ann’s.
perform under the baton of James Presented in partnership with
Cavanagh in the magnificent setting of St Ann’s Church
Christ Church Cathedral.
 41

Tenor Andrew Gavin

Photograph Colm Hogan
42

RIAM Philharmonia
7
MAR
Date Thursday, 7th March
Time 7.00 pm
Venue Freemasons’ Hall
Admission €12/€8 & F50F

RIAM Philharmonia
Gerhard Markson, conductor

Mendelssohn Scherzo, Intermezzo and

Nocturne from A Midsummer Night’s
Dream, op 61

Beethoven Symphony No 7 in A major, op 92

Gerhard Markson, former Principal

Conductor of the RTÉ National Symphony
Orchestra, returns to Dublin to work with
the engaging members of Ireland’s newest
orchestra ahead of a performance in the
dramatic setting of the Freemason’s Hall.

The boundless joie de vivre of

Mendelssohn’s incidental music to
Shakespeare’s enchanting A Midsummer
Night’s Dream is performed alongside
Beethoven’s magnificent Seventh
Symphony, the sublime Allegretto of which
was used to great emotional effect in the
seminal scene of the Oscar-winning film,
The King’s Speech.

Supported by The John Pollard

Foundation

Gerhard Markson
Photograph © RTÉ
 43

Maura Dowdall Award Opera Snapshots at the

12 15
Academy
MAR MAR
Date Tuesday, 12th March Date Friday, 15th March
Time 7.00 pm Time 7.00 pm
Venue RIAM Venue RIAM
Admission Free Admission €12/€7
Students of the Academy compete for a A regular visitor to the Academy, alumna
coveted performance opportunity with Brenda Hurley, returns to continue her
the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, valuable work with some of our finest
the Maura Dowdall Award of €600 and the singers ahead of a charming programme of
Colin Stavely Prize for Strings opera scenes, directed by Sinead O’Neill on
March 15th.
RIAM Guest Lecture Series
13 An opportunity to click with some of

MAR the best-known gems from the world of

opera performed by divos and divas in the
Date Wednesday, 13th March making!

Time 1.00 pm March at St Ann’s

21
Venue RIAM
Admission Free
MAR
Dr Nicole Panizza, a UK-based vocal Date Thursday, 21st March
accompanist, coach and scholar whose
research focusses on the critical Time 1.15 pm
intersection between music, poetry and Venue St Ann’s Church, Dawson Street
performance visits the Academy for Admission Free
another fascinating presentation in the
2018/19 RIAM Guest Lecture Series. More March music at St Ann’s. On this
occasion the halls of this elegant building
March at St Ann’s will resound with the sound of music
14
performed by singers and musicians from
MAR the RIAM’s Historical Music Department
under the expert guidance of early music
Date Thursday, 14th March specialists David Adams and Claire Duff.
Time 1.15 pm
Presented in partnership with St Ann’s
Venue St Ann’s Church, Dawson Street Church
Admission Free

Members of the RIAM Historical

Department present a delightful
programme of instrumental music and
song by female composers, including
Barbara Strozzi, Francesca Caccini and
Isabella Leonarda.

Presented in partnership with St Ann’s Church.

44

28 March at St Ann’s
MAR
Date Thursday, 28th March
Time 1.15 pm
Venue St Ann’s Church, Dawson Street
Admission Free

March at St Ann’s comes to a spirited

conclusion with music performed by the
vibrant members of Westland Baroque.

Presented in partnership with St Ann’s

Church

30 Patrick Rafter and the

RIAM Young Scholars
MAR
Date Saturday, 30th March
Time 2.00 pm to 5.00 pm
Venue RIAM
Admission Free

Patrick Rafter, a student of the

internationally celebrated violinist, Maxim
Vengerov, returns to his alma mater to
work with the current crop of talented
students on the RIAM’s Young Scholar
Programme.

A multiple national and international

prizewinner, he enjoys an extremely busy
career in both recital and opera. The
Academy is proud to welcome home one
of its most distinguished recent alumni to
inspire the next generation.

Guitarist Xuefei Yang

Photograph Mark Stedman
 45

31 RIAM/NGI International
Visiting Artists and Friends
MAR Series

Date Sunday, 31st March

Time 2.00 pm
Venue National Gallery of Ireland
Admission €20, €15 and €10 & F50F

Described by Gramophone Magazine

as “one of the leading innovators of her
generation”, guitarist extraordinaire,
Xuefei Yang’ returns to perform in the
stunning surroundings of the National
Gallery of Ireland’s magnificently restored
Shaw Room this season. On this occasion,
she joins forces with her distinguished
teaching colleagues at the Academy for a
colourful programme of chamber music
for guitar, voice, flute and strings.

Presented in partnership with the

National Gallery of Ireland
46

Soprano Clodagh Kinsella

Photograph © National Gallery of Ireland, Photographer: Jack Caffrey, The Pimlico Project 2017
 47

pot of research projects, in addition to

Guitar Masterclass lightning talks, and performances.
1
with Xuefei Yang
APR My First Concert
14
Date Monday, 1st April
APR
Time 10.00 am to 1.00 pm
Venue RIAM Date Sunday, 14th April

Admission Free Time 12.00 Noon

The compelling Chinese guitarist and RIAM Venue RIAM

International Visiting Artist, Xuefei Yang, Admission Free
pays her second visit to the Academy this
season to work with the next generation of Join a host of very young musicians
as they take their first steps onto the
the guitar world.
concert platform for their début concert
performance. A perfect opportunity to bring
RIAM Guest Lecture Series your little ones to see our little ones and
3
share this special first concert experience
APR both on- and off-stage.

Date Wednesday, 3rd April

Director’s Choice
Time 1.00 pm 14

Venue RIAM APR

Admission Free
Date Sunday, 14th April
The 2018/19 RIAM Guest Lecture Series
Time 3.00 pm
concludes in April with Professor Rachel
Cowgill of the University of Huddersfield Venue RIAM
delivering a presentation entitled ‘From
Admission €10/€6
London, to Dublin, to Botany Bay; or,
“How Shall we Get Rid of Him?” Music and Another ‘choice’ programme from the
Masculinity in Don Juan Burlesques on the Academy.
Early Nineteenth-Century London Stage’.
Following the success of the RIAM’s
presentation, Writer’s Choice, in New York,
Amplify Research Day Dublin and Paris throughout 2017, and
11
APR Artist’s Choice in Dublin and New York in
2018, Ireland’s oldest music conservatoire
will mount a similar collaborative programme
Date Thursday, 11th April
in 2019, on this occasion entitled Director’s
Time 10.00 am to 5.00 pm Choice.
Venue RIAM In 2019, it is the turn of some of Ireland’s
Admission Free most distinctive directors to nominate
musical works of special personal
The RIAM’s Amplify Research Project significance to them and to have them
encourages reflection and innovation and performed by exceptional musicians from
inspires curiosity and creativity. Amplify the Royal Irish Academy of Music.
Research Day, will see members of the
RIAM’s distinguished Teaching Staff, as well
as Masters and Doctorate students, come
together to present a wonderful melting
48

Drumming at the RIAM Lucien and Maura Teissier

16 24
Scholarship
APR APR
Date Tuesday, 16th April Date Wednesday, 24th April
Time 5.00 pm to 9.00 pm Time 6.00 pm
Venue RIAM Venue RIAM
Admission €8/€5 & F50F Admission Free

A feast of percussion at the Academy The Lucien and Maura Teissier Scholarship,
featuring workshops, open rehearsals, open to all Irish piano students of the RIAM,
an array of pop-up performances and will see talented pianists compete for one of
culminating in a highly charged concert Ireland’s most substantial music awards.
featuring George Crumb’s iconic Madrigals
constructed from fragments of poetry by Vocal Masterclass
Federico Garcia Lorca. A rousing celebration 30
with Brenda Hurley
of all things percussion by the compelling APR
RIAM Percussion Ensemble and its dynamic
director, Richard O’Donnell.
Date Tuesday, 30th April
Young Scholar’s Concert Time 10.00 am to 1.00 pm
17
Venue RIAM
APR
Admission Free
Date Wednesday, 17th April The final chance to witness expert vocal
Time 7.00 pm coach Brenda Hurley in masterclass with
singers from the RIAM Vocal Faculty.
Venue RIAM
Admission Free

Musicians from the RIAM’s Young Scholar

Programme, an immersive music education
programme to support highly motivated
and exceptionally talented school-age
students, present a tasty menu of musical
treats!

Piano Masterclass
24
with John O’Conor
APR
Date Wednesday, 24th April
Time 10.00 am to 1.00 pm
Venue RIAM
Admission Free

John O’Conor pays his final visit to the

Academy this season to work with gifted
musicians from the RIAM Keyboard Faculty.
 49

RIAM/NGI International
28
Visiting Artists and Friends
APR Series

Date Sunday, 28th April

Time 2.00 pm
Venue National Gallery of Ireland
Admission €20, €15 and €10 & F50F

Following an electric sell-out performance

of the Vivaldi/Piazzolla Four Seasons
with the RIAM Chamber Orchestra in the
National Gallery of Ireland last season,
the charismatic Dutch/English violinist
Daniel Rowland once again join forces
with some of Ireland’s finest musicians.
Acknowledged as one of the most exciting
and creative musicians of his generation,
his collaboration with the next generation
of string players and members of the RIAM
Teaching Faculty is bound to musically lift
the roof of the National Gallery of Ireland!

Presented in partnership with the National

Gallery of Ireland.

Violinist Daniel Rowland

Photograph Marco Borggreve
50

RIAM Philharmonia
16
MAY
Date Thursday, 16th May
Time 7.00 pm
Venue St. Bartholomew’s Church, Clyde Road
Admission €12/€8 & F50F

RIAM Philharmonia
Gerhard Markson, conductor
Schubert Overture in the Italian Style in D
major, D590
Respighi Gli Uccelli
Mendelssohn Symphony No 4 in A major,
op 90, Italian
Viva l’Italia! Maestro Gerhard Markson
returns to conduct the RIAM Philharmonia
for a programme with a distinctive nod to
all things Italian! Mendelssohn’s Italian
Symphony, a work which has secured a firm
place in the canon of classical masterworks,
is performed alongside Schubert’s
Overture in the Italian Style and Respighi’s
colourful suite Gli Uccelli (The Birds).
A lively conclusion to this vibrant new
orchestra’s 2018/19 season.

Supported by The John Pollard

Foundation

RIAM Philharmonia
Photograph Colm Hogan
 51

Guitar Masterclass with

8
Xuefei Yang
MAY
Date Friday, 8th May
Time 10.00 am to 1.00 pm
Venue RIAM
Admission Free

Xuefei Yang pays her final visit to the

Academy this season for a morning
masterclass session featuring gifted
guitarists.

Saluting the Feminists

17
MAY
Date Friday 17th May
Time 10.00 am to 5.00 pm
Venue RIAM
Admission Free

Saluting the Feminists, the Academy’s

day-long celebration of women composers,
performers and pedagogues, returns for a
third year. Once again the performance of
an opera by a leading female composer, on
this occasion Francesca Caccini’s Alcina,
affords the Academy an opportunity to
highlight the legacy of some of its key female
pedagogues and salute a strong army of
female composers and performers.

On May 17th, the Academy proudly presents

a series of fringe events comprising short
concerts, talks and panel discussions
highlighting the extraordinary impact women
have had and continue to have on Irish
musical life.

The day-long celebration culminates in the

Irish première of Alcina in the fascinating
surroundings of the Freemason’s Hall,
Molesworth Street.
52

Francesca Caccini’s
17/18
Alcina
MAY
Date Friday, 17th and Saturday, 18th May
Time 7.30 pm
Venue Freemasons’ Hall, Molesworth Street

Admission €25, and €18 (Concessions)

David Adams, conductor

Set on Alcina’s magical island, Francesca

Caccini’s opera is the first-known opera by
a female composer and her only surviving
opera. First performed in Florence in 1625,
this pioneering composer set the libretto,
derived from Ariosto’s Orlando Furioso,
as a “Balletto in Musica”, mixing music,
drama and dance. The story was later the
inspiration for operas by Vivaldi, Handel
and Haydn. The music is a glorious
mixture of choruses, arias, recitatives and
madrigals.

In this exciting new production, the

Freemasons’ Hall will become the magical
island inhabited by both the characters of
the opera and the audience as they journey
through the stunning building in this site-
specific promenade performance.

Presented in collaboration with the

Grand Lodge of Ireland.
53
54

RIAM Performing Groups

19
Concert
MAY
Date Sunday, 19th May
Time 6.00 pm
Venue St Andrew’s Church, Westland Row

Admission €12/€8 (concessions)

A celebratory concert for all the family,

highlighting the talents of the RIAM’s
numerous performing groups, and the
culmination of a year of fun-filled ensemble
playing by young Academy musicians.

Vocal Masterclass
30
with Ann Murray
MAY
Date Wednesday, May 30th
Time 10.00 am to 1.00 pm
Venue RIAM

Admission Free

One of Ireland’s most distinguished artists,

Ann Murray, closes the Academy’s exciting
2018/2019 International Masterclass
Series. A final chance for audiences to
witness this extraordinary champion of
young Irish singers in masterclass this
season.

Ann Murray
Photograph Mark Steadman
55
56

Booking Information
Events and concerts at the Academy
Royal Irish Academy of Music
36 Westland Row, Dublin 2.
Telephone +353 1 632 5300
Email: PublicRelations@riam.ie
The Royal Irish Academy of Music presents numerous events
at its premises at 36 Westland Row. Many events are free admission.

Ticketed Events
Ticketed events may be purchased online at www.riam.ie
Tickets may also be purchased at the door of each concert/event.

Free Admission Events

Secure a seat at one of our many free admission events online at
www.riam.ie

Events and Concerts in other Venues

Tickets for the majority of our concerts presented in other venues are available online at
www.riam.ie

Tickets for the following events/concerts are available as follows:

National Concert Hall

Online www.nch.ie
Telephone 01 4170000

Centre Stage at Killruddery

Online http://killruddery.rezgo.com/details/117740/centre-stage
Telephone 01 2863405

Sounding Out at Seanad Éireann

Contact education@museum.ie or telephone 01 6486334

Kilmainham Gaol Museum

Please be advised that during the winter months the interior of Kilmainham Gaol is very cold.
Please dress appropriately. Blankets will be provided.

For further information on any of our events contact

PublicRelations@riam.ie
 57

First50Free (F50F)
SHARING OUR LOVE OF LIVE MUSIC WITH YOU
This year, we are delighted to announce a new public engagement initiative –
First50Free (F50F), which will see 50 free admission tickets ring-fenced for 12
of our concerts across the 2018/19 season.

For each of these 12 concerts, 50 tickets will be available to book online for
one day only ahead of Public Booking which will open the following day.

Concert F50F Offer Date Concert Date

Ondine: Ravel and Beyond September 20th October 18th

RIAM Philharmonia/ September 24th October 25th
Michel Galante
Sinae Lee Piano Recital September 29th November 13th
Boulanger Day October 1st November 25th
RIAM/NGI International October 8th December 7th
Visiting Artists and Friends/
Sir James Galway
RIAM/NGI International October 15th December 16th
Visiting Artists and Friends/
John O’Conor
RIAM/NGI International November 12th January 11th
Visiting Artists and Friends/
Iain Burnside
RIAM Philharmonia/ January 8th March 7th
Gerhard Markson (March)
RIAM/NGI International January 28th March 31st
Visiting Artists and Friends/
Xuefei Yang
Drumming at the RIAM February 18th April 16th
RIAM/NGI International February 25th April 28th
Visiting Artists and Friends/
Daniel Rowland
RIAM Philharmonia/ March 13th May 16th
Gerhard Markson (May)

Tickets
· Only available on F50F Offer Date from 10.00 am
· Only available online
· Limited to 1 ticket per person
· Patrons of F50F Tickets requested to respectfully advise the RIAM
if unable to use the ticket on the date of the performance
58

International Touring
The Royal Irish Academy of Music’s position on the
international map will be further underpinned throughout
2018/2019 with a series of performances by some of our
finest young musical ambassadors in the United States.

We continue our partnership with the American Irish

Historical Society, New York this season following the sell-out
successes of previous concerts by staff and students of the
RIAM.

Located on Manhattan’s Museum Mile, this elegant setting will

once again welcome prizewinning students and members of
our distinguished staff for intimate performances in autumn
2018 and summer 2019.

21 years young in 2019, the dynamic RIAM Percussion

Ensemble looks forward to taking another musical bite out
of the Big Apple in spring 2019. Led by Richard O’Donnell and
comprising some of Ireland’s finest young percussionists, the
Royal Irish Academy of Music Percussion Ensemble is one of
the leading exponents of music for this exhilarating medium
in Ireland. New York audiences can look forward to further
performances by these energetic young musicians on their
annual trip across The Atlantic in spring 2019.
 59

FUNDERS

The Royal Irish Academy of Music acknowledges the significant

financial support of the Department of Education and Skills

and Culture Ireland

for the support of its international activities

EVENT PARTNERS

The John Pollard

Foundation

EVENT & CONCERT ASSOCIATES

St Ann’s
Church
Design wemakevisual.ie

Royal Irish Academy of Music

36-38 Westland Row, Dublin 2
Tel +353 1 6325300 Email PublicRelations@riam.ie www.riam.ie