Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and Music Network have announced the appointment of the dlr Musicians-In-Residence 2023. This year’s scheme provides two residencies for established musicians - violinist Lidia Jewloszewicz-Clarke and singer Simon Morgan - and an additional residency to support the work of an emerging musician, for guitarist Chris Comhaill.
Now in its 9th year, the scheme provides musicians with space and time to create new work, develop their skills, collaborate with others and showcase their music. This year’s residencies will run from April to October and will provide each artist with funding, a dedicated space to work in and mentoring to support their career development.
Audiences will also have an opportunity to engage with the musicians at a series of public performances in Dún Laoghaire throughout the residencies.
The Cathaoirleach of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, Cllr. Mary Hanafin said: ““Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council is thrilled to offer this opportunity for musicians to focus on the creation of new music and I very much look forward to hearing the wonderful music they create throughout their residencies.”
The first musician to take up their residency is this year’s dlr emerging artist awardee Chris Comhaill. Chris will focus on developing new arrangements and compositions for his Celtic folklore and myth inspired project Dúchas. He will explore the use of technology to create soundscapes which, when combined with Celtic-inspired melodies, will create an immersive experience, bringing together traditional and contemporary music styles. Chris will perform these new works at dlr LexIcon in early June.
In July, Polish violinist Lidia Jewloszewicz-Clarke will embark on a cross-cultural collaboration with Irish violinist Larissa O’Grady. Now based in Dún Laoghaire, Lidia was born one day and two thousand miles apart from Larissa. Together they will explore the concept of identity, belonging, cultural connections, exchange and cultural integration. This contemporary violin duo will delve into repertoire that represents where they came from as a starting point to create a brand new work inspired by their surroundings and experiences in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown.
In August, singer Simon Morgan will collaborate with guitarist Drazen Derek and saxophonist Richie Buckley to develop material for their exciting ‘Stolen Chicken’ collective. During his residency Simon also plans to draw on jazz and traditional Irish influences to create new music for a project involving the Richie Buckley Quintet. Both ensembles will present a concert in October to mark the end of this third and final residency of 2023.
Frank Curran, Chief Executive of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council: “Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown has a wealth of musical talent and dlr County Council is delighted to join forces with the Arts Council and Music Network to offer 3 musicians an opportunity to create new work in the beautiful LexIcon library.”
Commenting on the announcement, CEO of Music Network Sharon Rollston said: “It’s a pleasure to work with Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council once again on the management of this annual scheme. These residencies will provide valuable time and resources for the appointed musicians to develop their artistic practice, advance their careers and produce exciting new work which we look forward to sharing with local audiences as the year unfolds.”
The Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council Musicians-in-Residence Scheme is jointly funded by Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and the Arts Council and is managed by Music Network.
The aim of the Musicians-in-Residence Scheme is to provide opportunities to develop and showcase new work which may be compositional and/or performance focused i.e. to create new material and/or to develop a new artistic collaboration. The Scheme is jointly funded by Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and the Arts Council, and is managed by Music Network. It was established in 2015.
Previous Residencies have included Lioba Petrie; Rodrigo Almonte Zegarra; and Rosie Murphy, traditional flute player Iarlaith Mac Gabhann, Trumpeter Darren Cornish Moore, and pianist, vocalist, producer and composer Ruth O’Mahony-Bradychamber group Ikigai, composer and guitarist Dave Flynn, the Tommy Halferty Trio, percussionist and composer Éamonn Cagney, improvising pianist and composer Izumi Kimura, composer, sound designer and multi-instrumentalist Lara Gallagher, vocalist and songwriter Susan McKeown, pianist and composer Conor Linehan, sound artist and composer Craig Cox.
Gallery
