Five new music commissions with accompanying visuals will be performed outdoors in Temple Bar's Meeting House Square on 17-23 June. The project is part of the ReJoyce Dublin 2004: Celebrating Bloomsday 100 festival and takes place in co-operation with Temple Bar Outdoors: Diversions Festival 2004 and the Association of Irish Composers.

This innovative initiative, funded by the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism, aims to bring contemporary music to the attention of a new audience by combining music and visuals in an imaginative way. Performing the pieces immediately prior to some of the late-night film screenings in the Diversions festival and removed from the stereotyped concert hall setting will, it is hoped, do away with some preconceived notions about new music.

After an open call for submissions and consideration by a selection panel the following five composers were each awarded one of these commissions: Rob Canning, Ben Dwyer, Vincent Kennedy, Trevor Knight and Michael Holohan. Each composer will work with one of three film-makers/visual artists: Eamonn O’Kane, Delicious 9 and Katie Lincoln. Each of these will produce visuals to accompany the music, which will be pre-recorded and played in advance of a film screening in Meeting House Square during Temple Bar Outdoors: Diversions Festival 2004 at 10.00 pm on the nights of 17, 18, 21, 22 and 23 June. Films to be screened include Nora, Ulysses, and O Brother Where Art Thou? amongst others.

The Contemporary Music Centre, Temple Bar Outdoors and the Association of Irish Composers are very excited about this series of events which aims to explore the influence of James Joyce on Irish composers throughout the 20th and 21st centuries; to expose new audiences to contemporary music and the inspiration of Joyce on Irish composers; and to facilitate the coming together of different art forms: literature, music and film.

For performance dates and programme details please visit the Calendar.

These events are grant-aided by the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism via the ReJoyce Dublin 2004 -- Celebrating Bloomsday 100 Festival.