The Contemporary Music Centre has recognized excellence in the performance of contemporary Irish music with special awards given to young instrumentalists recently.

Ireland’s largest competitive music festival, the Siemens Feis Ceoil, which took place in Dublin in late March this year, featured the Contemporary Irish Music Cup ‘for the best performance of works by living Irish composers’. In addition to the Cup itself, presented by Feis Ceoil, cash prizes were sponsored by the Contemporary Music Centre and presented at the competition by Karen Hennessy, CMC’s Promotion Manager. The competition attracted a healthy entry of accomplished third-level performers who each played two contrasting works by living Irish composers. The adjudicator, Roger Bigley, was very impressed with the standard of entry.

The first prize of 300 and the Cup was awarded to Alison G. Murphy (flute) from Dundalk who played John Buckley’s Airflow and one movement from his Three Pieces for Solo Flute. The second prize of 150 was awarded to Dubliner Brian Bolger (guitar) for Jane O’Leary’s Four Pieces for Guitar and the second movement of Brian Boydell’s Three Pieces for Guitar.

In Waterford in April, first and second-level students competed in the Waterford Institute of Technology’s Fintan O’Carroll Feis. Prizes were awarded by the Contemporary Music Centre for the best overall performance of new Irish music in the under-11 and under-17 age groups. In the Junior section, Anne O'Riordan (piano) was the winner for her performance of Chordal Power from Pick-up Pieces by Philip Martin. The Senior winner was Peter Fahey (clarinet) for his performance of Two Clarinet Pieces by Marian Ingoldsby. The awards -- music vouchers from McCullough Pigott’s music shop -- will be presented at the Prizewinners' Concert on Thursday 3 June in the Good Shepherd Chapel of WIT.